collecting scions for an exchange
SO YOU'RE HEADING OUT TO THE SCION EXCHANGE
- COLLECTING SCIONS - do this as close to the day of the exchange as possible. The longer the scions are off the tree, the less probability the grafts will take.
- YOUNG WOOD - look for last year’s growth on the tree. No more than pencil size width. Too fat and it's hard to close the split, too narrow and it's weaker and has less cambium area to connect. (Cambium-a thin layer of living cells between the xylem (outer sapwood) and phloem (inner bark) that is responsible for secondary growth. Because cambium cells divide and make new cells, the cambia of two different but related plants will grow together if they are fixed and held firmly in contact.) Cut a 6-8” piece. Try to get at least 4-6 buds. Make sure it is healthy with no dead or diseased spots. Be sure to cut just above a bud so the tree will sprout new growth.
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