What the heck is that?
What do you do with grafting? I had no idea… I just did find out the meaning of grafting while hopping from French wineries to wineries.
Grafting is a technique that joins the tissues of two plants together so they continue to grow as one plant. In viticulture, this technique allows grape vines to express the desirable varietal characteristics of the scion (upper part of the joined plant) in the fruits while developing or keeping the root system of the rootstock (lower part of the joined plant). As a method to propagate vines, grafting has been used since Ancient Roman times, although it became vitally important for the majority of wine-growing regions in the world at the end of the 19th century, resulting in the majority of the vineyards we see today being planted with grafted vines.
Grafting has been use after the phylloxera damaged the vines in Europe.
After various failed attempts to eradicate the phylloxera, scientists discovered that the domestic vines from America are naturally resistant to the insect, which feeds on the roots.
In 1881, the International Phylloxera Congress held in Bordeaux defined grafting as the most effective and economical solution to the vineyard pandemic.
