Graft Incompatibility in Fruit Crops
Author: Amit Kumar Goswami

The inability or failure of rootstock and scion grafted together to produce a successful graft union is called as graft incompatibility. In contrast, if the graft union is successful, it is called as graft compatibility. The distinction between a compatible and an incompatible graft union is not clear cut. The ability of two plants to unite successfully into a graft is due to their natural relationship. For example, stock and scion of closely related species unite readily and grow as a composite plant and that of unrelated plants do not. Even sometimes stock and scion of unrelated species unites initially and develops symptoms of incompatibility later and die eventually. Many graft combinations lie between these two extremes in that they unit initially but gradually develops sign of incompatibility in form of abnormal growth pattern. Thus, plants differ widely in their ability to produce a successful graft union. For example some pear cultivars are successfully grafted on quince rootstock, whereas, the others may die soon. However, the reverse combination i.e. the quince on pear rootstock is always a failure. Further, plum grows well on peach rootstock but peach graftage on plum is always a failure. The incompatibility symptoms may appear soon after grafting or may be delayed for several years.







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About Author / Additional Info:
I am a scientist working in the field of horticulture