First of all I'd let the company you ordered it from know about the damage... they may be able to replace it... I've never had a grafted plant so hopefully someone else will be able to advise you there
Brittany

Thanks Brittany,

I already contacted them and they are sending a replacement, but I thought I'd try to save it if I could.

Gotcha...lol... I was just making sure... hmm... have you tried searching for plumeria grafting information??
Brittany

Grafting is not always easy. If this is an old graft, it may not be possible to save. You need to cut both the base and the stem at the same angle ( a 45 degree, an L or a matching V. ) The two parts are pressed together in a variety of methods. Probably using electrical tape is the easiest. Many grafters put pins through the grafted parts or put pins in the two parts and then use rubber bands to pull the two parts tight. Then they tape or seal. Grafting is a bit of an art and can give great joy or heartache. I once had a strong wind ruin 8 grafts of really rare cuttings. It was not nice. I have seen more methods of grafting than you could believe. I really am not an expert and I would still like to learn more.

Here's a grafting method that a gentleman posted earlier. He cuts both pieces at the same angle, uses two pins to hold them in place, then wraps rubber bands around the pins to hold the cut surfaces together tightly (real important), then uses Parafilm to wrap the entire graft union to keep it from drying out. It's not all that difficult as long as you have a very sharp knife, and the rootstock and scion match in diameter pretty closely.

{{gwi:1159917}}

I have not tried that method personally.

What I've done before is used a V-shape cut in both pieces. See below. But what I've found with this method is that the tops of the "V" in the rootstock tends to recede and the union is not very strong. It works, but you have to make the "V" very deep and make sure the rubber bands are very tight holding the cut pieces together. I've used this method with cuttings that I thought were too thin and weren't going to root very easily.

{{gwi:1159918}}

I don't have any real evidence to back this up, but I'm guessing the scions should not be much more than 4" in length. What is everyone else's experience? How long should the scions be? Would they be more successful even shorter -- like

Dave. The drawings were outstanding. Thanks for sharing these. I have also seen L shaped cuts on larger plants which look like a Z with the center line running straight up the center. These were done like your V drawings with pins through both parts. I will try to collect more information from some of the pro growers when I go to the June society meeting. All I remember is them talking about fresh cutting both parts and grafting in the morning for some reason. I will try to find out more as I would like to graft more.

tdog:

Please share any grafting info you can find out. I did about 5 grafts last season. This will be the summer for those plants to really take off. One of my concerns is that a few of the graft unions are rather weak. Once the scion portion gets a full head of leaves, it's going to be rather top-heavy. I worry about them breaking off at the union. But, perhaps the graft unions will fused more strongly as it grows as well. I suppose I could stake those plants.

tdogdad,

I was going to say an 'L-shaped' cut sounds difficult. It might be a bit hard to get both pieces to fit together perfectly, with no air gaps. Do you cut both pieces at the same time to make sure they join well? You must need a very long, sharp and thin knife, like a fillet knife?

Dave- What you might do is take bamboo sticks or tongue depressors and tie three or four running parallel to the stem so it is tied above and below the graft or it can be taped. The sticks add support while the graft strenghtens. However, a weak graft might just be determined to reject the bond. I have heard that this can be caused by the two plants not matching well. This is an area that I am not really confident in my experience.
Regarding what is called an L graft or ship graft is not that hard. You cut one piece to the middle, then straight down, then in from the other side, what you have is like a side view of a step or stairs. Then you put the cut piece to be grafted on top of the next stem and trace with a felt pen. Now cut the other piece on the marks so the graft fits. Because you are doing right angles it ususally fits well. This graft can be pinned right through parallel to the ground. Next time i go to visit Bud Guillot I take a picture of some of his. He has many done this way. Again, I know many excellent grafters but I have not done that many to feel like I am experienced. I'll try to find out more.

I made an error on the L graft. The first cut is straight across the entire stem. then the next cut is down the middle about twice the diameter in length. The final cut comes in from the opposite side parallel to the first cut until it meets the vertical cut. I know this is confusing. I'll try to get some pics.

tdogdad,

I think you explained it pretty well. Is this how it's done?:

{{gwi:1159919}}

It sounds like it could be a fairly secure graft once it's done. I'll have to try it sometime.

Cheers, Dave

exactly! Did you draw that? If so, they are outstanding and I wish I had your talent. For your info, I noticed that Charley's Greenhouse catalogue had a grafting wrap that stretches and breathes. Sounds good for plumies. They also carry wax. I have not used either, using Vietnamese Slack Lime, rubber bands, pins and green garden tie or electrical tape. Also, Jim Little's new book shows some grafts and he talks about how some grafts do not match and grow at different rates. This discourages my thought of making a multi color plant as he says often one branch dominates. I may still try sometime. Thanks for the drawings.

tdogdad,
Another consideration is growth rate. Luc at Florida Colors warns that if you make a multicolor plant by grafting and the scions are from plants with greatly different growth habits, the tree will become very lopsided quickly.
Mike

Hmmm. Sounds interesting. Can't say as I've ever heard of that material. LOL!

It is a paste bought in asian markets that is used when southern asians chew certain leaves. It was popular with some grafters a few years ago and used like grafting wax to seal the wounds. However, it is not in favor today as they must have found better methods. I'll ask some grafters I know in June. Thanks mike for that heads up as I imagined my cerise or lavender that grow 24" a year next to samoan fluff or one of my pinks that grow 6" Not a good mix.LOL