Approximate Cloning Attempt

[Onamatopeia]

I topped my plants the other day. Then I realized that my biggest, strongest grower had one more node intact than any of the other plants. I want to learn to clone, I want to top this plant, why not use one for the other?

I don't have gel but in the Home Depot the other day I got something called Bontone Rooting Powder. I don't have a razor but I do have good bud scissors. I don't have a cloning tray but I do know how to turn a clear plastic cup upside down.

So I took a Solo cup, put a few drain holes in the bottom, mixed up soil mix with a few water crystals in the bottom, thoroughly wetted it.

Then I chopped my little growth tip (the baby plant's meristem, I don't think that's best), cut off the fan leaves. There were two growing shoots, I chopped the bigger sprouting leaf off each. Then I took my scissor blade and scored around the stalk, dipped it in the clone powder, and plopped it into my very moist soil. The whole stem wasn't much over an inch long.

My clear plastic cup fits snugly inside the top of the Solo cup. So there is a tight little dome over it. It has been two hours and I still see steam on the sides of the chamber.

I figure I will keep it near a window and keep it moist. Right now all you see is two little shoots with unformed leaves. It looks like two tiny sprouts right next to each other.

I don't have all the right gear. I don't have the knowledge. I don't have a space I can dedicate. So I figure see what happens with this low risk attempt.

When you read about taking cuttings from other plants, they make it seem like it's not a big deal. I am hoping my no-sweat approach works!

 

[thebudking]

Sound to me, you did fine. Just make sure it doesn't over heat being in a window with the sun. You shouldn't have to water it since it is pretty much sealed.

 

[Auggie]

Hate to be a naysayer ... but, my prediction: failure.

There are lots of tutorials about cloning here and other places. Razor cut is important, the cutting has difficulty taking up fluids through a crushing cut (which is a scissor cut). Ph is important, aim for 6.1 Putting directly into soil not good either, doesn't keep the tip wet enough, and if it does root rot is likely. In a constant moist (covered) atmosphere = powder mildew. Need at least two nodes, preferably three as the bottom leaves are used by the cutting as food reserves until it can make a root.

"When you read about taking cuttings from other plants, they make it seem like it's not a big deal". I am a clone farmer, busting ass right now, tis the season. I was out to dinner with another couple and he said, "Cloning is easy. Just throw some sprouts in a cube and yer in business." I almost choked, but didn't say anything. Spoken by someone who obviously has never cloned. It really IS a big deal. You are CREATING LIFE where there is only a faint spark of life. You need to nurture and fan that spark until it makes a blaze. If you do one thing wrong, just one little thing ... the spark dies.

If this succeeds chalk it up to a minor miracle. If it doesn't, spend $20 on a razor blade, a sheet of Oasis cubes and some rooting gel. And, follow those "big deal" instructions you will read about to the letter.

~ Auggie ~

PS: "Miracles DO happen, but ya sure can't count on 'em." quote from My Dad.

 

[Onamatopeia]

Next day, there is still mist in my chamber, soil is still totally moist. Leaves at least are not wilting. So far, so good.

One reason I am doing it this way is that cloning has always seemed very intimidating.

But before I started growing (I was a guerrilla for many years), a guerrilla grow seemed impossible. And I figured that out.

I know there are a lot of reasons this might fail. If so, I will learn what I can from it. It is also probably too small, only an inch or so of root to plant. Plus, yesterday I knocked the whole thing over, soil spilled out, I had to redo it. So if it wasn't already gonna die I just further traumatized it.

But one thing that amazes me is how strong the plants can be in some ways, and weak in others. So even if it fails I hope to learn something by how it responds. And if Auggie is reading this, I appreciate the advice. To me it is a low risk learning experience. If it actually roots, I will plant it outside and compare the exact same plant grown indoors and out!

It is three months before I need to actually harvest a clone. And I have nothing against getting a razor, etc. I really hope to avoid having a huge rig just for cloning. That's why if this works I will be so psyched.

I can see so many great things to do with clones and the outdoors. Many ways they can be used to help guerrillas or just outside gardeners!

 

[Onamatopeia]

Three days in, it looks like nothing has happened. Every day I make sure the soil is still moist and that's it.

It is still green, the leaflets haven't visibly changed. I keep it in the light but out of the sun. There is still a little mist in the "chamber".

I guess as long as it doesn't die I'll just keep it like this and see what happens.

 

[iwltfum]

I agree with auggie that a razor is a must. There are a couple of make-it-or-break-it factors though. Namely oxygen, humidity, and light. A medium that holds oxygen even when it is wet is crucial. I would say have it directly under a light, the window might work though. Temperature and pH are pretty darn important too. If you can, keep temps at 65-75f and pH at 6-6.5.

 

[Scarfinger68]

Three days in, it looks like nothing has happened. Every day I make sure the soil is still moist and that's it.

It is still green, the leaflets haven't visibly changed. I keep it in the light but out of the sun. There is still a little mist in the "chamber".

I guess as long as it doesn't die I'll just keep it like this and see what happens.

I have cloned many times and never used a razor. The "must" is an overstatement. I clone directly in soil, usually just in a seed starter mix. But peat pellets work also.

There are 3 things I consider important:

Try to use clean equipment. (I clean my scissors in alcohol)
A 45 degree cut approx. 1 to .5 cm below a node
keep them out of direct sunlight

Cut the remaining leaves approx. in half. Not required but I do it.

Other than that, try not to keep the soil to moist and try to avoid any air gaps around the stem. The soil will stay moist a lot longer considering you are using a doom. After the initial wetting of the soil, maybe add a little water right after you place the clone in to encourage the soil to form around the stem. This will help reduce mold chances. Just mist the leaves about every 2 days.

If using rooting agent, start taking the doom off around day 8 to 10 and see if they hold up.

A couple clones setting under a mother plant. I have around a 90% success rate. For home grow your method will be fine.

 

[iwltfum]

That's a good success rate. Why do those clones have buds on them though? Does that always happen when cloning in soil? I've always used an areoponic cloner. Should have mentioned that in my earlier post.

 

[Weaselcracker]

The easiest and most maintenance free way of cloning I've discovered so far is - cutting them the 'usual' way as scarfinger mentions above - but putting them in moist rockwool cubes- then putting the cubes in a bin of moist coco and leaving them under a cfl. No dome or further watering or misting- maybe just a surface touch up sprinkle if they haven't rooted in a couple weeks and the coco surface is drying a bit. A couple pics here- Test of the Air Bubble Theory - Cloning experiment
Still experimenting with it. I'll try skipping the rockwool next and see if the success rate changes. It's about 90%. The ones that aren't going to make it flop over early. Maybe a dome would help- but the whole point of this is that I have to be away sometimes- so just want to leave them as is.
The rest have all rooted with the greatest of ease.

 

[Scarfinger68]

That's a good success rate. Why do those clones have buds on them though? Does that always happen when cloning in soil? I've always used an areoponic cloner. Should have mentioned that in my earlier post.

Those clones were taken at day 21 of flowering. It is referred to as "monster cloning" because the clones will grow much different than a clone taken in the VEG cycle. Monster Clones tend to grow more branchy. I just did it to try it. I had 100% success rate on those clones doing it the way I described in my earlier post.

 

[Auggie]

Three days in, it looks like nothing has happened. Every day I make sure the soil is still moist and that's it.

It is still green, the leaflets haven't visibly changed. I keep it in the light but out of the sun. There is still a little mist in the "chamber".

I guess as long as it doesn't die I'll just keep it like this and see what happens.

Also, I don't use a dome at all. I used to - and had more than a little trouble with PM. I get a high success rate with a dome, and now no PM problem.

~ Auggie ~

 

[iwltfum]

@Scarfinger68
awesome. gunna have to try that sometime.

@Auggie
what did you change to stop the pm?

 

[Scarfinger68]

Also, I don't use a dome at all. I used to - and had more than a little trouble with PM. I get a high success rate with a dome, and now no PM problem.

~ Auggie ~

I think he meant to say he doesn't use a doom.

It probably depends a little on the relative humidity in your area. I know some people don't use dooms at all and have success. My humidity runs 30 to 45% most of the time. I have never had Powder Mildew using dooms for clones or in my flower room.

 

[Auggie]

Yes, I did mean to say that I do NOT use a dome.

The best way to stop PM is to make sure the humidity in your room doesn't get above 50% or so. There are some sprays that work well too - ask your grow store or nursery.

~ Auggie ~

 

[Onamatopeia]

Well, on day 5 one of the little stems I noticed it was starting to wither. The stem under the soil was just kind of rotting.

Next time I will definitely have a razor. Also I think my soil mix, with the water crystals, was too heavy. It stayed moist but maybe not enough O2 reaching the roots. And another biggie is my cutting was way too small. Next time I will have a couple inches of stem to work with.

I felt good about my chamber, and the conditions on my window.

Just for fun, in my outside garden, I took cuttings from three different flowers (a petunia, a verbena, and something else), dipped them in rooting powder, buried them deep in a container, and watered them and put 'em in the shade. Again, it was a very casual attempt, and I am just going to treat them like seedlings for a week and see if they establish.

Sometimes flowers in water I think will develop roots. I wonder how many use that as the initial medium then transplant to their permanent medium.

Does anyone know if cannabis is difficult to clone? As discussed a little above, gardeners dealing in other plants seem to think it is no big deal.

 

[Scarfinger68]

Well, on day 5 one of the little stems I noticed it was starting to wither. The stem under the soil was just kind of rotting.

Next time I will definitely have a razor. Also I think my soil mix, with the water crystals, was too heavy. It stayed moist but maybe not enough O2 reaching the roots. And another biggie is my cutting was way too small. Next time I will have a couple inches of stem to work with.

I felt good about my chamber, and the conditions on my window.

Just for fun, in my outside garden, I took cuttings from three different flowers (a petunia, a verbena, and something else), dipped them in rooting powder, buried them deep in a container, and watered them and put 'em in the shade. Again, it was a very casual attempt, and I am just going to treat them like seedlings for a week and see if they establish.

Sometimes flowers in water I think will develop roots. I wonder how many use that as the initial medium then transplant to their permanent medium.

Does anyone know if cannabis is difficult to clone? As discussed a little above, gardeners dealing in other plants seem to think it is no big deal.

Sounds like you got a little mold in that one. Just try and make sure everything is clean. Clean your scissors in alcohol after each cut. I have kept one like that alive for 30 days before. It would keep standing back up after I misted it. I know how you feel. It used to seem hard for me too, but now it seems easy.

It just takes practice. You can always buy one of those Aeroponics cloners or make one yourself. I tried making a bubble cloner but had less success with that than cloning in soil. Also for me I grow in soil so I figured I may as well stick with soil.

 

[Onamatopeia]

Much thanks to all the support and suggestions. I am definitely going to follow instructions for the next attempt. Well, maybe not ALL the instructions...

But having failed makes you so primed to drive through that failure and get it right!

 

[Auggie]

Just like anything else in life, its not hard IF you know how to do it. It's the learning that's hard - not the doing. Cloning is as much an art as a science. Kind of like cooking, or sex; the more you do it, the better you get at it.

My mom used to have a saying: "There is no success like failure - yet failure is no success at all." Learn from the failures and they become successes.

There are several tutorials here and elsewhere on cloning, read up. Use rockwool instead of going directly into dirt. Better yet, use Oasis cubes - they seem to keep more oxygen near the stem and lessen the odds of root rot. Again, I never found the need for any type of dome, but that may have something to do with my climate and/or room environment.

Have fun,
~ Auggie ~

 

[Onamatopeia]

The plants I stuck in the ground, the verbena and petunia (?) seem to be doing okay, each put out a flower in the last couple days. That was an extremely approximate attempt, I just cut 'em off with scissors, dipped in powder, planted 'em in wet soil and stuck 'em in the shade. I am not convinced they will survive but they are definitely not dead.

I don't need to actually do it for two months. I will definitely gear up before then. I am thinking some kind of chamber and rock wool, maybe an LED light bulb to power it. Even in winter I don't think it will need a heating pad, but that's a while away.

Wondering how big a clone mother has to be, if there is any way it can stay inside a clone chamber. Cos I can't see having three different spaces- one for actual growing, one for clones, and one for a mother. Screw that! I'd rather grow from seeds!

 

[Weaselcracker]

If you're taking clones which you want to eventually flower, you need a veg room to grow them in. The mother plant can be in the veg room. Or just use several of the vegging plants for taking cuttings, with no specific mother. The cloning area can be also in the veg room off in a corner away from the bright light. So, along with the flowering room, that's just two chambers overall.