Green Horizons

Grafting trees is an essential skill for achieving optimum quality nuts. This 3-flap grafting technique can be learned quickly and will be demonstrated at upcoming grafting field day events in May.

If you have native pecans or black walnut on your property, or have purchased seedling nut trees in the past few years, you may want to learn how to graft your trees so you can enjoy nuts that are easy to crack, have improved disease resistance and bear bountiful yields. Several grafting field days are planned in May across the state and will offer an opportunity to try your hand at grafting.

Upcoming Grafting Events

Missouri Nut Growers Spring Meeting and Scionwood Swap Saturday, May 8th, 9:30 a.m. Norval and Jane Netsch Farm Windsor, Mo.

Two types of field grafting will be demonstrated: the 3- flap graft and the bark inlay graft. The 3-flap graft is used on trees with shoot diameters approximately the size of your finger that are in easy reach, therefore this grafting technique is suitable to small trees (see figure below).

The bark inlay method works on larger trees, where you stub off the tree with a saw and place the scion of the new cultivar you are grafting in between the bark and wood of the trunk (see figure). Personally, I think the 3-flap graft can be learned even by someone who is all “thumbs,” while the bark inlay graft requires developing a bit of carving skills to shape the scion to fit well onto the rootstock. These two field grafting techniques are explained online at www.centerforagroforestry.org. org., under the UMCA publications, “Propagating Pecan and Black Walnut.”

Master Grafter Field Day Thursday, May 6th, 9 a.m. Carrol Chancellor Farm Windsor, Mo

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The bark inlay grafting method requires basic carving skills.

At the grafting field days, you can obtain graftwood from experienced nut growers, and even better, have a chance to talk “nut trees” with friendly folks who enjoy sharing their experiences. You will also have an opportunity to receive guidance on supplies needed to graft, such as a sharp knife, hand pruners, plastic plant tie ribbon, aluminum foil, sandwich baggies and wood or craft glue.

This field day is ideal for those seeking hands-on practice in grafting nut trees. Participants will be allowed to graft 20 trees with experienced nut tree grafters available to assist and demonstrate field grafting techniques. Black walnut will be used, although Carrol does offer seedling pecan trees that can be used for demonstrations as well. Directions: From Sedalia, continue south on Hwy 65 for approximately 10 miles to Hwy 52. Turn right onto Hwy 52, and travel west for approximately 8 miles. Turn left on Maple Grove Road. The home is the first house on the right, 37497 Maple Grove Road.

The meeting will include grafting and pruning demonstrations, a scionwood swap and a project report on the use of cull and undersize trees as lumber, presented by Norval Netsch and the Missouri Sustainable Agriculture Demonstration Program. Free and open to the public. Directions: From Windsor, take Hwy 2 four miles west to Hwy 23. Take Hwy 23 one mile north to Bowen. Take the gravel road 0.6 mile west, and look for an old farm house with red barns on the north side.