Last Saturday, some volunteers of the “Mutual Aid 1 and 2” project, from the YDCMA organization in Kazanlak, attended a workshop about the technique of grafting in Shipka. We were invited by other volunteers who carry out their project in this neighbouring town.

Grafting is a horticultural technique whereby tissues of trees are joined so as to continue their growth together. Usually, one tree is selected for its roots and this is called the stock. The other tree is selected for its stems, leaves, flowers or fruits and is called the scion. This one contains the desired genes to be duplicated in future production by the stock tree.

So, the first part of the workshop consisted of listening to the explanations of the expert, „Христо Ашламинатора“, who before entering the subject, spoke about the history and the tradition of this technique in the region. It was notable that he had a lot of experience and he really enjoyed doing his job. At first, it was a bit complicated to understand because he spoke in Bulgarian, although the other organizer of the event, Tatyana Kossekova, was translating us into English. 

Then, we had a little break to eat banitsa and drink some tea. After that, we practiced the technique used to cut the branches of the trees with the help of the teacher to go to the second part of the workshop, actually the most entertaining. It took place in the garden of the house and we had the opportunity to make several real graft of apple and cherry trees, among others. 

To finish the event, we went for a walk in the countryside. It was very nice because we could enjoy the sunset while we were observing the wild trees. We cut some of its branches to help its growth and we learned how to differentiate the trees.

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Marta Valverde.