Plants have a unique ability to reproduce asexually from vegetative parts like leaves, stems, roots, tubers, and such. This process of reproducing plants also called vegetative propagation has been employed for thousands of years in different cultures and civilizations. A few weeks ago, I accidentally hit a succulent plant in my room with a ball and broke the stem exactly in the middle. Utterly remorseful, I decided to mend it by rejoining the two pieces and taping them together. Three weeks later, not only were the leaves above still green and thriving but also roots had grown under the transparent tape layer where the stem had broken off. Such miraculous healings in the animal kingdom would be otherwise rare or unrealistic. What had become of my succulent is a process called layering, a widely used vegetative propagation technique in horticulture.
Vegetative propagation techniques are more commonly used in dicot plants, flowers, and fruit trees. Layering, among them, involves the process of growing adventitious roots on the shoot of the plant, usually in the stem. There are many ways of doing this. One way is to first make a small incision on the stem. Then the bark of a small portion of the stem is removed. This portion then is filled with some wet soil and covered by plastic or aluminum film. Depending on the plant type and size, this setup is left for weeks to months until roots have grown. Then, the stem is detached from the parent plant by cutting right under the roots formation area and replanted at our desired location.
Grafting is another effective means of propagating plants in which the shoot system of a plant (scion) is attached to the root system of another plant (rootstock). There are multiple ways of doing this. Some of the more common ways of grafting involve processes known as a cleft graft, bark graft, splice graft, and side veneer graft. All involve the common method of making an appropriate incision on the stem of the scion and rootstock plants, fitting them, and attaching them together to let them grow together. The exciting part about grafting is that you see two or more different plants sticking together and producing some wonderful flowers and fruits.
Vegetative propagation methods have some big advantages over direct plant germination from seeds. Artificial methods like grafting and layering not only speed up the process of food production, they also can be more accessible ways to horticulture since they are relatively inexpensive. They can be used to repair damaged plants and combat certain plant viruses. Natural vegetative methods in potatoes or strawberries are relatively cost-effective ways of growing them. Incorporating various vegetative methods of growing plants can be very beneficial, and a clever means to spice up your farming techniques.
Grafting pictures are taken from ‘Lady Lee’s Home’. Visit their website for more info! https://ladyleeshome.com/grafting-fruit-trees/
