Apple branch sat in a burn barrel all day. Still good for Scions?

Hi!  

I have a friend that has an apple tree that I would really like to propagate.  Today he called me up out of the blue and asked me if I would like a scion from his tree.  He also said that he started trimming today and that he had a fairly large branch from the tree already in his burn barrel.  

Of course,  I told him that I'd take that branch too. He told me that he would go out and put in water for me.  I have no idea of the size, but I'm hoping that it's pretty large.  

So now, (hopefully) the branch is sitting outside in a bucket of water and in the dark at around 45 degrees F.  I don't know what time today the branch was cut, but let's say that it was cut this morning and sat outside for 12 hours in 60ish degree cloudy weather in a burn barrel without water.  He's planning on bringing it to me tomorrow.

Does anyone know if this branch would still produce viable scions?  I think that I watched a video of a guy who used week old branches and still had viable scions.

Thank you in advance for any replies!
Regards,
Tim

I think there is a really good chance that it is viable. You could cut off the very end of the branches where it may have dried out more, and where the middle had a better chance of staying more moist. But in the conditions you mentioned the whole thing is probably fine.

I've pruned some branches and left them lying in the sun for a day or two in the 50s and then grafted them and they did fine, so I would bet yours is definitely good to go. Hope you get some apples soon!

Steve

howdy,

I also have trimmed/pruned fruit trees, left branches in piles and come out days later and noticed that they are budding. Fig tree cuttings have been pretty hardy.

Thank you Steve and Randall,  I appreciate you letting me know this.  The people on this forum are awesome!  It's hard to imagine the days before the internet when you couldn't find experienced people who wanted to share their knowledge.  Thanks again!  Tim