Submitted photo David Proudfoot assists garden club members with preparing apple tree grafts at their October meeting.

Submitted photo
David Proudfoot assists garden club members with preparing apple tree grafts at their October meeting.

ELKINS — David Proudfoot of Proudfoot Farms presented a hands-on demonstration of fruit tree grafting at the Oct. 12 Emma Scott Garden Club meeting at Davis Memorial Presbyterian Church.

Proudfoot has numerous species of apple trees, blueberry bushes and nut trees on his beautiful farm near Belington. He gave a brief history of the apple tree from 8000 B.C. in Persia to the mystical Johnny Appleseed, who traveled ahead of the pioneers moving west, planting apple trees for sale. At one point, the government provided free land to be planted with apple trees. The cider produced from these trees was safer to drink than the ground water, although it often became fermented before it was served; a legal alternative to alcohol during Prohibition times.

The seeds from your favorite type of apple usually do not grow into a tree that produces the same apple. Tree grafting is designed to produce a desirable fruit on an existing tree by attaching a scion, or small budding branch, from another tree. This is accomplished by making a fresh cut on each side of the junction of the scion and the existing tree, then joining them together snugly to eliminate introduction of bacteria or water into the “wound.”

A scion can also be grafted onto rootstock, which are immature trees with healthy roots. Rootstock can be rotted at home or purchased from nurseries: the size of the resulting tree depends on the type of rootstock: regular, semi-dwarf or dwarf. The semi-dwarf and dwarf size trees tend to live only 10 – 30 years while the regular size rootstock produces trees that typically live up to 100 years, largely due to the greater size of the root system.

Proudfoot assisted club members in joining their own apple tree grafts using clean diagonal cuts and grafting tape to secure fresh green tissue together. Grafts will begin to develop on the old tree or rootstock in a year or two. An established tree can produce several types of apples simultaneously with proper grafting. He concluded by announcing that grafting classes will be available at his farm in the spring where participants take home a grafted fruit tree.

Garden Club President Pat Mayes conducted the business meeting, reviewing adjustments to the calendar due to the COVID situation. Ongoing activities include maintenance of community gardens, planting at the Davis Medical Center Serenity Garden and Fall Yard of the Month awards to local residents and businesses. The club entry in the Scarecrow Festival is on display. Bulbs will be planted at Midland Elementary School pollinator garden and DMC Serenity Garden this month. The club decided to support the Humane Society as its Christmas charity outreach project this year and will contact the society for a list of items needed. Mayes reminded the club that nominations of new officers for 2021 will be made soon. The next meeting is at 7 p.m., Nov. 9, at the Davis Memorial Presbyterian Church and the program is about orchids including creating orchid chandeliers and presented by Juliette Oldaker, floral designer.

Anyone who is interested in visiting a meeting or joining the Emma Scott Garden Club can call membership chair BJ McKenzie at 304-614-3079.