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etherealsunshine5

Tiny Scion--Alive but Not Budding--How to Force a Bud?

I planted eleven custom bench grafts last spring and had one pear (Bosc on OHxF) that had a tiny scion grafted. It was maybe an inch long and if there were two buds on it, I missed the second.

It made it through the summer and had one tiny, undersized leaf at the top of the scion going into fall. The rootstock has budded and begun growing, but no signs of any buds on the scion. I've removed all but one of the 3-4" branches off of the rootstock hoping to push growth in the scion, but no luck yet. Yesterday, I scratched the scion to confirm a green cambium...yes, it's alive.

Is there any way to stimulate a bud to break on such a short piece of scion? I want to say that I've read a method of forcing buds by slitting the cambium around the stem, which will stimulate budding just below.

I'm trying to avoid buying a replacement tree, but if I don't see a bud within a week or so, it's getting pulled and replaced, as it's in an espaliered row and falling well behind the other trees now.

Help!!

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