grafting for hardiness

Tom2643 · Post by **Tom2643** » Sun Mar 16, 2008 12:09 am

Has anyone ever tried to graft a marginally hardy plant onto a hardier rootstock to see if survival improves? I know it works on a lot of fruit trees, and the professor who taught me most of the (limited) info i know about cacti grafting said it should work, but i wanted to know if anyone has tried it. I think this spring i'm gonna cut up a few pads from one of my opuntias and try a couple of grafts of some different zone 5 things to see how they do.

lordarutha · Post by **lordarutha** » Sun Mar 16, 2008 9:31 am

Hi Tom, yes it is done quite a lot although I have not had a lot of luck with grafting. It is done on plants that loose their roots easily or on slower growing plants to speed up growth. Uebelmannia pectinifera is a prime example as it is hard to keep alive, although Daiv has managed it ok and Lewis is having better luck than I did. Those strange moon cactus are also grafted as they produce no chlorophyll of their own.

Loph · Post by **Loph** » Sun Mar 16, 2008 11:46 am

one example from my garden is Trichocereus bridgesii. on their own tehy tend to rot LOTS here cause it is so wet/humid. All my grafted plants have no sign of rot at all.

ihc6480 · Post by **ihc6480** » Mon Mar 17, 2008 12:24 am

Yep, theres no doubt it has been tried and done. I know Opuntia compressa is commonly used as a root stock for grafting.

http://www.cactus-art.biz/technics/Graf ... _index.htm

Need some compressa pads for your experimenting

Tom2643 · Post by **Tom2643** » Mon Mar 17, 2008 6:12 am

thanks! I knew cacti grafts were pretty easy (i got a christmas cactus graft to take onto a hylocereus with no effort at all), i just wasn't sure if anyone has ever really tried for hardiness. I'll have to slice and dice some of my tried and true opuntia once they plump up! I'll be sure to post my results

John P Weiser · Post by **John P Weiser** » Wed Mar 19, 2008 7:40 pm

Tom Another grafting stock that has had success is Opuntia fragilis denuda. No spines

,great hardyness,moisture tolerant,low profile. Works well with ball and barrels. As the grafts grow and gain girth they hide the grafting stock. This gives the appearance that the plant is growing on it's own roots. From the western edge of the basin and range in Reno-Sparks, Nevada John P Weiser aka: SIERRARAINSHADOW

ihc6480 · Post by **ihc6480** » Thu Mar 20, 2008 1:36 am

John P Weiser wrote:Tom Another grafting stock that has had success is Opuntia fragilis denuda. No spines ,great hardyness,moisture tolerant,low profile. Works well with ball and barrels. As the grafts grow and gain girth they hide the grafting stock. This gives the appearance that the plant is growing on it's own roots. From the western edge of the basin and range in Reno-Sparks, Nevada John P Weiser aka: SIERRARAINSHADOW

Dang it John, you trying to give away our opuntiod secrets

Actually, I had forgot about denuda being an great grafting stock. Nice call

John P Weiser · Post by **John P Weiser** » Thu Mar 20, 2008 1:45 am

Hey Bill!!! I'm just trying to hold my own against the Opuntia Master.

Ya I do mean little ol you.

Happy growing From Reno-Sparks, Nevada John P Weiser aka: sierrarainshadow

ihc6480 · Post by **ihc6480** » Thu Mar 20, 2008 1:58 am

Thanks for the praise but I'm just an admirer of opuntiods and the master of none

I have a filling you'll be able to hold your own

Tom2643 · Post by **Tom2643** » Thu Mar 20, 2008 4:38 am

Thanks guys! Do you know if that particular opuntia is hardy this far north? I'm probably gonna practice on one of the ones i've already got, I have no clue what it is but the pads are mostly thornless and quite large/abundant. I'm so excited for my cacti to plump up so I can try this!

John P Weiser · Post by **John P Weiser** » Thu Mar 20, 2008 9:52 pm

Tom Opuntia fragilis is one of, if not The Most Hardy of all the cactus. It can be found all over the western provinces of Canada from the pacific coastal islands eastward as far as Manitoba. In the United States, from the Great Plains States in to the Great Basin and Eastern Pacific Northwest, even into the higher elevations of the Desert South West. Turning to the east there are small native populations scattered across the North Central and Mid Western States. It is rather diverse in its appearance from population to population. (Spine length and color)-(pad shape, color and size)-(flower color is usually yellow but may be pink in hybrid populations). A short sprawling mound with many small pads that tend to be rather plump in most populations, they break away easily which is besides seed, is their main way of propagation. The denuda we were referring to should be hardy well into zone 3-4 or maybe even into zone 2. This selection has marble shaped pads in a medium shade of green gray and no spines. You could say it's user freindly.

From the shadow of the western range John P Weiser aka;sierrarainsadow

Tom2643 · Post by **Tom2643** » Thu Mar 20, 2008 10:24 pm

I'll have to keep an eye out for it, I've got one of the species (i think, its never flowered but its quite small and seems to fit the description...it was unlabeled when i got it), but its covered in spines and not that friendly to the touch. Is denuda a commonly seen variety or am I going to have to scout long and hard for this one?

John P Weiser · Post by **John P Weiser** » Thu Mar 20, 2008 11:07 pm

Tom I meant to post a link to my photos of Opuntia fragilis. So here they are http://www.flickr.com/photos/sierrarain ... 3537018087 and http://www.flickr.com/photos/sierrarain ... 532560260/ These are the two varieties I have. There are several gardeners who have collections of up to thirty+ varieties.(I am sure I will catch up to them.

All I need is a little time and of course "The Fever"

I have come down with!!!!!!I already have three on order as we speak. One that Bill just got, called "Black Cat" with rather long black spines. Another one is said to have long red spines. The third is called "Little Grey Mound" with small gray pads and no spines like fragilis denudata. Mind you this is only the start it could snowball! With very little effort on my part,

into a very real obsession.

Good growing from Reno-Sparks, Nevada John P Weiser aka: sierrarainshadow

John P Weiser · Post by **John P Weiser** » Thu Mar 20, 2008 11:53 pm

Tom you will be able to order several clones from Cold Hardy Cactus http://www.coldhardycactus.com/index.htm ,or Plantasia Cactus Gardens out of Twin Falls, ID. Plantasia does not have a web site but this is their contact info:Plantasia Cactus Gardens,867 Filer Ave W
Twin Falls, Idaho 83301
(208) 734-7959
Email:lorton1@msn.com
Plantasia will e-mail a plant and price list to you.I hope this helps.

John P Weiser aka: sierrarainshadow

Tom2643 · Post by **Tom2643** » Thu Mar 20, 2008 11:56 pm

thanks a lot!