Let's see if I can provide a few answers.paulzie32 wrote:What if one side lifts up but the other side connects? I've had some like this that have eventually failed, some that succeed and some that stay alive but never really take off. Like one Pelecyphora that has sat on an incline for two years and has only grown about 2 mm in that time. I regrafted and one side lifted again and again, only about 2mm of growth this year.
And why would you say they lift on one side? I had pressure with rubber bands for a couple weeks. Could humidity not have been enough or not long enough? Were the cambium rings not aligned correctly?
Next scenario... If a scion produces a root or two, would you take that as a sign of a bad union and regraft or cut the root off?
Sorry if I'm being a pest, but I'm tring to think of as many scenarios as possible to help those interested in learning and trying themselves.
I get maybe 30% of grafts lifting on one side, but which are connected by the vascular rings. It is almost, but not quite, never, that I have to regraft them. I have never been able to acertain the cause but I suspect that it has something to do with the alignment of the rings. Usually they just grow as quickly as the ones with a more complete joining and the join area seems to fill itself in over time. Here's a few pics to show what I mean.
This graft is what we all desire and aim for. It looks to have quite a gap underneath the scion, but it's just the angle of the camera.
This one has tilted but is firmy attached and has just started to pump.
This one is a few weeks old is pumping very nicely, in spite of being tilted.
I liked the look of the Onzuka graft shown above, so I took another photograph from a different angle. Can you see what I can see?
Finally, if you see roots, the graft has failed! The scion can detect the moisture in the stock's rings and is sending out roots to tap into it. The survival instinct is strong. When I get these, I pot the scions up and give them their chance on their own roots. The may seem to have joined, but give them a slight tug and they will come away and you will see that they are not connected. They may have stuck together a bit, but the graft has failed.
Steve