A while back I had a bunch of one gallon pine and spruce that I kept in a protected location outside (morning sun only, sheltered from the wind), until I was ready to graft them in the winter.

They did ok.

But later I found it was easier to mail order the understock when I was ready to graft, and the results were a bit better.

I put a lightbulb in a derelict octogon shaoed end table once and used that and some bottom mat heater to over winter some $10 annual once. I used a timer and a thermostat, it was totally overkill.

Again, totally not worth it but hey, it was a project.

This post was edited by toronado3800 on Sat, Sep 7, 13 at 19:15

I pack the pots against my chain link fence and then fill in around pots with shredded leaf mulch. I bring them in about 4 weeks before I want to graft.

The location is fairly exposed, but the rootstock hasn't seemed to suffer from this method.

I agree with Sluice that ordering rootstock in the late winter is easier. I will probably only do it that way in the future

Keith

Treat them as you would any other container conifer that you want to overwinter. I move mine into my unheated garage starting in early Dec for protection, then in mid-January I bring them inside to start waking them up.

It should be fine to keep them outdoors in a protected area, so long as the roots of the species in question are hardy to the air temp. in the area in question.

Alex

hey

what up???

do you have a barn/shed... etc????

two issues with small pots...

first.. sun/heat... warming soil that is above ground.. a few warm days.. and a pot can come out of dormancy.. and then refreeze... etc... my cliche is.. get them dormant.. keep them dormant ... in and out is no good ...

second .... pots can dry horribly ... if not from sun/heat .. then also from winter wind.. horribly desiccating ... even a dormant plant.. transpires.. if only in slow motion ...

and finally ... unfroze water .... accumulating in the pot ... basically freezing a root mass into an ice cube ... they need air....

solve all those.. and you are all set ...

the problem with a structure.. is late winter.. when it can start accumulating heat.. and actually be something like a z7 inside... bringing your MI stock out of dormancy a month or two early .... but you will have pulled them out by then ...

my best suggestion is to put them in full shade.. north side of a structure. ...then ... when the pots are rock hard here in MI ... stack them.. on their sides... against said structure... or put them in the shed... until you are ready to SLOWLY bring them into heat ..

many peeps just lay them down.. w/o the stacking.. but i have had pots like that.. freeze so hard to the ground... i could free them ...

the best world.. would be total snow cover... a nice insulator to maintain said dormancy .... but again.. since you want to bring them in.. in winter.. the stacking would facilitate such ... and you dont wnat to be chipping thru ice and snow ... to find and free them ....

ken

do you have a barn/shed with winter water????

i seem to be thinking from one of your pix.. some farm structures... ????

ken

Have the big hay barn with running water (and overhangs on the east & south sides), unheated slaughterhouse, and pole-barn garage.

The rootstock from HLG was out of dormancy when I grafted last winter, and it did just fine in my basement for another three or so months after grafting.

i dont want to give away any secrets..

but i know a guy .... who does it in an unheated greenhouse inside a greenhouse... using well water.. which i presume is a balmy 58 degrees year around... to water the soil below the pot.. to create the humidity .... and the very low.. non-freezing temp ... right around.. wait for it .... and i presume.. around the 58 degree well temp .... and of course.. my recollection could be ... whats the word... lol ...

you are really in a unique circumstance.. where you probably dont need to be fooling around in the house .....

in other words.. why do it in the house.????

and i bet.. your barns are near z7 .... microclimate ....

ken

ps: , and it did just fine in my basement for another three or so months after grafting.

==>>> and what happened after those months???

I knew a grafter who kept his rootstock in an unheated greenhouse. When they started to wake up in the late winter, he would go outside and get the dormant scions and graft away.
It worked very well for him.
Mike

I just waited until the scions started pushing, Ken, then transitioned them out to my nursery bed. They've done quite well.

This post was edited by unprofessional on Mon, Sep 9, 13 at 7:38