An efficient flat-surface collar-free grafting method for Arabidopsis thaliana seedlings

Background: Grafting procedures are an excellent tool to study long range signalling processes within a plant. In the last decade, suitable flat-surface grafting procedures for young Arabidopsis seedlings using a collar to support the graft have been developed, allowing the study of long-range signals from a molecular perspective. Results: In the modification presented here, scion and stock are put together on the medium without supporting elements, while cotyledons are removed from the scion, resulting in increased grafting success that can reach up to 100%. At the same time, the protocol enables to process as many as 36 seedlings per hour, which combined with the high success percentage represents increased efficiency per time unit. Conclusions: Growing cotyledons usually push the scion and the rootstock away in the absence of a supporting element. Removing them at the grafting step greatly improved success rate and reduced post-grafting manipulations.