Breaking off a graft - easier than you think

Funny, I did the same thing yesterday to a Bavay’s. Mine was much smaller, but I wrapped it back up and put Doc Farwell’s over it again. I’m hopeful it will come back.

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Yes, I learned this that hard way last year when trying to increase a crotch angle. To get better leverage I went to the end of the branch and broke it off. Lesson learned and I now make several gradual movements over a few weeks instead of all at one time.

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I have snapped a few also for the reason/method you used. Since then when I am been bending small limbs I use both hands and do a control bend (actually a slight break) holding very close to the trunk. Then I support the limb a few months until it is sufficiently mended. It is easy to bend a limb down but more difficult to open up those angles at the trunk.

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Yep. Done that. Instead of trying to rescue the fallen branch which is barely hanging on by a few fingernails to avoid falling off the cliff, I wonder if the grown-out scion has any dormant buds on it. If so, I would have more hope in regrafting part of the budded branch in a new and improved area of the lower tree rather than try to salvage a very iffy graft. If there are no dormant buds on it now because they have already grown out, and if the scion variety is valuable and can’t be replaced, then maybe all the reattachment and bracing could keep it alive long enough this year to grow some new dormant buds, which could make possible a late Summer grafting of the branch area with new dormant buds onto a new and improved area of the lower trunk. I’m for rebooting with a new , hopefully- healthy graft union, rather than go for a tough rescue attempt on a badly developed graft union that may always need supplemental bracing to keep it attached.

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Fortunately these are Clara Frijs and I have 2 of these trees already that are over 12’ tall.

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I did save this branch and though the gap is not healed completely it’s growing fine.

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It eventually healed over completely