Wednesday, May 9, 2012

Bark graft bursting

   A few weeks back, I showed you how I top-worked a pecan tree using the bark graft.  Now, I can show you that the graft has been successful and the new shoots are already 3 to 4 inches long. However, there is something more in the photo to see. The scion is producing catkins and may even develop pistillate flowers in a week or two.
     I'll leave the catkins alone. But if the shoots growing from the scion produce nutlets, I'll prune them off. At this point in the new graft's development, I want nothing but vigorous vegetative growth. I'm hoping to push the scion enough to grow over at least 1/2 of the stock's stump by the end of the growing season.