Clerodendrum - fixing a nasty reverse taper

[bingh]

I note that there is quite a bit of interest in cleros on the forum so if you are happy about it I'd like to share a bit of my experience with you. This clero was grown from a matchstick sized cutting and grown in the ground for some years, cut back several times a year and grown on. As you will see from the first pic it had a horrible reverse taper and no root on the right side. At an AABC show some yrs ago Master Chiang from Taiwan did a root graft on a fig.
I decided to give it a go - will include a series of photos. When you want me to stop let me know. The first pic shows reverse taper
Brian

[bingh]

Next pic shows where

[bingh]

Sorry about pic quality.
Master Chiang's technique was to do a sort of mortice and tenon by carving a channel in the trunk and trimming the smaller tree so it would fit into the channel. Unlike his, I left a shoot at the top of the scion so it would be guaranteed to keep growing.
More to follow if you want
Brian

[Jamie]

absolutely brian! your knowledge and information will be greatly appreciated here mate!

i have a couple of clero myself, they were just trunks a few weeks ago, now they have exploded with growth, i am wondering how long it takes for the shoots to harden off and secondary branching to be formed? they seem to be such vigourous growers i dont see it being to long?


cheers


jamie

[bingh]

Jamie

It will take only a week or two at this time of year before you can wire and cut them back

[Jarrod]

That has made all the difference. That's a wonderful use ofte method.

Oh and the tree ain't bad either. How long were you ground growing this for?

[Jamie]

thanks mate

and nice clero to by the way, it looks big, could you give us some dimensions if possible?

cheers


jamie

[bingh]

Jarrod
More to come. From memory it was in the ground for about 4 years.

Jamie
I just had to go outside to measure it - the things I do for you guys. It's about 35cm high

Brian

[Jamie]

Jamie
I just had to go outside to measure it - the things I do for you guys. It's about 35cm high

sorry mate

thank you its a bit decieving in the pics, its got a solid trunk to it and some nice flow for a tree that size, with a trunk of that width.
i like it alot mate

jamie

[bingh]

This the first before and after view. The one on the left is the after pic

Brian

[bingh]

This is just after the procedure. Note that the bark on the scion is much finer than the trunk bark. That is because it is a much younger tree and has not been growing so vigorously. Note also the shoot at the top of the scion

Brian

[bingh]

Graft taken. Note the 2 sacrifice branches from the top of the scion. They were left to make it grow more vigorously thus helping the graft to take

[bingh]

Closeup - graft worked. Note also those sacrifice branches

[bingh]

Finally - hope I haven't bored you too much and that this can help others with other species

Brian

[Jamie]

excellent pictorial brian

you can hardly see any joint line, if you can at all, and that is only gonna be less and less noticable as time goes on with the way clero bark is. great work

jamie