A scion is a portion of branch wood that has been collected for the purpose of grafting. The critical characteristic of a scion? Each scion cutting must be completely dormant when collected and stored. Used here, dormancy means that the buds which will eventually break open to produce new growth (flowers, leaves, and stems) are not currently growing. For this reason, scions of deciduous fruit are typically collected during the winter and stored until early spring, at which time they are used for grafting or budding. Scion wood should be collected from the previous seasons growth from mature wood in a semi-hardwood or hardwood condition.