Grafting Woody Plants: Fruit Trees

Sean Halloran, Plant Propagator, Arnold Arboretum of Harvard University

[Dana Greenhouse Classroom, Arnold Arboretum]

Grafting is the technique of joining parts of separate plants in such a manner that they unite and continue their growth as one. Learn basic principles of grafting with an overview of different types of dormant-season grafts. Arnold Arboretum propagator Sean Halloran will provide step-by-step instructions so that you can practice both cleft and side veneer grafts using apple root stock. Simple after-care will be required until planting out in springtime. Fee $58

Registrants will need to sign an Assumption of Risk and Release in order to participate in this class.

Arnold Arboretum Researcher Receives Grant to Study How Plants Choose Mates

This spring, the greenhouses in the Weld Hill Research Building at the Arnold Arboretum of Harvard University will be overflowing with Phlox, fragrant flowers bursting with hues of violet, pink, red, and magenta. But it’s not their floral beauty or aroma that captivates Robin Hopkins, assistant professor of organismic and evolutionary biology at Harvard. Hopkins, who is head of the Hopkins Lab and a Faculty Fellow at the Arboretum, recently received a four-year, $700,000 grant from the National Science Foundation Panel of Plant Biotic Interactions to study how a native Texas phlox species selects its mates. That is, she will work to identify which molecular signals are being stimulated by pollination, and see if the identity of the pollen changes the types of signals being triggered for reproduction. “The incredible diversity of floral color, shape, smell, and size evolved to entice pollinators to move pollen between plants,” Hopkins said.

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