Can camellia be grafted onto oil tea trees?
Introduction to the article: The topic of whether camellia can be grafted onto oil tea trees, as well as the timing and methods of oil tea grafting, will be discussed. Next, the editor will introduce these topics.
Grafting camellia onto oil tea as a rootstock is possible, but there may be incompatibility issues that should be considered. One method is the seedling rootstock grafting, where oil tea seeds are sown in sand beds, and after about 2 months of growth, when the seedlings reach 4cm to 5cm in height, they can be removed for cleft grafting. Select a good quality, lignified branch of camellia, cut a section with one bud and one leaf as the scion, and cut the internode into a楔形 shape, removing some of the leaves and wrapping them in a damp towel for grafting use; dig out the oil tea seedling, cut off 1cm to 1.5cm above the cotyledon, and also remove the tip of the root, keeping the total length between 6cm to 7cm. Make a longitudinal cut along the cotyledon joint, and accurately insert the lower end of the cut scion into the cleft of the rootstock, aligning at least one side of the cambium layer, then tie it up with paper tape or plastic film, or use a small piece of tin-aluminum toothpaste tube to hold the joint. Plant the grafted seedlings in the seedbed at a spacing of 3cm x 8cm, cover with plastic film to keep warm, and generally start to heal after 10 to 15 days, then uncover the film at night after 20 to 25 days to ventilate and expose to dew, and remove the binding material when the scion bud starts to grow. The second method is semi-mature branch grafting, using large oil tea plants for crown replacement grafting, which can cultivate various large camellia plants within 1 to 2 years. The pruning time for summer grafting rootstock is before the end of February, and for autumn grafting rootstock is in mid-to-late June. The suitable temperature for grafting is between 25℃ to 30℃, and in the Yangtze River Valley, the suitable period is from late May to early June and from late August to early September, as the bark is easy to pull apart at this time, and the graft union heals quickly with a high survival rate.
For branches with a diameter of more than 1cm, pull-off grafting is used, making three cuts on the top, left, and right of the grafting part of the rootstock branch, pulling down the bark to match the length of the cut surface of the scion, then sticking the cut scion on the inner side of the pulled bark of the rootstock, pulling the bark up to cover the scion, and tying it with plastic tape, leaving the bud tip exposed and covering it with a plastic bag to increase humidity and promote healing. After one month, remove the bag, and when the scion grows new shoots and gradually lignifies, the binding material can be completely removed. If the diameter of the rootstock is similar to that of the scion, an abdominal grafting method is appropriate.
The cutting of the rootstock is carried out in three stages. The first is to cut off the top of the rootstock at the time of grafting binding to weaken the apical dominance; the second is to cut off 1/3 of the upper part of the rootstock when the first new shoot is fully lignified, retaining some branches and leaves to facilitate photosynthesis and root absorption function; the third is to cut off the rootstock at the same level as the graft joint after the second new shoot of the scion is fully lignified by making a 45-degree斜口 cut downward. This staged cutting can provide shading and moisture retention for the scion. Any buds that sprout on the rootstock should be promptly and thoroughly removed to prevent unnecessary loss of moisture and nutrients.
The introduction to whether camellia can be grafted onto oil tea trees and the specific methods and timing of oil tea grafting mentioned above are for netizens' reference.