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windfall_rob

cherry virus: signs and risks?

windfall_rob
10 years ago

How prevelant are they (cherry virus)? Are there obvious symptoms or just diminshed yield/vigor? Anything else to be aware of.

Several years ago I budded mesabi onto some wild pin cherry at the edge of the orchard.
The trees have done well and I re3ally liked the fruit I got from them this year.

The problem is one is doomed to a short life. I hacked it back hard and grafted to the watersprouts, but the main trunk is now 50+% rotten. And the other tree is in a less than ideal location for sun.

I was thinking of taking some bud wood from these trees and propagating onto a young Surfire that has thrown out a vigorous, well placed watersprout from below the graft but....

When I was first quizzing folks years ago about grafting to the wild trees I was warned by several nurserymen that they were likely loaded with virus (they never saw the trees they just felt this would be true). "Who Cares", I thought it's an experiment, the stock is there and free.
But if this is likely to be true, I am a bit reluctant to potentially infect this new young tree and the Jubilium that is planted essentially in the same hole (roots are likely fused).

I often feel that with pommes the whole issue of virus infection and grafting is overblown, and I generally don't worry too much about grafting in feral stock....but I have no real evidence to back this up and it could be a bad practice.

Any thoughts?

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