Rootstocks and scions

9 years ago

Merry Christmas to all fellow gardeners.

When the weather gets cold and all of my 2015 garden plans are almost done I usually start looking for something to do differently in the yard and espaliering some apple trees has peaked my interests.

Over the last couple of weeks I have been researching the different rootstocks that are available and have come to the conclusion that it is very confusing, so with that being said I will ask a few of my Q's.

For doing espalier in michigan is there a specific rootstock that I should use? I would like the trees to get about 6 to 8 ft. tall when it is fully grown.

I know that there are a lot of variables when choosing rootstocks so maybe it would be easier to ask which ones to avoid. Or would it be better for me to just buy some trees already grafted to a particular rootstock?

I surely have many more Q's but will wait for now.

Here is a link that might be useful: Garden pics

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Comments (11)

Tony
9 years ago
TPP

In the link below has good infos about apple rootstocks for espaliering. Wow you have a massive garden. What do you do with all the extra veggies? BTW, I like how you keep your garden weeds free.

Tony

Here is a link that might be useful: Rootstocks

This post was edited by tonytran on Thu, Dec 25, 14 at 8:46
thepodpiper
Original Author
9 years ago
thanks tony, good link.

Can rootstock be bought at any time of the year and can i put them in pots and grow them in the house until spring?

Family and friends enjoy the benefits of such a large garden as much as I do.
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There are orchards in Tennessee, but no large ones near where I live. I have seen small plantings (10-15) trees around some of the local farms, but would be surprised to find that those growers were "experts". In any event, I don't know any experienced individual fruit growers locally. It seems to me that feedback from multiple sources, such as here on Gardenweb, is one of the best ways to get info. Another good thing is the "peer review" that goes on here. I have talked to the local extension people, but have found that the amount of helpful information from them is definitely limited. I think the combined years of experience here are probably highly useful compared to any single source with which I am familiar. As for planting the graft union right at ground level, from what I read about burying the graft unions to reduce/eliminate burr knots, I'm not sure that planting the graft unions at or just above ground level would work. I think the idea was to plant the trees so that the scion would form its own root system and eventually bypass the 111 rootstock. Has anyone else had good or bad experiences with 111 concerning burr knots? Anyone have any information about how much difference the EMLA (virus free) rootstock makes? How about the tomato ringspot virus issues?
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1) Is it the rootstock or the scion that determines whether the tree is a dwarf? Since I'll be growing these inside, I want them to produce fruit at A)It's the scion not the root stock 2) If it is the rootstock that determines whether or not the tree is a dwarf, which rootstocks do you recommend? I've read that Turpentine is often used, but I don't know if it will result in a dwarf tree if I graft a scion onto it. A)Any root stock is fine to graft your Carrie scion onto.(but then again I could be wrong about this,maybe some one will correct me) Turpentine is mostly use in Florida nursery because it grows wild there and is more accustom to their soil. California uses manila(poly) root stock instead. 3) It sounds like polyembryonic varieties are true to seed, whereas monoembryonic ones are not. Therefore, if I want to purchase seeds to grow a tree to use as a rootstock, I'll need to purchase seeds from a polyembryonic variety, right? A)Polyembryonic mango grows true to the parent fruit it came from not the scion type you plan to graft onto. But if you still insist on growing a poly seed the easiest ones to find are the ataulfo mangoes. They are the small yellow kidney shape ones, which are usually found at the ethnic or specialty store. They can be called several names based on which company is marketing them ie: honey, manila, or champagne. The real manila mangoes are not the same as ataulfo. 4) I think I'd like to try using Carrie for the scion. Does this change which rootstock I should choose for grafting to result in a dwarf tree? A)I don't think root stock matters, it's the scion that will determine what kind of mango tree you will get. The're are many more condo/dwarf type to choose from not just Carrie(ie: cogshall, ice cream, pickering,) just to name a few. Make sure you do some research about which kind you would like flavor wise since the're are so many. Pine island nursery have a good variety viewer that gives a good description of the different variety of mangoes including the dwarf, check out their site. 5) If I grow a Carrie and want to propagate it, can I plant a seed from the Carrie to get a rootstock to start with, and then graft a scion from the mature Carrie onto the rootstock to result in a dwarf Carrie? A)Yes, you sure can graft a scion from your mature Carrie onto your Carrie grown seedling and still get a dwarf future plant because you are creating another Carrie and not a seedling plant. But if you grow out that Carrie seed to full mature tree it will no longer be a Carrie, but a Carrie seedling even if it's also a dwarf. check out the link, it might help you more and hopefully some more season fruit nut will come by to give their advise also. Here is a link that might be useful: pine island nursery
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Tony
9 years ago
TPP
Apple rootstock still need to go into dormant. It is not an evergreen. You can put it under growth light in January for a head start.

Tony
TurCre
9 years ago
You could bench graft to your dormant root stock. Then bring those grafted trees to life indoors if you were bored or wanting a jump start on spring.
thepodpiper
Original Author
9 years ago
A little bored and a little excited to get started on trying something new.

Seems there is much more to it in regards to picking what to grow and what to grow it on.
For the area I'm living in I know that i need something to handle the cold winters and I know that I do not want something to grow into a full size tree.

There is also the dilemma of fitting 6 trees in a 32' row (is this possible?)
thepodpiper
Original Author
9 years ago
A little bored and a little excited to get started on trying something new.

Seems there is much more to it in regards to picking what to grow and what to grow it on.
For the area I'm living in I know that i need something to handle the cold winters and I know that I do not want something to grow into a full size tree.

There is also the dilemma of fitting 6 trees in a 32' row (is this possible?)
TurCre
9 years ago
Bud 9 rootstock is a dwarf, cold hardy rootstock that you can easily fit 6 trees in the row if you go with a trellis type system.
thepodpiper
Original Author
9 years ago
I will be doing espalier so that would work for me.

will all apple scions be good to graft onto this rootstock? I would like to have a different apple for each tree.
appleseed70
9 years ago
Most apple cultivars will be compatible with Bud9, if you have any doubt, just search nursery availability for the cultivar in question and see if they offer it on Bud9. Very non-vigorous varieties may be slow growing on a dwarfing stock.
You may want them all to grow as uniformly as possible and if so you may want to choose all vigorous varieties or all non-vigorous. Since espalier takes some fiddling with to look real nice anyway, I'd choose vigorous varieties to speed growth.
I'm shooting from the hip here though, as I've never tried espalier before. Have thought about it though.
thepodpiper
Original Author
9 years ago
Makes sense to me Appleseed. I will get all vigorous varieties once i choose the rootstock that will do best in zone 6.
appleseed70
9 years ago
Fact check me on that before you do. It may be the case that vigorous varieties are difficult to maintain in a neat appearance. Personally I like to get on with my projects and get them to fruition as quickly as possible, but that may or may not be the best way to proceed depending on what you want.

Rootstocks and scions

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Tony

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Rootstocks and scions

Comments (11)

Tony

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