Tomato Grafting Questions - 2014 Season

rnewste · January 21, 2014

I am trying to find the link for a tomato grafting video which was posted here last year. I thought it was from Johnny's Seeds but I checked their site and no listing of it.

It was of a guy in a large greenhouse who placed the grafted plants under his table to heal, if that joggs anyone's memory. I am trying to learn how long the grafts need to heal in the darkness.

If anyone can recall that instructional video, I would appreciate a current link to it. My scions are 15 days old - Maxifort rootstock now 5 days old - - so I need to get the healing chamber prepared soon.

thanks,

Raybo

KarenO · January 21, 2014

Hi there, I think I know the one you mean go to you tube and search "grafting greenhouse tomatoes" by Johnny's seeds. It's a great video.
Sorry I don't know how to copy the direct link with my phone
Karen

RJGlew · January 21, 2014

Quote:

Originally Posted by rnewste

I am trying to find the link for a tomato grafting video which was posted here last year. I thought it was from Johnny's Seeds but I checked their site and no listing of it.

It was of a guy in a large greenhouse who placed the grafted plants under his table to heal, if that joggs anyone's memory. I am trying to learn how long the grafts need to heal in the darkness.

If anyone can recall that instructional video, I would appreciate a current link to it. My scions are 15 days old - Maxifort rootstock now 5 days old - - so I need to get the healing chamber prepared soon.

thanks,

Raybo

This is the one I viewed last year:
http://www.johnnyseeds.com/mediaplay...tLander_012014

zipcode · January 21, 2014

You could also try the approach grafting method, which doesn't need a healing chamber.

rnewste · January 21, 2014

Thanks for the link to Johnny's - that was indeed the one I remember from last year. I've watched other YouTube videos on tomato grafting - and I am very confused by the apparent conflicting information (one says "4 days in the chamber", another states 9 days. I really want to find directions for a home gardener with 30 plants - not some large commercial operation.

Scions on the right, Maxifort rootstock on the left:

I tested out the portable Swiss-air cool vapor generator today and it works really well.

Raybo

kurt · January 22, 2014

Reading in past discussions I recall that the diameters of the two grafting stalks have to be the close to the same size same size for best results.

Virtex · January 22, 2014

Hey Raybo,

I would suggest you start some new Scions they will catch up to the root-stock. Root-stock is slower than regular tomatoes to germinate, I think they say to plant it a week before you Scions.

Here is a nice PDF that tells you everything you need to know about grafting.

http://www.kohalacenter.org/seedbasi...g%20tomato.pdf

I grafted last year and it was easier than it sounded. Let me know what you are grafting and I will see if I have the same results, you know how I like to take them pictures. Up for a tomato throw-down?

Good luck Raybo! Please share your results.

- Scott

cherokee · January 22, 2014

I have a Honeywell humidifier steams about 3 gal. Per day, I was thinking placing it under a healing chamber and let the steam enter the bottom and steam upward.
My question is how often and how long should I let it steam per day / Night?
Any one have any info, on this approch?
Thanks O’Neal

Salsacharley · January 22, 2014

If you are using "steam" you will probably kill your plants. Cool mist humidifiers are used for grafting.

Quote:

Originally Posted by cherokee

I have a Honeywell humidifier steams about 3 gal. Per day, I was thinking placing it under a healing chamber and let the steam enter the bottom and steam upward.
My question is how often and how long should I let it steam per day / Night?
Any one have any info, on this approch?
Thanks O’Neal

cherokee · January 22, 2014

Thanks I was conserned about that.
I was thinking on keeping the heat up as well but was worried about over saturation
Thanks have a great day.
O'Neal

rnewste · January 22, 2014

virtex,

Thanks for the heads-up on slower rootstock growth. I've started a "group B" tray of scions today as a backstop.

I've just read the U of Hawaii paper on grafting you posted, and it is amazing that nobody indicates the timing sequence for starting rootstock and scions. None of the YouTube videos I watched addressed this important item either.

Raybo

JamesL · January 22, 2014

I would argue that it depends on the germination method. I thought the Maxifort seeds jumped up faster for me than the scions last year. Stagger starting both groups in small batches could help as well.

aclum · January 22, 2014

Hi Raybo,

I happy to see you starting your grafting! I'm sure you'll figure it out faster than some of us did (talking about myself

).

I've spent a lot of time researching grafting and found that you can find variations on just about every aspect of things - exposure to light, amount and length of humidity exposure, watering, etc. I've concluded that it's best, at least at first, to just pick one method and stick to it, rather than "mixing and matching" things or cherry-picking.

BTW, there's an article online by Cary Rivard of NCSU or KSU on "Grafting Heirloom Tomatoes" that has a nice time line chart of when to start things (scions vs rootstock), increase or decrease humidity and light, temperatures, etc. Don't have a link offhand, but will try to post it later.

Not too long ago I started a bunch of seeds and 105 rootstock and they all germinated within a few days of each other. However, the rootstock, though up early, is growing at a slower pace than the scions. I've been working on trying to speed up the growth of the rootstock and slow down the scion growth (less light and cooler).

As someone else mentioned, matching stem diameters is critically important - at least in my experience. I'm sorry I can't give you any advice on the humidity as (ironically enough after my extensively documented work on putting together a fool-proof humidity dome), I'm now using a variation of Delerium's no humidity dome grafting technique! Having great results without the humidity dome or healing chamber, but haven't done enough to recommend to others yet.

Anne

rnewste · January 22, 2014

James,

How do you handle the Humidity Chamber process when you stagger small batches at a time?

I am attempting to do the grafting / healing process in a single cycle, so I have scions which were started 10 days prior to the rootstock; and now batch "B" scions started 6 days after rootstock. At the moment, I am just covering my bases with a spread of scion starts - but I really want to find the ideal lag (or advance) cycle for scions and the rootstock.

By next year, I should have this all calibrated out.......

Raybo

Delerium · January 22, 2014

Raybo go with the flow man..

very hard to screw up grafts unless your graft unions

are sloppy. Just do one cut when you cut the scion and root stock so they match

perfectly.

I did all these 3 days ago using thinned seedlings (keeping the best plants for last)

but these are all bouncing back to life very quickly.

January 21, 2014	#1
rnewste Tomatovillian™ Join Date: Apr 2007 Location: Campbell, CA Posts: 4,064	Tomato Grafting Questions - 2014 Season I am trying to find the link for a tomato grafting video which was posted here last year. I thought it was from Johnny's Seeds but I checked their site and no listing of it. It was of a guy in a large greenhouse who placed the grafted plants under his table to heal, if that joggs anyone's memory. I am trying to learn how long the grafts need to heal in the darkness. If anyone can recall that instructional video, I would appreciate a current link to it. My scions are 15 days old - Maxifort rootstock now 5 days old - - so I need to get the healing chamber prepared soon. thanks, Raybo

January 22, 2014	#6
kurt Tomatovillian™ Join Date: Oct 2011 Location: Homestead,Everglades City Fl. Posts: 2,500	Reading in past discussions I recall that the diameters of the two grafting stalks have to be the close to the same size same size for best results. __________________ KURT

January 22, 2014	#11
rnewste Tomatovillian™ Join Date: Apr 2007 Location: Campbell, CA Posts: 4,064	virtex, Thanks for the heads-up on slower rootstock growth. I've started a "group B" tray of scions today as a backstop. I've just read the U of Hawaii paper on grafting you posted, and it is amazing that nobody indicates the timing sequence for starting rootstock and scions. None of the YouTube videos I watched addressed this important item either. Raybo Last edited by rnewste; January 22, 2014 at 03:26 PM.

January 22, 2014	#13
aclum Tomatovillian™ Join Date: Feb 2010 Location: Merced, CA Posts: 832	Hi Raybo, I happy to see you starting your grafting! I'm sure you'll figure it out faster than some of us did (talking about myself). I've spent a lot of time researching grafting and found that you can find variations on just about every aspect of things - exposure to light, amount and length of humidity exposure, watering, etc. I've concluded that it's best, at least at first, to just pick one method and stick to it, rather than "mixing and matching" things or cherry-picking. BTW, there's an article online by Cary Rivard of NCSU or KSU on "Grafting Heirloom Tomatoes" that has a nice time line chart of when to start things (scions vs rootstock), increase or decrease humidity and light, temperatures, etc. Don't have a link offhand, but will try to post it later. Not too long ago I started a bunch of seeds and 105 rootstock and they all germinated within a few days of each other. However, the rootstock, though up early, is growing at a slower pace than the scions. I've been working on trying to speed up the growth of the rootstock and slow down the scion growth (less light and cooler). As someone else mentioned, matching stem diameters is critically important - at least in my experience. I'm sorry I can't give you any advice on the humidity as (ironically enough after my extensively documented work on putting together a fool-proof humidity dome), I'm now using a variation of Delerium's no humidity dome grafting technique! Having great results without the humidity dome or healing chamber, but haven't done enough to recommend to others yet. Anne

January 21, 2014	#2
KarenO Tomatovillian™ Join Date: Oct 2012 Location: Vancouver Island Posts: 5,931	Hi there, I think I know the one you mean go to you tube and search "grafting greenhouse tomatoes" by Johnny's seeds. It's a great video. Sorry I don't know how to copy the direct link with my phone Karen

January 21, 2014	#4
zipcode Tomatovillian™ Join Date: Jun 2010 Location: Romania/Germany , z 4-6 Posts: 1,582	You could also try the approach grafting method, which doesn't need a healing chamber.

January 22, 2014	#7
Virtex Tomatovillian™ Join Date: Jan 2013 Location: California Posts: 121	Hey Raybo, I would suggest you start some new Scions they will catch up to the root-stock. Root-stock is slower than regular tomatoes to germinate, I think they say to plant it a week before you Scions. Here is a nice PDF that tells you everything you need to know about grafting. http://www.kohalacenter.org/seedbasi...g%20tomato.pdf I grafted last year and it was easier than it sounded. Let me know what you are grafting and I will see if I have the same results, you know how I like to take them pictures. Up for a tomato throw-down? Good luck Raybo! Please share your results. - Scott

January 22, 2014	#8
cherokee Tomatovillian™ Join Date: Dec 2013 Location: north west Alabama @ Wheeler Dam Posts: 49	I have a Honeywell humidifier steams about 3 gal. Per day, I was thinking placing it under a healing chamber and let the steam enter the bottom and steam upward. My question is how often and how long should I let it steam per day / Night? Any one have any info, on this approch? Thanks O’Neal

January 22, 2014	#12
JamesL Tomatovillian™ Join Date: Nov 2011 Location: Long Island NY Posts: 1,992	I would argue that it depends on the germination method. I thought the Maxifort seeds jumped up faster for me than the scions last year. Stagger starting both groups in small batches could help as well.