bench grafting, the viticultural operation of grafting vines indoors rather than in the field. This procedure has allowed viticulturists around the world successfully to combat the ravages of phylloxera and to a lesser extent those of nematodes by economically grafting to resistant rootstock. It permits mechanization and factory-style operations leading to mass production. The procedure is widely used in Europe, especially Italy and southern France, where it is an important industry. Dormant cuttings are saved for bench grafting, stored in the cold; after soaking in fungicide solution, rootstock cuttings are disbudded and scion cuttings are cut into one-node pieces. Cuts of matching shape are made at the bottom of the scion and at the top of the rootstock, using cuttings of similar diameter. With a grafting machine, variously shaped cuts are used, such as ‘omega’ or ‘saw-tooth’. After matching together, the newly grafted cuttings are packed with a moistened, coarse-grained medium in boxes and stacked in humid, warm rooms (28–9 °C/82–4 °F) until the union has callused (in about two weeks). Once they have hardened, grafts are waxed to reduce water loss, then planted out, usually in a field nursery. These plants are grown over the summer and then lifted from the nursery, the roots and shoots trimmed, before delivery to the client in winter, typically in bundles of 50.
