grafting to control size?

[Cakes]

I've heard a lot of people complain that they cannot grow a good sativa inside because it gets too big. So how about if it was grafted onto an indica rootstock? that's how we get dwarf fruit trees, we graft a regular tree onto the root of a dwarf or semi-dwarf tree and walla..

I don't have a full sativa strain right now but some day I'll try this. Just figured it might be worth throwing this idea out there.

[Shadows]

I'd be interested in seeing that. Dont think I have seen any successful MJ grafting attempts, if I have its been a while. I would assume tho, the sativa dominant graft would still behave like a sativa.

[Cakes]

You can graft new branches onto a marijuana plant and each branch will retain the characteristics of it's own strain when it comes to the bud quality. and doing that kind of grafting in the fruit tree industry is very common; lots of times they put maybe 3-5 types of apples on one tree. and each apple ripens in it's own variety's time.

Other fruit trees can begin ripening their fruit a lot earlier depending on their rootstock. <<i wonder if indica could do that?

Were you thinking the sativas just have too much muscle to be affected? it's a good idea and thanks for the input; I hadn't even considered it. and now that i WAS able to consider it, we remembered the 30' fruit trees that are made to grow 7' tall. huh. isn't that weird? those are the same figures that could be applied to a sativa and an indica.

[Shadows]

That is to some degree assuming that MJ will behave similarly to a fruit tree. Im not discounting this, it'd be cool as shit if it worked. If its something you could do, could you graft the indica onto the sativa instead of the other way around? If what your saying about the fruit trees holds true for MJ, then I'd much rather have the indica grafted onto the sativa.:D

[ncbud]

This is very interesting. If you successfully creat the plant you want, is it reproducable? In the case of the apple tree growing different varieties of apple I assume that each apple's seeds would produce it's parent variety right? What about a clone, would you get a clone of the whole, or a clone of the section cloned?

[StoninStanley]

why not try grafting the indica only 1 branch and leaving 1 more branch sativa, and then doing the same with another plant only vise versa, using the indica root and grafting only 1 branch sativa.

see which one comes out better :D

very interesting idea btw

[CB]

found this bit of info but haven't looked into it farther yet...

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Intergeneric grafts between Cannabis and Humulus (hops) have fascinated researchers and cultivators for decades. Warmke and Davidson (1943) claimed that Humbles tops grafted upon Cannabis roots produced ". . . as much drug as leaves from intact hemp plants, even though leaves from intact hop plants are completely nontoxic." According to this research, the active ingredient of Cannabis was being produced in the roots and transported across the graft to the Humulus tops. Later research by Crombie and Crombie (1975) entirely disproves this theory. Grafts were made between high and low THC strains of Cannabis as well as intergeneric grafts between Cannabis and Humulus, Detailed chromatographic analysis was performed on both donors for each graft and their control populations. The results showed ". . . no evidence of transport of inter mediates or factors critical to cannabinoid formation across the grafts."

Grafting of Cannabis is very simple. Several seedlings can be grafted together into one to produce very interesting specimen plants. One procedure starts by planting one seed ling each of several separate strains close together in the same container, placing the stock (root plant) for the cross in the center of the rest. When the seedlings are four weeks old they are ready to be grafted. A diagonal cut is made approximately half-way through the stock stem and one of the scion (shoot) seedlings at the same level. The cut portions are slipped together such that the inner cut surfaces are touching. The joints are held with a fold of cellophane tape. A second scion from an adjacent seedling may be grafted to the stock higher up the stem. After two weeks, the unwanted portions of the grafts are cut away. Eight to twelve weeks are needed to complete the graft, and the plants are maintained in a mild environment at all times. As the graft takes, and the plant begins to grow, the tape falls off.

[Trailer Park Boy]

If space is a problem, you can veg a sativa dom out until she reaches her 90 day mark, then take a cutting from that, plant it when it gets roots, flower it a week later. (thanks for that one rev!)

You will get proper sativa buds from a plant ready to flower from something that will fit in your area.
I got a mixed pack of fing's seeds and there is a sativa one that took 3+ months just to show sex, and by that time it was so big that many of the clones are 8 - 10 inches plus!
They've been in the bubble cloner now for 3 weeks and just started showing roots yesterday. The Dos Mofeta (skunk supreme x skunk #1) went in 6 days ago and they are showing the same amount of root growth.

I'm a big believer in letting plants from seed mature fully before flowering.
It would also cut down a week or more on your flower times, for sure.

Probably easier then trying to graft stuff, but of course half of it is experimenting!

Ricky

[eyeseaire]

Grafting is really interesting shit. If you got good at it you could keep a mother plant around with three different strains on the same plant. That would be a cool way of keeping you plant #s down. I've seen a few pics of it so its def possible. I had a friend that wanted to try to graft hops on a bud plant, just for shits and giggles, I guess. I don't think it would make very good smoke though.
This also makes me wanna try air layering, which is getting a branch of a plant to sprout roots before actually taking a cutting of it. Like pricking holes in a branch, dusting it with hormone and wraping it with peat moss and cellophane and waiting for roots to show before cutting. Please correct of this is called something else.

[Cakes]

Air layering sounds like a really good idea to me too. And in other gardening, they don't even do anything to the stem like use rooting hormone or slicing the tissue; they just wrap it in moist stuff like you are saying.

I think CB has a great angle there with the idea of letting grafts heal before severing the roots of the donor. You could just take a pot with a donor plant in it and place the pot next to whatever plant you want to put the graft onto.

I tried to clone by using a combo of the two above methods. I buried a plant up about ten inches so that the botton branches were sticking out of the soil while they were still attached to the plant under the soil. My plan was to let the branches sprout roots before severing them from the plant. boo hoo the grow was interrupted and so no results but I am sure it would have worked well. I am even considering using the bury-up technique for increasing root growth/mass while flowering.

yehaw to multiple mama grafts! In my legal California grow the maximum number of mature plants allowed is SIX!!! my chances of maintaining a mother population is slim but multiple grafts might help.

The idea of vegging out a sat for 90 days<<i can see one HUGE plant existing at that point but then again I guess that you wouldn't necessarily have to give her room to grow or the nutes to do it with would you? and yes, you are right, TPB, this graft idea is just one more way to do things..

Flowering hormones can also be passed through grafts. Like if you take a plant that is in flower mode and then attach it to one that is not; then the whole thing will want to flower. And it can be so powerful, that you can influence a plant that is naturally day neutral by putting on a graft of a plant which is not day neutral.

And ncbud, no, so far reproducing a plant that has been created by grafts is not done by seeds or clones. In other words, to reproduce a multi flavored tree, then you have to do the whole grafting thing all over again.

Stan, I really had high hopes for the two producing a new kind of bud also but we may have to go with chimera grafts for that to happenn

and Shadows? i am with you too.

[Elephunt man]

I started to graft 2 moms together but had to seperate them due to changes made in grow....I guess since veg is back I will do it again...just for fun. Sativa to an indica huh? I think I might have a couple here.:D

[Cakes]

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hey ncbud, i made a mistake. you CAN clone a chimaera graft and i guess cloning is (just about) the only way to propagate a plant that is exhibiting chimaera characteristics. Sooo, usually you don't clone grafts but sometimes you do if it is a certain kind of graft.

[The Hooded Claw]

E-Man is this a fusion graft by bringing two live stems together?

You know, my father used to saddle graft an apple tree we once had. We had three types of apple from one tree but after my own attempts at saddle grafting with mj I read after its a 99.99% no no :(

Fusion grafting isn't something I've done, but we see it with trees and shrubs both wild and in city parks.

Be good to see some pics when you get it started.....

[limentroll]

This is my fisrt post, but I know a good deal about grafting. I have grafted a good number of fruit trees. Apple and citrus are often grafted onto dwaffing rootstock so the fruit can be better reache by homegrowers. I have occationaly seen a very vigerous scion over grow the dwarfing rootstock. This is what might happen with sativa on indica, but it could accualy just make a dwarf. Also what you are calling a fusion graft is what i know as an aproach graft i think. You wouldn't be fully cutting the scion off the main plant its on but fuse it to the indica stock then cut off the indicas top and use it for cuttings or whatever. The grafting of MJ could also be useful if you are growing outside and were having root rot problems. There is probobly a MJ variety that doesn't rot as easily. That could be the rootstock for the chosen MJ. Now I want to know if you could train MJ into a vine by vegin uber long and pruning.