Greg:
Growers who want to try to save some Southwest-Injured trees might
want to consider sealing the tacked-down bark
with Doc Farwell's Seal and Heal. I think the Doc Farwell's Grafting Seal is
the same stuff. They form a very tough but
flexible seal that can remain for years. The label recommends applying when
temperature is 40F or higher.
I tried to save a block of 12-year old high-grafted apple trees on Bud
118 six years ago, with disappointing results. Bark was tacked down with
galvanized roofing nails before it had curled from drying, and Seal and Heal
was painted on. Trees developed dead scaffolds on one or more sides on most of
those that showed early, long bark cracks, and I have removed the block because
it was not practical to maintain the scattered good trees. I don't recall
having made an effort to
de-fruit the injured trees in any of the years they were kept, but I think that
suggestion of Dave Rosenberger's would be
helpful.
David Kollas
Kollas Orchard, Connecticut
On Mar 17, 2014, at 9:46 PM, "Peck, Greg" <greg.p...@vt.edu> wrote:
> Thanks to all those who responded to my email. Yes, for SWI (and most things
> in orchard systems), "an ounce of prevention is worth a pound of cure". For
> those who missed it, there was a long discussion on trunk painting last year:
> http://www.mail-archive.com/apple-crop@virtualorchard.net/msg02242.html
>
> From reading all the responses, and considering the lack of tree availability
> for replanting this spring, it seems to me that it might be worth trying the
> salvage some of less damaged trunks by closing up the split bark. Debbie's
> rule-of-thumb sounds reasonable and would give growers some idea as to when
> to just move on.
>
> As Debbie also pointed out, the wounds could be an entry site for borers. The
> wound sites might also be a location for WAA colonies, which seem to have
> gotten worse under our BMSB-focused insecticide programs. I guess the exposed
> tissue could also be an entry point for herbicides.
>
> While bridge grafting is probably technically feasible, I'm getting the sense
> that it may not be worth the time. It's up to each grower to make that
> decision, but I'd be hesitant to say it's an economically feasible choice for
> large blocks of high-density trees unless you have a talented grafter
> on-staff.
>
> Greg
> ::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::
> Gregory Michael Peck, Ph.D.
> Assistant Professor of Horticulture
> Virginia Tech
> Alson H. Smith, Jr. Agricultural Research and Extension Center
> 595 Laurel Grove Road
> Winchester, VA 22602 USA
> 540/869-2560 ext 19
> greg.p...@vt.edu
> arec.vaes.vt.edu/alson-h-smith
> www.anr.ext.vt.edu/tree-fruit/
> blogs.ext.vt.edu/tree-fruit-horticulture
> www.facebook.com/VtechPomology
>
>
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