I used to use bleach to sterilize my samples before extracting DNA but I felt Copper soap was safer for scions I wanted to keep alive. I get some condensation on most my grafted scions(probably all but haven’t paid much attention) but it doesn’t usually affect my rate of success because I stay on top of it.
The more dry your scions are before wrapping with buddy tape or parafilm, the less condensation you will have.
After I graft, I keep a close eye on my scions and rootstock. Grafting the scion to the rootstock is just the beginning. Here are some maintenance steps I take, post grafting, that helps with the success rate.
I place my grafts in intensive care for the first 1-2 weeks. If grafting in the field, I give the graft some shade. If grafting potted plants, move them to the shade or part sun.
Look for growth below the graft union and if you see any, remove them. It’s usually easier to let them grow to about 1/2 inch before removing. These growths take energy away from the scion.
If you see a lot of condensation under the parafilm or buddy tape, you can use a scalpel to puncture a hole in the film and air dry or blot dry. Depending on how long it’s been since the graft, you can leave the hole there if you see the buds are about to push or you can patch the hole with buddytape or parafilm. If it’s only a small amount of condensation and you cleaned the scions with copper soap, you shouldn’t have to worry about slight condensation.
If there’s a lot of condensation, I’ll sometimes unwrap, dry and then re wrap but I only do this as a last resort because there is a high probability that you can dislodge the union.
If the buds don’t push after about a month, you may want to redirect energy by removing apical dominance of nearby branches, especially branches directly off the branch you grafted.
I sometimes get very delayed pushes from my scions but it is usually because the scion was not prepped, the rootstock was weak or the temperatures were not optimal. Here’s a graft that took more than two months to push. It took so long because the rootstock was in bad shape and had not a single leaf.
Simon