Can you graft an apple onto a quince tree?

[Iamobsessedwithapples]

There is a well-established quince tree in my backyard and want to graft a pear and apple onto it. This method may seem excessively long and illogical but I intend to try it anyway because I want to get some experience in grafting and rooting branches.

I pruned it last year and pulled out all the young branches which grew at the bottom. This leaves me with some young branches roughly a meter and a half high.

This is the procedure I plan on following:

1. Buy Doyenne du Commice pear and Winter Banana apple scion wood online

2. Whip graft the pear onto a similar sized branch

3. Whip graft the apple onto the pear

4. Wait for the apple to grow leaves then root it by breaking the branch and putting a bag with soil in it where the break is

5. Chop the rooted apple off and repeat the process with the pear

6. Wait a year

7. Take some scion wood from the rooted trees

8. Whip graft the scion wood to a new branch at the bottom of the quince tree

9. Cut down the quince tree leaving only the graft

10. Wait another year then graft the desired apple varieties onto it

What I suspect will happen is the apples will survive the graft but die a few years later leaving me with a pear grafted onto quince rootstock. As long as the apples and pear survive for long enough to be rooted I will be happy.

Do you think this will work or not and why? What would you suggest I do differently? Will grafting a Winter Banana apple directly onto the quince work? I will post some photos tomorrow.

 

[Iamobsessedwithapples]

The whole tree.

I intend to graft a pear and apple to one of these branches.

New shoots come out the base frequently in warm weather. I used to pull these out thinking they’re useless. It’s currently winter. Now I intend to let one grow and graft a pear onto it next year.

 

[NigelJ]

By the time you have waited a year for each graft to establish and come round to being ready for grafting you are looking at 5-6 years work to get a pear tree grafted onto a random quince rootstock. I don't think you will be able to graft pear to quince and apple to pear in one season.
Pear grafted onto quince should work though, apple onto pear less likely. I would buy some rootstocks for apple and pear get them growing in the first year and then buy scion wood in the next year and practice grafting. Then after two years you will have got young trees of both and can practice grafting and air layering to your hearts content.

 

[Iamobsessedwithapples]

Here’s an update. Hopefully this helps someone.

This was a silly post. The lesson learned is don’t buy scion wood online and hope you’ll wing it. Four of my five grafts failed.

I would have been better off buying a Winter Banana apple tree and Doyenne du Commice pear tree.

If you’re genuinely interested in grafting then buy some rootstock and graft scion wood from trees you already own into it.

If you just want a tree, you’re better off buying one already grafted. The bit of extra money you spend is well worth it given the time it takes to learn how to graft.