How to Grow Apricot Seedlings? Latest Technical Method Tutorial

Apricot cultivation mainly relies on seed sowing to grow rootstock seedlings, and then excellent varieties can be grafted onto this foundation to cultivate saplings that possess the superior traits of both varieties. Next, let's look at how to treat the seeds, how to sow and raise seedlings, and then the specific grafting process and what to pay attention to.

I. Seed Treatment

Apricot is a drupe-type fruit, and its seed is tightly closed with a very hard shell, making it difficult to germinate. Without artificial treatment, it may not even sprout at all. Soaking seeds in hot water has little effect either, as water cannot penetrate into the interior of the seed. The main approach is to eat the flesh after picking, or pile and compost it until it rots, then clean it and drain it for storage. Use clean river sand for stratification to promote germination, one layer of sand and one layer of seeds, with the sand 5 cm thick, or simply mix the sand and seeds together in a pile.

II. Sowing

Choose ordinary deep, loose soil, plow 35 cm deep, do rough plowing, then use a machine to rotary till, ensuring the soil is fine and crumbly. Sow in raised rows, sowing directly at the planting spacing, with a row spacing of 30 cm, a plant spacing of 20 cm, and a depth of about 10 cm. Use about 30 jin of seeds per mu, sowing two rows and leaving one empty row.

III. Grafting

1. Taking the Scion

Using the bud grafting method, directly select a vigorous branch on the mother plant, choose a plump bud, make a slanted cut starting 1 cm above the bud, including a little xylem, and stop when you reach 0.5 cm below the bud. Then use the knife to cut the bud off in one stroke at 0.5 cm below the bud. The process must be quick, all in one cut, and the cut surface should be smooth.

2. Choosing the Rootstock and Grafting

Choose a seedling grown from seed sowing, with a thickness of 0.8 cm and a length of more than 1.2 m. Make a horizontal cut at the internode of the rootstock, just cutting through the cambium. Then use the knife to make a vertical cut about 2 cm long in the middle of the previous cut. The bark will split open in a cross shape; gently pry it open a little and slowly insert the bud scion, being careful not to break the rootstock bark.

3. Precautions

After grafting, immediately bind the scion with transparent film strips, exposing the bud, and no other place should be exposed to air. After grafting, make sure no other buds grow nearby, as they can easily compete for nutrients. Grafting should be done quickly, and care should be taken to align the cambium. Check for survival about one week after grafting, and supplementary grafting can be done.

Apricot seedling raising mainly involves sowing to cultivate rootstock, then grafting other excellent varieties to make the saplings more high-quality. Or you can directly plant the rootstock seedlings. Either way, it depends on your own choice; currently the market mainly sells grafted seedlings.