Tomato Grafting

Discussion in 'Edible Gardening' started by JWK, Feb 21, 2013.

  1. Freddy

    Freddy Miserable git, well known for it

    Joined:
    Jul 15, 2007
    Messages:
    9,466
    Gender:
    Male
    Occupation:
    Retired - yay!
    Location:
    Bristol
    Ratings:
    +12,518
    Brilliant post John!:dbgrtmb: I wont be bothering with it, as I'm not so good at those fiddly jobs, and would only get down-hearted when it failed. Some very interesting points though:)
     
    • Like Like x 2
    • Kristen

      Kristen Under gardener

      Joined:
      Jul 22, 2006
      Messages:
      17,534
      Gender:
      Male
      Location:
      Suffolk, UK
      Ratings:
      +12,669
      The video on JohnnySeeds of their side-grafting technique made it look like some diameter difference would be tolerable whereas for a top-graft it looked like they had to be identical. The chap made it look disarmingly easy, and said he could do about 80 an hour ... rather him than me!

      For the top graft (about 2/3rd the way through the video) he slipped [what looked to be] a collar onto the rootstock and then stuffed the Scion into the collar. I expect he aligned them so that the diagonally cut surfaces mated, but the speed he went at didn't make that obvious, but I was left wondering how those collars came off subsequently - they didn't look to be spring-loaded like the clips.
       
    • Dave W

      Dave W Total Gardener

      Joined:
      Feb 6, 2006
      Messages:
      6,143
      Gender:
      Male
      Occupation:
      Anything I fancy and can afford!
      Location:
      Tay Valley
      Ratings:
      +3,035
      Many thanks John for passing on your experiences.:ThankYou: It was fascinating reading.
      Seems like a lot of work. I wonder if that's where the term "hard graft" came from!
       
      • Like Like x 3
      • JWK

        JWK Gardener Staff Member

        Joined:
        Jun 3, 2008
        Messages:
        32,371
        Gender:
        Male
        Location:
        Surrey
        Ratings:
        +49,761
        Yes he does make it look easy and so fast :) For me I would have liked to have had a a practical lesson with seomone face to face rather than watvhing youtube videos.

        I tried a similar side-splice, like this one (photo taken just before I put the clip on):

        IMG_5956.JPG

        None of this sort of splice worked for me, the tension of the two seedlings seemed to spring them apart. Although the guy on the link was working slightly differently, using seedlings from seperate pots.
         
        • Like Like x 1
        • JWK

          JWK Gardener Staff Member

          Joined:
          Jun 3, 2008
          Messages:
          32,371
          Gender:
          Male
          Location:
          Surrey
          Ratings:
          +49,761
          I think these are exactly the same silicon tube clips I ended up using, they are very flexible and have a slit so it's really easy to slip off. I think they are designed so that as the stem increases in diameter it pushes the tube off by itself:

          [​IMG]
           
          • Like Like x 1
          • Freddy

            Freddy Miserable git, well known for it

            Joined:
            Jul 15, 2007
            Messages:
            9,466
            Gender:
            Male
            Occupation:
            Retired - yay!
            Location:
            Bristol
            Ratings:
            +12,518
            Blimey John, it's just like watching a scientist at work!:)
             
            • Like Like x 1
            • Agree Agree x 1
            • kevinm

              kevinm Gardener

              Joined:
              Feb 10, 2010
              Messages:
              197
              Gender:
              Male
              Ratings:
              +387
              Last year I grew Elegance grafted and from seed and I found that the grafted plants were were more vigorous overall. However, the difference hardly warants the extra expense in the long run,
               
              • Like Like x 2
              • Phil A

                Phil A Guest

                Ratings:
                +0
                • Like Like x 2
                • JWK

                  JWK Gardener Staff Member

                  Joined:
                  Jun 3, 2008
                  Messages:
                  32,371
                  Gender:
                  Male
                  Location:
                  Surrey
                  Ratings:
                  +49,761
                  It's good to get your feedback kevin. Did you grow them in a greenhouse and in the border soil, or in containers/grow-bags?
                   
                • JWK

                  JWK Gardener Staff Member

                  Joined:
                  Jun 3, 2008
                  Messages:
                  32,371
                  Gender:
                  Male
                  Location:
                  Surrey
                  Ratings:
                  +49,761
                  I can email the photos to you or is there a better way?
                   
                • j.r

                  j.r Gardener

                  Joined:
                  Apr 10, 2009
                  Messages:
                  43
                  Occupation:
                  gardening
                  Location:
                  valencia
                  Ratings:
                  +44
                  hello ived tried grafting recently giant watermelon onto pumpkin casper and ived been doing insertion grafting, u put a hole in the rootstock and then cut the scion the right size to fit in and u dont need grafting clips, i think u could use gardeners delight as a rootstock
                   
                  • Like Like x 1
                  • JWK

                    JWK Gardener Staff Member

                    Joined:
                    Jun 3, 2008
                    Messages:
                    32,371
                    Gender:
                    Male
                    Location:
                    Surrey
                    Ratings:
                    +49,761
                    Do you mean use Gardeners Delight as the rootstock for other tomatoes? That wouldn't convey any resistance to soil-borne diseases, or am I mis-understanding?
                     
                  • j.r

                    j.r Gardener

                    Joined:
                    Apr 10, 2009
                    Messages:
                    43
                    Occupation:
                    gardening
                    Location:
                    valencia
                    Ratings:
                    +44
                    • Like Like x 1
                    • JWK

                      JWK Gardener Staff Member

                      Joined:
                      Jun 3, 2008
                      Messages:
                      32,371
                      Gender:
                      Male
                      Location:
                      Surrey
                      Ratings:
                      +49,761
                      That's a very useful link j.r. - one I'd not found before, and has some interesting ideas - Thanks!
                       
                    • Phil A

                      Phil A Guest

                      Ratings:
                      +0
                      I'll sort it out over the weekend John:) too tired now.
                       
                      • Friendly Friendly x 1
                      Loading...

                      Share This Page

                      1. This site uses cookies to help personalise content, tailor your experience and to keep you logged in if you register.
                        By continuing to use this site, you are consenting to our use of cookies.
                        Dismiss Notice