Many apple trees that have been grafted to a half-stem or standard are available in specialist shops for plants and garden supplies. But you can also refine a self-grown seedling through copulation.

The difference between seedlings and grafted apple trees

In principle, an apple seedling that you have grown yourself from a core can bring a productive apple harvest. However, the result of the expected fruits is hardly predictable with an ungrafted tree. This is because when apple trees reproduce, the genetic information from their own tree is fused with that from the pollen of another apple tree. Since this foreign component can hardly be controlled in the case of pollination outdoors, there are surprises when the apple harvest occurs after a growth phase of around seven to ten years.

Copulate even a scion on the apple seedling

With a bit of luck and skill, you can also copulate the branch of a tried-and-tested variety on an apple tree grown wild from a core. For this you need at least the following things:

  • an apple seedling as a base
  • at least one scion
  • a clean planting shears for straight cuts
  • some binding bast or similar means for fixing

Since even with a little practice, the degree of success of this method is not 100 percent, you should seek help from an experienced gardening expert on the one hand and, on the other hand, carry out as many copulations as possible at the same time.

The process of copulation in the apple tree

The best time for copulation in the apple tree is late winter. The scions can also be harvested during winter pruning to save time. These are placed with a sloping section on a log end of the base that has been cut in the same way and fixed with a suitable means or binding bast. Wax-like coatings also protect the open area on the tree trunk from susceptibility to disease and fungal attack. The budding in March and April shows whether the copulation was successful.

tips and tricks

Copulation with a scion can be useful not only for young seedlings. With this method, poorly fruiting apple trees can also be grafted with a new apple variety.

Category:

Trees