Inosculation: Nature’s Grafting Technique

Design and InstallationGarden Caregarden TriviaPlant Health Care
Written By Peter Morris

When trunks or branches (sometimes roots) grow together and bond or merge into each other - we call that inosculation.  This biological oddity is actually used as the basis for the process of grafting – it is very uncommon in nature.

Tree trunk grew into the adjacent tree trunk !

GRAFTING

This is a common agricultural process where stems from one variety and attached to another and secured together until they grow into each other. Its main advantage is that some varieties produce better fruit than others but may have weak root systems.  By attaching them the chosen variety can be made to grow off the one with a better root system.

Common practice in the citrus industry - grafting!

PLEACHING, BELGIAN FENCES, AND ESPALIERS

Aside from grafting, the most widely used form in ornamental horticulture is in the merging of fruit trees to produce Belgian Fences. The inosculation actually allows all the individual plants to share a fluid sap system.  This in turn permits hormones that control blooming to make them all bloom at the same time!

Pleaching is an aesthetic choice when making rows of trees to form a large hedge.  Usually on both sides of a large outdoor space.  Its function is to help guide your eye towards the horizon - towards a focal point at the end of the garden.

Espaliers are a big space saver as the fruit tree is made to grow against a wall. Horizontal and vertical inosculation help the trunks support each other as the wood grows.

Tying crossing branches together to form a Belgian fence.

A mature Belgian fence in fall

A row of trees are planted together and encouraged to inosculate to form a pleached hedge 

ARBORSCULPTURE

The grafting of branches together has also led many horticulturists to become sculptors !!!  Botanical artists have been using live trees to form fantasy shapes and figures in nature since the mid 1700's. My favorite artists are Axel Erlandson and Richard Reams. 

Google them - its fascinating !

A pair of living chairs - Inosculation Rules !!!

At Plant Specialists, our Landscape Design team has used many of these magical plants in gardens.  They are a magnificent addition and a significant point of conversation.

Our Garden Care team of horticulturists have worked on many of these examples as well, and are trained in their special pruning needs.

Call us - put some magic in your garden !

PLANT SPECIALISTS

GREENING NEW YORK FOR OVER 52 YEARS !

Article written by our Staff Horticulturist, Peter B Morris, BSc, MSc, MBA

All photographs used with permission @SHUTTERSTOCK

Peter Morris

Peter was born and raised on a beautiful green island in the midst of a tropical rainforest. He was introduced into the world of plants at the age of six when his grandmother, an avid Spanish gardener herself, asked him to help her grow seeds for her pepper garden. He was hooked! By the time he was a teen, he had his own rose and orchid collection numbering in the hundreds. Botany was in his blood, and that is what he set out to study.

His passion brought him to NY in the late seventies to further his education. His tenacity allowed him to work full time at Plant Specialists while he completed a MS in Plant Biology. As a manager at the time he felt unsatisfied with his knowledge of business and business processes. Peter felt compelled to learn, so he then pursued and completed an MBA in Quality Management within a few short years.

Peter’s other passion is teaching. His natural ability is quickly consumed by our staff in all subjects in Botany, Horticulture, and Landscaping. He created an immense reference library of more than 3,500 plants providing an invaluable resource for our staff.

Peter’s breadth of knowledge and wisdom allows him to effectively diagnose the needs of plants. Sometimes just by walking into a garden he can create a prescription that fixes even the hardest issue. He is our Staff Botanist, Diagnostician, and all around Mentor. Recently, he has put his immense knowledge and skills into developing a new department that focuses on Plant Healthcare. As he puts it, “Magic through Science”. The PHC staff that surround him have avidly consumed his teachings. Substantially developing their own plant wisdom, many have taken on difficult plant health issues with spectacular results.

Plant Healthcare has been an instant success with customers! The proper treatment of insects and diseases including Organic methods has made pest control a necessity for every plant. Correcting hormonal imbalances caused by planting in containers or refurbishing soils leached of nutrients by irrigation systems are big challenges PHC has become quite comfortable addressing. The scientific approach to the complex demands of keeping plants healthy in our harsh city environment has made many a customer say WOW!

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