2023 April 14

Got a nagami kumquat from Home Depot and cleft grafted 2 meiwa scions.

2023 May 5

I took the foil off the grafts. Looks like the grafts didn’t make it. The parafilm tape I purchased was basically plastic wrap which I don’t think is right. It should be more like a wax than plastic.

2023 May 11

Staked a few branches to form a better structure.

2023 October 25

I put two chip bud grafts and a cleft graft on this tree. All of them were Meiwa Kumquat (CRC 3833) that I ordered from the CCPP.

2023 November 14

I unwrapped the grafts 3 weeks later and they are all still green. One of the chip buds has obvious callousing where the graft is healing. 🤞

2023 November 28

I don’t think any of these grafts are going to make it. The cleft graft and one of the chip buds (the one with callusing) are certainly dead and the second chip bud doesn’t seem promising. I think that grafting in the fall when temperatures are falling was a mistake. Citrus grafts heal best when temperatures are between 70F and 85F at any point in the day. The highs in phoenix are 70F or less now so there is not much opportunity for the grafts to heal. Maybe it would be better to graft in the spring when the highs are in the low 80s and climbing? I also think it would be better to use a grafting tape that doesn’t need to be removed from the graft like buddy tape. I think my scions dried out after I removed the tape.

2024 March 3

It didn’t like the cold, but it seems to have survived without protection. We got down to at least 24F one night.