Pythoff

Hello everybody, I've just joined and would like to make a contribution
as a greeting gift. I have 12 years outdoor experience and 6 years hydro
experience and in terms of knowledge, I have a little to share but I think
we are all still just scratching the surface.

It took me around 2 years of experimentation with cloning to
find the fastest and best methods (applicable to my growing methods)
I have tried the following methods ie. Rockwool, peat mixes, Aerocloning, mist generators, jiffy pots,
standard soil mixes, cocoa cior fibre and others. But I still come back to the one
listed below:

Key Factors affecting clone development:

Lighting - Cool white fluros are outstanding and no more than 30w psf

Temperature - I've found that they root faster around 75 - 85f

Humidity - Perfect RH for cloning is 88% - use a dome if you need to

Low ph - keep any solutions between 5.2 and 5.5 for faster clone rooting.

PPM's of solutions - NEVER go above 1/5 strength of any nutes for clone solutions

Nitrogen content - Nitrogen inhibits root growth, use a 1/5 strength BLOOM nute mix
if you use anything at all. Plain water is just fine but the clones will root faster using
a light bloom mix.


Guaranteed Cloning Results using perlite/vermiculite and peat moss

First Steps-Preparation & Materials
You will need:
Scalpel or razor blade (presoaked in bleach),
Perlite and Vermiculite 5litres of each will provide the medium for 100 clones
2 litres of peat moss OR 2 litres finely ground cocoa fibre (bonding agent only)
1 inch or 3 inch propogation pots or any similar small container that allows for drainage
Liquid or gel rooting hormone (clones, olivias, rootmaster etc)
Dome made from clear plastic that will fit over your clones, at least 6 inches taller than clones
2 x 18w fluro fixtures and tubes
Small spray bottle
Small amount bloom nutes or bloom soil ferts high in phos. NOT ESSENTIAL
Small amount Superthrive. NOT ESSENTIAL

1. Prepare your clones for rooting whilst they are actually still on the mothers.
Trim any nodes that may go beneath the level of the mix flush with the stems.
Make your clones between 4 and 6 inches long, any larger and you may see a
stall while the roots grow enough to feed the big cutting. Leave 2 sets
of leaves on the cuttings (still on the mothers at this stage).

2. Trim approximately 1/3 to 1/2 of the lower set of leaves by just snipping the leaf tips
off so you end up with square tipped leaves about half to one third of the size they were.
DO NOT TRIM THE TOP SET OF LEAVES (The cuts are still on the mothers at this stage)

3. Leave the cuttings on the mums for 24 to 36 hours.


NOW DO THIS

Mix your medium at 1 part perlite/1 part vermiculite/ half part peat moss. (MIX WELL)
Mix your nutes at 1/5th strength and add 4 drops superthrive per gallon of water/nute mix
Place the mixed medium into the pots and then water the pots untill they are saturated
Poke a skewer or stick approx 1 1/2 inches into the centre of the pots.
Place everything in a convenient location in preparation for your cloning activity


4. Detachment time - Using a razor blade or scalpel presoaked in bleach (and wiped dry),
make a clean diagonal cut where the bottom of your cutting will be, right through the stem, seperating
the cutting from it's mother. Place this cutting (bottom 1 inch) immediately into a small CLEAN glass
of room temp. water. DONT TOUCH THE BOTTOM OF THE CUT

5. Now repeat he process for each of your cuttings. When you have seperated All your cuttings...

6. Take out 1, and very lightly scrape the bottom 1/2to 1 inch of it with your razor blade (all round the stem)
DONT BREAK THE OUTER HURD, all you're doing is stimulating the hurd so that
the plant will generate roots along the whole length of the disturbance.

7. Dip this cutting into your rotting hormone ie Clonex, Olivias rooting gel, clone master etc.
make sure you dip to the full extent of the area you disturbed.

8. Now place the clone stem into the hole you created in your pots of medium.

9. Lightly firm down around the stem of the clone and water the medium with the same
mix used prior to planting the clones.

10. After your clones are ALL in the medium and watered, mist the clones with
your spray bottle and place the dome over the top.

11. Mist them in the morning and again in the evening and in 7 to 10 days MAX, if you've
followed all these instructions you should have a fully blown rootball suitable for
transplant into ANY hydro or soil mix.

This work everytime with a 100% success rate. You should not lose a single
clone. I'm not saying this is the best method around but I'm saying that it works
for me every time and it works fast.

mr_biz

You say the nitrogen is good for clones.
Would urine and/or grass clippings be sufficient if added straight to the solution?

Pythoff

the clone stage, phos. and potassium are required for root production. Don't use any nitrogen based additives for cloning- plain ph adjusted water is fine but a 1/5 BLOOM nute mix will help them root faster.

Pythoff

Clones at 11 days ready to move into ANY medium.

jjg

When you say 1/5 solution do you mean 1/5th of the normal strength or 1 part solution with 5 parts water?

Thanks
John

born042079

"Nitrogen content - Nitrogen inhibits root growth, use a 1/5 strength BLOOM nute mix if you use anything at all. Plain water is just fine but the clones will root faster sing a light bloom mix."
-----------
Definately 1/5 normal strength.

1 part fert to 5 parts water would be the plant equivalent to leathal injection. Especially when cloning.

Peace,

Born420

Tetrahydro Canibinol

hey i have a question about cloning...if i have like 10 clones and i want to flower them. how long should i wait to flower from when i put them in the soil? i want to get a whole bunch of small plants because i dont have that much space or that many lights. please give me your suggestions.
thank you,
Smoke 'em if you got 'em

__________________
i love weed

smokinrav

Hey ThC...clones can be flowered as soon as they are rooted since its genetics make it the same age as the mother plant its cut from (thanks OZGrowa)

Smokin

InaMinute419

Is it ok to take a clone off of a flowering mother? I still have a few bottom stems that I can take that are not showing any pistils.

L8r

Pythoff

BUT- expect the following=

Up to 4 weeks for root production,

Whorled photolaxy (mutant looking leaves) from new clone vegetive growth.

Very branchy type new growth (can be an advantage)

But rest assured, they will root.