I've been brain-storming a bit about this idea and I was curious if any members have tried, or were aware of others who've tried, influencing grafted cultivars to variegate by grafting onto variegated cultivars?? I believe from my reading's that most variegated trees occur as a result of either genetic mutations or viruses. I've noted with some variegated Acer palmatum cultivars, significant reversion can occur in a very short time frame. Its common to see new growth reversions, but sometimes I've noted entire 3year portions of a variegated A.p. revert to a non-variegated form (even when that region of the tree variegated during the previous year). I've also noted that later years, these areas of the trees don't seem to get the variegation back. I suspect, with these cultivars that have random and significant reversion, that the initial variegation was virus-related, not genetic. That's my guess anyway. So, my question is this: Has anyone grafted another cultivar onto a grafted variegated Japanese Maples to see if the grafted scion will take on the virus of the variegated portion of the tree?? Some cultivars, like the 'Oridono Nishiki' group, seem to be very stable and not revert (at least based on my experience). I would not use such cultivars if I were to experiment with this test. But some others, like 'Ao Kanzashi' and 'Toyama Nishiki' fall into the group that I've seen have significant reversion on 1,2,and 3 year wood during a single season, not to return to their previous variegated forms. Perhaps their variegation was virus related and the significant reversion was the result of the tree building resistance/immunity from the virus. Anyway, I know this is Voodoo kinda stuff, and it would actually probably be frowned upon by my local Ag agent, but I was wondering if anyone else has considered this. I love variegated trees and was thinking this might be a route to consider playing around with. Brian Scion Swapper
Some variegated cultivars are chimaeras, so a green branch showing up and staying green may be a part of the budwood or tree that was green tissue all along, rather than a reversion, where tissue that was variegated earlier becomes all green. Among trees perhaps the classic graft hybrid is +Laburnocytisus adamii, a fully expressed specimen having some branches that are all Laburnum, with all Cytisus branches popping out here and there as well, on a crown that otherwise consists primarily of intermediate ("hybrid") branches with blended characteristics. This cultivar is supposed to have arisen as the result of grafting the broom onto goldenchain standards, with the two somehow fusing to produced mixed top growth.
for me is possible ,but the variegated tree grafting on "normal tree" have more life probality ,i presume that this experiment product tree no longer in cultivation ,genetics manipolation is one way....
Ron B, Interesting about the +Laburnocytisus adamii, I wasn't aware of that tree or it's grafting induced hybridization. Are you saying that a Cytisus scoparius (Common Broom) scion grafted onto Laburnum takes on intermediate traits of the scion and understock? I wasn't aware of this phenomenon (or tree for that matter). I wonder if the intermediate traits would continue if a scion was then collected from the +Laburnocytisus adamii and grafted back on to a Cytisus understock, or if it would return to a typical Cystisus not having the understock influence any longer from the Laburnum. Interesting stuff. Brian
A different broom than C. scoparius, the graft hybrid said to having originated from an instance of the scion and stock merging or maybe multiple instances over time - at any rate not an everyday thing, I am sure.
