HOME

TheInfoList



OR:

A rootstock is part of a plant, often an underground part, from which new above-ground growth can be produced. It could also be described as a stem with a well developed root system, to which a bud from another plant is grafted. It can refer to a
rhizome In botany and dendrology, a rhizome (; , ) is a modified subterranean plant stem that sends out roots and shoots from its nodes. Rhizomes are also called creeping rootstalks or just rootstalks. Rhizomes develop from axillary buds and grow ...
or underground stem. In
grafting Grafting or graftage is a horticultural technique whereby tissues of plants are joined so as to continue their growth together. The upper part of the combined plant is called the scion () while the lower part is called the rootstock. The succ ...
, it refers to a plant, sometimes just a stump, which already has an established, healthy root system, onto which a cutting or a bud from another plant is grafted. In some cases, such as vines of grapes and other berries, cuttings may be used for rootstocks, the roots being established in nursery conditions before planting them out. The plant part grafted onto the rootstock is usually called the scion. The scion is the plant that has the properties that
propagator In quantum mechanics and quantum field theory, the propagator is a function that specifies the probability amplitude for a particle to travel from one place to another in a given period of time, or to travel with a certain energy and momentum. ...
desires above ground, including the photosynthetic activity and the fruit or decorative properties. The rootstock is selected for its interaction with the
soil Soil, also commonly referred to as earth or dirt, is a mixture of organic matter, minerals, gases, liquids, and organisms that together support life. Some scientific definitions distinguish ''dirt'' from ''soil'' by restricting the former ...
, providing the roots and the stem to support the new plant, obtaining the necessary soil water and minerals, and resisting the relevant pests and diseases. After a few weeks, the tissues of the two parts will have grown together, eventually forming a single plant. After some years, it may be difficult to detect the site of the graft although the product always contains the components of two genetically different plants. The use of rootstocks is most commonly associated with
fruit In botany, a fruit is the seed-bearing structure in flowering plants that is formed from the ovary after flowering. Fruits are the means by which flowering plants (also known as angiosperms) disseminate their seeds. Edible fruits in partic ...
ing plants and trees, and is useful for mass propagating many other types of plants that do not breed true from
seed A seed is an embryonic plant enclosed in a protective outer covering, along with a food reserve. The formation of the seed is a part of the process of reproduction in seed plants, the spermatophytes, including the gymnosperm and angiosper ...
, or are particularly susceptible to
disease A disease is a particular abnormal condition that negatively affects the structure or function of all or part of an organism, and that is not immediately due to any external injury. Diseases are often known to be medical conditions that a ...
when grown on their own roots. Although grafting has been practiced for many hundreds of years, even in Roman times, most
orchard An orchard is an intentional plantation of trees or shrubs that is maintained for food production. Orchards comprise fruit- or nut-producing trees which are generally grown for commercial production. Orchards are also sometimes a feature of ...
rootstocks in current use were developed in the 20th century. A variety of rootstocks may be used for a single
species In biology, a species is the basic unit of classification and a taxonomic rank of an organism, as well as a unit of biodiversity. A species is often defined as the largest group of organisms in which any two individuals of the appropriat ...
or
cultivar A cultivar is a type of cultivated plant that people have selected for desired traits and when propagated retain those traits. Methods used to propagate cultivars include: division, root and stem cuttings, offsets, grafting, tissue culture ...
of scion because different rootstocks impart different properties, such as vigour, fruit size and precocity. Rootstocks also may be selected for traits such as resistance to
drought A drought is defined as drier than normal conditions.Douville, H., K. Raghavan, J. Renwick, R.P. Allan, P.A. Arias, M. Barlow, R. Cerezo-Mota, A. Cherchi, T.Y. Gan, J. Gergis, D.  Jiang, A.  Khan, W.  Pokam Mba, D.  Rosenfeld, J. Tierney, an ...
, root pests, and
disease A disease is a particular abnormal condition that negatively affects the structure or function of all or part of an organism, and that is not immediately due to any external injury. Diseases are often known to be medical conditions that a ...
s.
Grape A grape is a fruit, botanically a berry, of the deciduous woody vines of the flowering plant genus '' Vitis''. Grapes are a non- climacteric type of fruit, generally occurring in clusters. The cultivation of grapes began perhaps 8,000 years a ...
vines for commercial planting are most often grafted onto rootstocks to avoid damage by
phylloxera Grape phylloxera is an insect pest of commercial grapevines worldwide, originally native to eastern North America. Grape phylloxera (''Daktulosphaira vitifoliae'' (Fitch 1855) belong to the family Phylloxeridae, within the order Hemiptera, bu ...
, though vines available for sale to back garden viticulturists may not be. The rootstock may be a different species from the scion, but as a rule it should be closely related, for example, many commercial
pear Pears are fruits produced and consumed around the world, growing on a tree and harvested in the Northern Hemisphere in late summer into October. The pear tree and shrub are a species of genus ''Pyrus'' , in the Family (biology), family Rosacea ...
s are grown on
quince The quince (; ''Cydonia oblonga'') is the sole member of the genus ''Cydonia'' in the Malinae subtribe (which also contains apples and pears, among other fruits) of the Rosaceae family. It is a deciduous tree that bears hard, aromatic bright ...
rootstock. Grafting can also be done in stages; a closely related scion is grafted to the rootstock, and a less closely related scion is grafted to the first scion. Serial grafting of several scions may also be used to produce a tree that bears several different fruit
cultivar A cultivar is a type of cultivated plant that people have selected for desired traits and when propagated retain those traits. Methods used to propagate cultivars include: division, root and stem cuttings, offsets, grafting, tissue culture ...
s, with the same rootstock taking up and distributing water and minerals to the whole system. Those with more than three varieties are known as 'family trees'. When it is difficult to match a plant to the soil in a certain field or orchard, growers may graft a scion onto a rootstock that is compatible with the soil. It may then be convenient to plant a range of ungrafted rootstocks to see which suit the growing conditions best; the fruiting characteristics of the scion may be considered later, once the most successful rootstock has been identified. Rootstocks are studied extensively and often are sold with a complete guide to their ideal soil and climate. Growers determine the pH, mineral content,
nematode The nematodes ( or grc-gre, Νηματώδη; la, Nematoda) or roundworms constitute the phylum Nematoda (also called Nemathelminthes), with plant- parasitic nematodes also known as eelworms. They are a diverse animal phylum inhabiting a bro ...
population,
salinity Salinity () is the saltiness or amount of salt (chemistry), salt dissolved in a body of water, called saline water (see also soil salinity). It is usually measured in g/L or g/kg (grams of salt per liter/kilogram of water; the latter is dimensio ...
, water availability,
pathogen In biology, a pathogen ( el, πάθος, "suffering", "passion" and , "producer of") in the oldest and broadest sense, is any organism or agent that can produce disease. A pathogen may also be referred to as an infectious agent, or simply a g ...
load and
sand Sand is a granular material composed of finely divided mineral particles. Sand has various compositions but is defined by its grain size. Sand grains are smaller than gravel and coarser than silt. Sand can also refer to a textural class ...
iness of their particular soil, and select a rootstock which is matched to it.
Genetic testing Genetic testing, also known as DNA testing, is used to identify changes in DNA sequence or chromosome structure. Genetic testing can also include measuring the results of genetic changes, such as RNA analysis as an output of gene expression, or ...
is increasingly common, and new cultivars of rootstock are always being developed.


Uses in agriculture


AxR1

AxR1 is a
grape A grape is a fruit, botanically a berry, of the deciduous woody vines of the flowering plant genus '' Vitis''. Grapes are a non- climacteric type of fruit, generally occurring in clusters. The cultivation of grapes began perhaps 8,000 years a ...
rootstock once widely used in
California California is a state in the Western United States, located along the Pacific Coast. With nearly 39.2million residents across a total area of approximately , it is the most populous U.S. state and the 3rd largest by area. It is also the m ...
viticulture Viticulture (from the Latin word for '' vine'') or winegrowing (wine growing) is the cultivation and harvesting of grapes. It is a branch of the science of horticulture. While the native territory of '' Vitis vinifera'', the common grape vine, r ...
. Its name is an abbreviation for "Aramon Rupestris Ganzin No. 1", which in turn is based on its parentage: a cross (made by a French grape hybridizer named Ganzin) between Aramon, a ''
Vitis vinifera ''Vitis vinifera'', the common grape vine, is a species of flowering plant, native to the Mediterranean region, Central Europe, and southwestern Asia, from Morocco and Portugal north to southern Germany and east to northern Iran. There are cur ...
'' cultivar, and Rupestris, an American grape species, ''
Vitis rupestris ''Vitis rupestris'' is a species of grape native to the United States that is known by many common names including July, Coon, sand, sugar, beach, bush, currant, ingar, rock, and mountain grape. It is used for breeding several French-American ...
''also used on its own as rootstock, "Rupestris St. George" or "St. George," referring to a town in the South of France, Saint Georges d'Orques, where it was popular. It achieved a degree of notoriety in California when, after decades of recommendation as a preferred rootstockdespite repeated warnings from France and South Africa about its susceptibility (it had failed in Europe in the early 1900s)it ultimately succumbed to
phylloxera Grape phylloxera is an insect pest of commercial grapevines worldwide, originally native to eastern North America. Grape phylloxera (''Daktulosphaira vitifoliae'' (Fitch 1855) belong to the family Phylloxeridae, within the order Hemiptera, bu ...
in the 1980s, requiring the replanting of most of Napa and Sonoma, with disastrous financial consequences. Those who resisted the urge to use AxR-1, such as David Bennion of
Ridge Vineyards Ridge Vineyards is a California winery specializing in Cabernet Sauvignon, Zinfandel, and Chardonnay wines. Ridge produces wine at two winery locations in northern California. The original winery facilities are located at an elevation of on Mo ...
, saw their vineyards spared from phylloxera damage.


Apple rootstock

Apple rootstocks are used for apple trees and are often the deciding factor of the size of the tree that is grafted onto the root. Dwarfing, semi-dwarf, semi-standard and standard are the size benchmarks for the different sizes of roots that will be grown, with the standard being the largest and dwarf being the smallest. Much of the world's apple production is now using dwarf rootstocks to improve efficiency, increase density and increase yields of fruit per acre. The following is a list of the dwarfing rootstock that are commonly used today in apple production: Malling 7 rootstock is slightly bigger than an M26 rootstock, and also requires staking in the first several years to establish a centre leader. This rootstock is moderately susceptible to blight and collar rot. The fruit size that M7 produces is good but not as large as an M26, or M9 rootstock. This root is highly susceptible to suckering and leaning over in its later years of life, which is very annoying and causes issues for the producer. Malling 9 rootstock is the most common and well known dwarfing rootstock. This rootstock should be planted in a well-drained site, and requires staking for the duration of its life. This rootstock is also very susceptible to fireblight and burr knots. There have been many clones made of this rootstock, including M.9 NAKB 337, M.9EMLA and M.9. Pajam. Malling 26 rootstock will grow a larger tree than the M9 rootstock will, and is about 40-50% the size of a standard tree. This root is considered very productive and early bearing, and requires staking in the first few years of its life. Malling-Merton 106 rootstock is slightly smaller than MM 111, but is a very productive tree and has early fruiting abilities. It is a great rootstock to be used in a variety of soil conditions because it is very hardy with moderate vigour. This rootstock must be planted in well-drained soils as it is susceptible to collar rot. Malling-Merton 111 rootstock is one of the biggest and vigorous rootstocks that is used today in commercial orchards, and is about 80-90% the size of a standard-sized tree. It is generally quite winter hardy and produces few burr knots and root suckers. This rootstock is much less popular than it once was, because many commercial producers are now planting higher density orchards, which M111 is not conducive to.


Uses in Navigation and Orienteering

In the context of navigation, a rootstock is the base of a fallen tree. Rootstocks are used as navigational aids on high-resolution maps and in the sport of
orienteering Orienteering is a group of sports that require navigational skills using a map and compass to navigate from point to point in diverse and usually unfamiliar terrain whilst moving at speed. Participants are given a topographical map, usually a ...
. Because most woods have many fallen trees, only very large rootstocks generally are mapped.


See also

*
Propagation of grapevines The propagation of grapevines is an important consideration in commercial viticulture and winemaking. Grapevines, most of which belong to the ''Vitis vinifera'' family, produce one crop of fruit each growing season with a limited life span for ind ...
* Fruit tree propagation ** Apple rootstocks ** Cherry rootstocks ** Pear rootstocks ** Plum rootstocks **
Citrus rootstock Citrus rootstock are plants used as rootstock for citrus plants. A rootstock plant must be compatible for scion grafting, and resistant to common threats, such as drought, frost, and common citrus diseases. Principal rootstocks Five types of roots ...


Notes


Bibliography

*


External links


Rootstocks as an Element of Terroir
in '' Sommelier Journal'' {{Viticulture Horticulture Plant reproduction Plant roots