I have used duck tape for that purpose but it can be very hard to remove. Could you tie it up with strips of cotton cloth? That would allow it to breath some while still holding it together so it can heal. If it doesn't heal, prune out the affected areas and they will regrow. I prune my BB hard after harvest and still have to prune hard in the spring to reduce overbearing. The Fruitnut

Ken, this 'tree circus' is the result of a steady grafting hand using basically two techniques; pleaching and bridge grafting. Also, close observation indicates a seldom mentioned method, not used on conifers, which I learned about several years ago and have been practicing. Very useful for the bonsai addict who wants to add a branch onto a bare space in a tree trunk. Give this a try on a young sapling... In the very early spring (important) using an exacto knife quickly make/pound one vertical slice through the sapling's trunk and out the other side. Do not withdraw the knife. Instead, find another young, supple branch on the same tree that you can bend around and insert its tip end bud through the cut forming a new branch about 1" long. Remove knife carefully. Leave all in place until you are certain the graft has taken and the new branch is growing. Then, using sharp shears, cut the 'donor branch' cleanly next to the trunk which frees it to continue growing as before and the new branch continues normal development. A good way to practice this graft is on a shrub, making a cut in a branch, inserting the tip end bud of another branch which is still attached to the mother shrub through the cut, waiting for the graft to heal and then separating the two. Hope you can follow my explanation as interesting tree shapes can be developed with this grafting technique.

That's lovely. I sold a lot of MIL's china at an antiques mall nearby, but I had better luck selling off the rare pieces on Ebay. I sold them one at a time, so shipping was easy. She had a full set of Franciscan Desert Rose. Some of the rare pieces fetched up to $300 per piece! I almost sold that entire set for $500, I would have kicked myself later if I had! Good luck, that is a lovely pattern you have there. Personally, I'd keep it! It's a timeless pattern.

I remember reading that...but it's still just as funny.... I am completely surprised that I didn't find a post from me on there...My DH has done a few things during our 42 years that I tell on him every now and then. patti