What did you do in the garden today?

[jerryse]

Rooted lilac layer .

from this spring . Easy way to root French lilac .

 

[jerryse]

These are rooted quince rootstock for dwarf pear trees . 17 starts from 1 stump . The 2 on left already have pear grafted onto them this past spring while still attached to the stump . I used a plastic half barrel with the bottom cut out to hold dirt in a mound . I will graft most of these in the spring . The quince stump resulted from backing into a purchased tree with the riding mower . Quince rootstock grew back . Easy and cheap way to grow several pear trees . These will be food plot trees .

 

[3goodeggs]

I was told that it is the root stock that makes a tree dwarf... yet the pears I air layered remained dwarf... I dunno. I know my soft pear is grafted onto crab apple, (they should not be able to grow this far south) and the pear tree is huge.

I have decided that I prefer dwarf trees.

Could you explain to me what keeps a tree dwarf?

 

[jerryse]

I was told that it is the root stock that makes a tree dwarf... yet the pears I air layered remained dwarf... I dunno. I know my soft pear is grafted onto crab apple, (they should not be able to grow this far south) and the pear tree is huge.

I have decided that I prefer dwarf trees.

Could you explain to me what keeps a tree dwarf?

Could be a natural dwarf . Pear and apple are usually not compatible for grafting . I have heard winter banana apple will accept pear . You probably have one on callery pear root . They can have thorns . I have a friend that thought his was on locust root because of thorny suckers
coming up from the root . Callery pear is a natural dwarf to semi dwarf . Same species as flowering pear . I have wild thorny callery growing on my property . I have used them as rootstock . They tend to sucker a lot when grafted .

 

[3goodeggs]

OH! Yes. THORNS!!! I wear thick everything -leather gloves and eye protection to remove the suckers... but it isn't dwarf. I wish it was. The soft pears do not take the fall as well as the hard ones do.
I was hoping that the dwarf pear would send up suckers so that I could try to graft on to it, but no suckers.
Maybe that is the trick. I need to want the callery suckers.
But, If it isn't dwarf, then it must not be callery.

It blooms here and there all year and messes up the fruiting. It is confused.

 

[lazy gardener]

jerryse: Can you give a little more information regarding your Pear grafts onto Quince? I'm starting a very small orchard, and would love to have a single apple tree with several scions grafted onto it. I'd also love a pear tree, but don't want a huge tree, and I'm assuming that I'll need 2 varieties for pollination. Is there a particular variety of quince that you use? If I started a quince this spring, would I be able to graft a couple varieties of pear onto that root stock the following spring? I'm in Zone 4, and will most likely be ordering from (?) St. Lawrence Nursery in the spring.

 

[jerryse]

There are several ways to graft . YouTube has grafting videos . A whip graft or bud grafting are used on smaller stock . On a large scale they are bench grafted . That is the rootstocks are bare root and grafted indoors at a bench or table before being planted . You can use any quince . Mine are what the nursery trade use as it came from the root of a purchased tree . A flowering pear would also work as they are a small tree . I have used flowering quince before . There are a few pears that self pollinate . Stark's honey sweet is one . The old time Bartlett was . The Bartlett they sell now ripens in late August and needs a pollinator . The old trees called Bartlett were not ready until late September to early October . They self pollinated . Still some old ones around . Sometimes you can find a 2 in 1 fruit tree . You could buy local a variety you like then graft another variety onto that tree . A friend may let you have some scion wood . May find scion wood on eBay in the spring . I like sugar type pears . Soft and sweet . Moon glow and the new Bartlett make a nice grit free pear that cans well . Very good fresh also .

 

[jerryse]

Here is a picture of the quince this spring . Only 2 grafts took . A learning experience . All of the sprouts rooted .

 

[lazy gardener]

So, could I buy a quince this spring, get it started, and then graft directly onto the trunk the same year or the following spring?

 

[jerryse]

So, could I buy a quince this spring, get it started, and then graft directly onto the trunk the same year or the following spring?

Yes you could but it depends on the plant size . If bare root and large enough diameter ( pencil size ) you could whip graft . If that fails bud graft in July . Are you in zone 5 or 4 . Fewer varieties are rated for zone 4 . A dwarf pear from a local big box store would be a good start . You would only have to do 1 graft .