Grafting Vegetables
Vegetable grafting is a centuries-old technique utilized in Asia to improve plant production, reduce disease susceptibility, and increase soil utilization. Vegetable grafting was introduced in the United States almost 20 years ago and growers are becoming more aware of its attributes and potential. At Washington State University, we began vegetable grafting in 2009 with three crops: tomato, eggplant and watermelon.
Grafting Information
Hosting a Vegetable Grafting Workshop. This information packet from Washington State University provides instructions for how to host a vegetable grafting workshop, including a step-by-step guide for hosting the workshop and a list of supplies for the presenter; and for the participants there are useful handouts and a survey.
Grafting Supplies. Sacha Johnson, Carol Miles, Patti Kreider, Gale Sterrett, and Jacky King.
Vegetable Grafting: The Healing Chamber. WSU Extension Fact Sheet FS051E 3 pages. Published October 2011, reviewed July 2016.
Vegetable Grafting: Watermelon. WSU Extension Fact Sheet FS100E 7 pages. Published January 2013, reviewed June 2016.
Non-grafted and Grafted Seedless Watermelon Transplants: Comparative Economic Feasibility Analysis. Washington State University Extension publication TB08E, 14 pages. A guide for evaluating the physical and financial requirements and economic feasibility of growing seedless watermelon transplants, both non-grafted and grafted, in a greenhouse, as well as using grafted transplants to produce seedless watermelon in Washington. Published May 2016.
Vegetable Grafting: Eggplant and Tomato. WSU Extension Fact Sheet FS052E 4 pages. Published October 2011.
Small Scale Propagation: en espaņol
Injertos Hortícolas: SandÍa (PDF). Hoja de datos de la Extensión, Universidad Estatal de Washington FS100ES. 7 páginas. Publicado enero 2014.
Injerto de Verduras: Berenjenas y Tomates. Hoja informativa de la Universided Estatal de Washington FS052ES. 4 páginas. Publicado Agosto 2013.
Injerto Illustrado/Grafting Illustrated - handout includes illustrations of grafting techniques with key words in Spanish.
Grafting Presentations
Grafting Healing Chamber. Sacha Johnson, Carol Miles, Patti Kreider, Jonathan Roozen, Jacky King and Gale Sterrett, Washington State University. How to construct and manage a healing chamber for grafted vegetables. 2011.
History of Vegetable Grafting. Sacha Johnson, Carol Miles, Patti Kreider, Jonathan Roozen, Jacky King and Gale Sterrett, Washington State University. Summary of the history of vegetable grafting. Includes first known uses of vegetable grafting and current uses. 2011.
How to Graft Tomatoes and Eggplant. Sacha Johnson, Carol Miles, Patti Kreider, Jonathan Roozen, Jacky King and Gale Sterrett, Washington State University. Highlights splice grafting for tomato and eggplant, and how to manage newly grafted plants. 2011.
Transplanting Grafted Plants to the Field. Sacha Johnson, Carol Miles, Patti Kreider, Jonathan Roozen, Jacky King and Gale Sterrett, Washington State University. Reviews procedures and considerations for transplanting grafted vegetables into the field. 2011.
Grafting Research Articles
Refereed articles
Dabirian, S., and C. Miles. 2017. Antitranspirant application increases grafting success of watermelon. HortTech 27:494-501 doi: 10.21273/HORTTECH03739-17
Dabirian, S., and C. Miles. 2017. Increasing survival of grafted watermelon seedlings using a sucrose application. HortSci. 52:579–583. 2017. doi: 10.21273/HORTSCI11667-16
Dabirian, S., D. Inglis and C. Miles. 2017. Grafting watermelon and using plastic mulch to control Verticillium wilt caused by Verticillium dahliae in Washington. HortSci. 52:349–356. 2017. doi: 10.21273/HORTSCI11403-16.
Miles, C., J. Wimer and D. Inglis. 2015. Grafting eggplant and tomato for Verticillium wilt resistance. ActaHort 1086:113-117.
Wimer, J., D. Inglis and C. Miles. 2015. Evaluating grafted watermelon for Verticillium wilt severity, yield and fruit quality in Washington State. HortScience 50(9):1332-1337.
Wimer, J., D. Inglis and C. Miles. 2015. Field and greenhouse evaluation of cucurbit rootstocks to improve Verticillium resistance for grafted watermelon. HortScience 50(11):1625-1630.
Buller, S. D. Inglis and C. Miles. 2013. Plant growth, fruit yield and quality, and tolerance to Verticillium wilt of grafted watermelon and tomato in field production in the Pacific Northwest. HortSci. 48:1003-1009.
Johnson, S., D.A. Inglis, and C. Miles. 2013. Grafting effects on eggplant growth, yield and verticillium wilt incidence. Intl. J. Veg. Sci. doi:10.1080/1915269.2012.751473.
Johnson, S., C. Miles, and D.A. Inglis. 2013. First report of Verticillium wilt caused by V. dahliae on grafted Solanum aethiopicum in Washington. Plant Dis. 97:840.
Johnson, S. and C. A. Miles. 2011. Effect of healing chamber design on the survival of grafted eggplant, watermelon, and tomato. HortTech. 21:752-758.
Resources
Vegetable Grafting (vegetablegrafting.org). A portal designed to deliver current research-based information on the preparation, use, evaluation and purchase of grafted vegetable plants. Supported by the Specialty Crop Research Initiative (SCRI) of the USDA and NIFA.
Our pages provide links to external sites for the convenience of users. WSU Extension does not manage these external sites, nor does Extension review, control, or take responsibility for the content of these sites. These external sites do not implicitly or explicitly represent official positions and policies of WSU Extension.
Cutting tomato scion material for splice grafting.
The healing chamber structure where plants are held for 7 days following grafting.
Grafted watermelon plant immediately after being transplanted into the field.