Where to buy rootstock/understock

17 years ago

OK, this is my first post here so I hope I do this right. I'm looking to by some rootstock to try my hand at grafting. I have a huge japanese laceleaf maple that's iching to have some of it branches cut off and grafted. My problem is I cannot find any rootstock, local or on the web. I do have a green japanese maple that has produced some seedlings this year but obviously, they are not ready to be rootstock yet. Does anyone out there know of a place where I can get some seedlings (reasonabley priced of course)ready to be used as roostock?

Thanks

Don

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Comments (3)

mickey_dee2002
17 years ago
Don: All my sources are wholesale except Sooners. I'm not sure he has any green japanese maples this time of year but you could try http://www.soonerplantfarm.com/. The other places are Heritage in Salem Oregon..think they have a minimum http://www.heritageseedlings.com/index.htm and I got some here last winter but I think Molly is sold out now http://www.scanlannursery.com/index.html Most people don't do any grafting this time of year. They usually do it in February or late in the summer. I got to warn you it is a lot harder then it looks.
Mike
dante880
Original Author
17 years ago
Mike, Thanks for the links and the info. I figured it was a little late in the year for this but want to be ready for when it's time. I never figured rootstock would be so hard to find. I've been told there's a guy selling them along side the road here, just got to go out and find him now.
What makes grafting so hard. I've read a few books on grafting and it doesn't seem too hard, as long as you get everything lined up right. Are japanese maples harder then other to graft?
Don
mickey_dee2002
17 years ago
Cutting those little pieces of scion wood takes a skillful hand not to go to deep or too little and then making a matching cut in the rootstock is a challenge some of them are pretty tuff to cut through without taking your finger or thumb off. After that you got to hold the two pieces together, keeping them aligned and wrap them will a budding rubber. My fingers and coordination really got a work out...then I still don't know if the graft is even going to survive. One of my root stock hasn't even started to leaf out so I guess that one is a goner. this winter was my first attempt. I'm starting some green maples from seed so I hope to have more root stock to experiment with next year. I have found a source for grafted Japanese Maples (the guy told me he does about 30,000 grafts a year with a couple of other people)that I might just buy from...I had to at least try it though. I'm also going to experiment with trying to do weeping pussy willows. Ive got my root stock and scion wood on order and will try that next year hopefully.