Picked up this grafted European pear at HOS scion festival 3/2012, growing well since...until a month ago. It sprouted leaves (on the graft) but then they shriveled and died. Now leaves sprouting out of rootstock. The grafted portion is stone cold dry and dead.
What shall I do? Can I let the rootstock grow and graft a new pear scion onto it 3/2014, at the next scion fair??? Should I rip it out and buy a pear to plant from One Green World (though getting a little late to do that, I think). Or is there a way find scions now and is there still time to graft this season?
Thanks!
Sorry to hear that your graft failed, but it happens to all of us. The great thing about grafting is there are always more chances. You could do either of the three options you suggest. Another option would be to leave the rootstock in place and bud graft this summer. Come to the budding workshop (usually in August) to learn how to do it. I'm not sure if the arboretum has the pear variety you want though.
If it were me, I would try budding it and if that didn't take I would leave the rootstock in place to develop a nice root system this year and graft another dormant scion next spring. For the grafts I have done it seems that they get started faster on an established rootstock/tree than the ones grafted onto new rootstock.
Galen
Portland, OR
Was that a make-a-tree order, or was it grafted for you at the exchange with rootstock and scion you chose, or was it one of the general trees for sale that you picked up?
What variety is the pear? Do you know the rootstock? Those don't look like pear leaves growing out from the base. Maybe hawthorn? It may be that the variety of the scion isn't compatible with hawthorn or whatever the root stock is.
Galen, if you are speaking from personal experience, I defer as I have little with hawthorn and none with pyrus betulaefolia. But prior to my post I did a Google search for Pyrus betulaefolia and didn't see any leaves that looked to me like those on Brian's tree, whereas the hawthorn do.
Pyrus betulaefolia leaves image search
[url:115zz3xq]https://www.google.com/search?q=Pyrus+betulaefolia+leaves&num=100&newwindow=1&safe=off&rlz=1T4GGHP_enUS463US463&source=lnms&tbm=isch&sa=X&ei=JeeCUYubCcTuyAG09YHgCg&ved=0CAoQ_AUoAQ&biw=1297&bih=659[/url:115zz3xq]
hawthorn leaves image search
[url:115zz3xq]https://www.google.com/search?q=hawthorn%20leaves&rls=com.microsoft:en-us:IE-Address&oe=UTF-8&rlz=1I7GGHP_enUS463&um=1&ie=UTF-8&hl=en&tbm=isch&source=og&sa=N&tab=wi&ei=U-eCUZ7TGefuyAGN0YD4Cw&biw=1297&bih=659&sei=VeeCUdi9NYG9ygGwyICwDg[/url:115zz3xq]
I got my Asian and European pears mixed up that I have in the yard. After looking up my notes, I see the one in the pic is actually Betulifolia rootstock (spelled a little different than betulaefolia) with a Shinseiki Asian pear, now dead, atop of it.
Thanks for the feedback, all. The rootstalk is really growing well, so I think I will indeed wait til the next scion fair and graft then...I'll look up bud grafting and the class, too, something I haven't tried yet.
The tree was done at the scion fair - chose my own scion and had someone graft for me. Ones I've done myself (scion on rootstalk or existing tree) are about 50/50, so I don't mind less than complete success.
Brian
Idyllwild
simplepress
jafar
Marsha H
Viron
John S
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