Development of improved techniques for grafting of pecan

• By using cleft graft with hot cable the success of graft is being increased by 90%.
• By using cleft graft with polyethylene bag the success of graft is being increased by 70%.
• The best time for graft in cleft graft with hot cable method was from late June-late February.
• The best time for graft in method of cleft graft with polyethylene bag was from mid February-late March.
• Maintenance of humidity around the graft position is the most important factor in graft success.

This project was carried out at the Safiabad Agricultural Research Center of Dezful during 2011–12. Three graft methods are investigated in this project: cleft graft with hot cable system five times from late October till mid-February, cleft graft with polyethylene bag, and side-stub five times from early November till early March. For each grafting method, scion wood of ‘GraTex’, ‘Wichita’, ‘Choctaw’, ‘10J’ and ‘GraKing’ pecan cultivars were grafted onto two-year old seedling rootstocks 1–1.5 cm in diameter. The best graft time was from late January till late February using the cleft graft with hot cable system graft method and from mid-February till late March using the cleft graft with polyethylene bag grafting method. Also, the highest percentage of graft success was achieved using ‘Wichita’ scion (92%), while ‘10J’ had the lowest percentage. The side-stub grafting method was unsuccessful compared to the other two methods and percentages of graft success for different cultivars using this method were below 20%.