Allotments 4 All
Produce => Edible Plants => Topic started by: BarriedaleNick on July 26, 2018, 14:56:52
-
I have had a Kafir Lime tree for about 5 years. It has been great and the leaves are great in thai food. However they are not hardy and I left it out over winter - d'oh!
However I thought it had recovered as it started sprouting at the base and neck. On close inspection though it appears to be on a root stock - some sort of lime or lemon and I only noticed as the leaves are totally different to the Kafir Lime...
So the question is - Why has the root stock started sprouting now the grafted bit appears to be dead? Does the graft inhibit the root stock from growing or it is that nutrients are now available to the root stock?
Cheers all...
-
Probably due to apical dominance!
In certain plants the very top bud on the stem produces auxin which inhibits the other side shoots from developing, e.g. chrysanthemum.
So if you "stop" the plant by removing that top bud, the auxin stops flowing and the side-shoots can develop.
When the Kafir lime part of the plant died, there was now more auxin being produced, so the shoots further down, i.e. the rootstock could start to shoot.
That is the general drift, Uni was over 40 years ago!
-
Ah cheers! Yes I do recall something about auxin in reference to "topping" chilies to force more bushy growth.. Makes sense!
-
The good news is that you have a healthy plant of the right rootstock to graft another Kafir lime onto it. I would check if your friends can provide a fresh scion (though I can't remember the best time or method to do this).
If you can find another cheap plant then you can do approach grafting any time the plants aren't dormant, and though it may take some time you should lose nothing - unless one has a virus (but every type of grafting can pass viruses - even meristem has to be done just so).
Cheers.
-
Fairly certain with most grafting the cultivar takes over apical dominance which inhibits lower side shoots, with no graft left the rootstock will attempt to grow itself... producing shoots from any previously dormant buds held in check by the IAA produced by the graft. :wave:
As Piscador so rightly said... sorry for duplicating the info but for some reason wasn't displaying the earlier replies... :BangHead: