Budding - Asexual/vegetative Propagation

 

Budding

Budding is a technique in which a single bud of the required scion is used rather than an entire scion containing various buds. Most budding is completed simply before or during the growing season, but some species are also buddied throughout the winter whereas they're dormant. Make sure that the scion and rootstock are in sync, that the scion has developed buds, and that the scion and rootstock have a cambia match. Be especially careful to dry the grafting material or avoid contamination. With training, the speed at which this process can take place and the percentage of successful grafts are ''take'' - should be equal to or greater than other graftings. 

It is the method of propagation where only a single bud with a small section of the bark of scion wood is used on rootstock.

Types of budding

i) T-budding

ii) Chip budding

iii) Patch budding

iv) Ring or annular budding

v) Flute budding

vi) Forkert budding

i) T-Budding

The T-budding should be one when the bark will "slip". Slip means that when cut, the bark easily lifts or peels into an even layer of the underlying wood without breaking. When this condition occurs it depends on the soil moisture, temperature, and time of year. It changes with species and variety. The slippage of the bark can be shortened if the weather is dry or excessively hot or cold. Irrigation can be valuable in prolonging the budding season.

Since budding generally takes place during the warm summer months, two other precautions are commonly taken to ensure success. First, when the air temperature exceeds 90oF, buds should not be added. Second, the buds should be placed on the cold north or east sides of the stems.

ii) Chip Budding

Chip budding is a technique that can be used whenever mature buds are available. Since the bark doesn't need to "slip," the chip-budding season is longer than the T-budding season. Species whose bark doesn't slip effectively without tearing might be propagated more effectively by a chip-budding than by T-budding.

iii) Patch budding

The method patch budding might be the least complex to perform among the different methods of budding due to ease in separating or preparing rectangular patches of bark. It is widely used in thick-bark plants that can be isolated from wood.

This procedure involves completely removing the rectangular patch of bark, the long sides of which are parallel to the axis of the rootstock stem. It is then replaced with a bud patch of a similar size from a bud stick. The key knife is cut with two parallel horizontal cuts from both the rootstock and bud stick when using a single knife with one stroke or two strokes of a double blade knife. With a vertical stroke of a knife, both horizontal cuts are associated with each side. The bud patch is carefully removed from the patch and put into the rootstock.

iv) Ring or annular budding

One way to promote this method is to use a flute that is very close to the budding technique. This includes removing the entire bark ring from the rootstock without leaving the bark strip that connects the upper and lower parts of the rootstock. Thus, a portion of the stem is girdled as if in preparation for marcotting. It is then replaced with a full bark ring with a bud stick of the same size. Compared to other budding methods, it is rarely used because if the bud union fails, the upper part of the rootstock above the ring may die.

v) Flute budding

Similar to the patch budding, however, the bark patch that is taken out from the stem of a rootstock almost totally encircles it except that there remains a thin strip of bark (~1/8 the rootstock circle) that associates the upper and the lower portions of the rootstock. The bud patches are made in a circular motion around the stems at a distance of about 2.5 cm (the same length as in the rootstock) by two horizontal cuts. The two cuts are then joined by a vertical cut and the bark is separated from the wood by a patch. Bud patch circumference can be shortened by a vertical cut to fit the rootstock.

vi) Forkert budding

A form of the patch budding in which the bark patch remains in the rootstock. Incisions are made on the bark of the rootstock looking like “Π” and pulled descending as a flap which is then used to cover the inserted bud patch. This flap is later separated to expose the bud. Both the patch and the Forkert methods follow the same procedure as the bud patch.