How to clone in rock wool

[shanker65]

Here are the roots of the final capn clone to be transplanted into a 4" pot. This guy took about 2.5weeks. You can see some of the others in the background. The root tea definitely kept these guys thriving in my opinion... They were a bit neglected as I was out of town for 4 days.

 

[KROQ]

Good looking roots, Shanker. My two attempts at cloning in rockwool both seemed to be going good. Both died, however
I took tops from my plants, applied clonex, soaked for awhile, and even saw some roots after about ten days, but I'm not set up for hydro yet. I'm guessing that when I put a rockwell cube into soil, it drains the water out of the plant.

 

[shanker65]

Here are the roots another 2 weeks later.. I'm having a prob though as I think I took them too late in flower. I'm not sure that they have switched back to veg. yet. Still waiting. Church Seedlings are catching up.

 

[thunder55]

Do you use a heat mat for the cubes?

My rooms stay at 66-68, so not sure if this is too cold for the 3" cubes.

This is my first go at it with cubes (previously promix), and it's been 9 days with zero root activity under the 3" cubes, but the cuttings look perfect.

Heat mat or no?

 

[TheCapn]

Do you use a heat mat for the cubes?

My rooms stay at 66-68, so not sure if this is too cold for the 3" cubes.

This is my first go at it with cubes (previously promix), and it's been 9 days with zero root activity under the 3" cubes, but the cuttings look perfect.

Heat mat or no?

Sometimes I use a heat mat, yes. It makes roots quicker but you must be very careful it doesn't get too warm, and the dome doesn't get too humid inside. Right now I have my clone dome sitting on TOP of a running T5 fixture and it's perfect! Just barely warm to the touch.

>>>My rooms stay at 66-68

I would use heat. You might be able to set the clone dome on something like your old VCR or a heating pad on low setting with some towels on it.

>>>This is my first go at it with cubes (previously promix), and it's been 9 days with zero root activity under the 3" cubes, but the cuttings look perfect.

I "usually" don't see roots popping out the bottom until day 12-13. The sign that they look perfect, means they will root. Remember with a bigger cube, it takes the root a couple days longer to show itself. Good luck and keep us posted.

 

[thunder55]

Thanks, I'll set the dome on top of the t5s.

Much appreciated, all of your information sharing. Moved from soil less to dwc without much incident(tea fixed the issue I had), got a new capn setup in the works. Have had the space and environment dialed in for years, just saw too many people fail at hydro. I'm going to change that with your help, bud

 

[s1ingblade]

High there Cap'n,
I wanted to let you know your How To helped me get some cuts rooted when the heat problems kept my aero cloner from working like usual.
I took cuts from a winning cut of Em Dogg and 8 days later I got white roots

all I used was

and your instructions

sorry I know its sideways lol
In 4 months Ill have

Thanks again Cap!!

 

[thunder55]

Thanks, I'll set the dome on top of the t5s.

Much appreciated, all of your information sharing. Moved from soil less to dwc without much incident(tea fixed the issue I had), got a new capn setup in the works. Have had the space and environment dialed in for years, just saw too many people fail at hydro. I'm going to change that with your help, bud

Update: 100% rate on a legacy, cut only strain. Much appreciated

 

[TheCapn]

High there Cap'n,
I wanted to let you know your How To helped me get some cuts rooted when the heat problems kept my aero cloner from working like usual.
I took cuts from a winning cut of Em Dogg and 8 days later I got white roots
Thanks again Cap!!

Update: 100% rate on a legacy, cut only strain. Much appreciated

Way to go, thunder!

Sling, glad to hear you gave the rockwool a try. I see you did it right by the "book". Nice. After you do this for a few months, I would like you to tell me if you stick with the rockwool or go back to the cloner.

I think the aero cloners produce a tiny bit quicker, but there is more to go wrong and more margin for error.

 

[slowgro]

Thanks, Capn, for another great how-to!

I just want to address the idea of flowering clones. A little harder and slower to root, perhaps, but with advantages too.

There is a very good thread on flowering clones, started by racefan:

What is a flowering clone?


Here are a few snips from it:

What is a flowering clone?
Simply put, it is a clone taken at or around 21 days flowering or later....The truth is, a flowering clone is a fully mature plant.

Why use a flowering clone?
The branching power of the flowering clone is unbelievable compared to any other clone I've dealt with.


How long do they take to root?
These clones usually are a little slower to regenerate but not too bad. I average about 14days. [After rooting] the mature clone will start to throw out unserrated leaves at first and it kinda looks a little odd. Not to worry though. Right behind the unserated leaves will emerge the normal leaf sets. Once they start to come around you will see the branching ability of these clones.

I can only confirm this on the basis of one clone (so far). It went through some single blade leaves, got back to normal growth, and went right into flowering, since it is outdoors. It is far branchier than any other I have seen! About 18 inches tall and has over 100 bud sites

 

[TheCapn]

Yes I've read racefan's article. It's a good one and he put a lot of time into it. I take clones from flowering plants when I'm over my plant count limit. For example, if I want to hold on to a strain, but don't want to have too many plants on hand, I'll wait until that plant has been in flower for a good two weeks, then I'll take a single clone from it.

For my perpetual grow, it doesn't work out, however. Typically, I take a clone right when I go to flower, then it has two months to grow large enough to be ready to flower and produce a lb. If you put your plant in flower and then wait two weeks to take a clone from it, it will not be nearly big enough for flower when mama is done. Clones from flowering plants stall out after rooting and take a few weeks to "re-veg" and get back to normal growth. That said, there is something about the flowering clones that does make the branch very rapidly, once they start taking off!

If you have the time and the space, I would suggest doing a side by side test to see which one gets up to size faster. FWIW, in my experience, it seems indica dominant clones don't do as well when taken during flowering, but that may just be coincidence.

My goal is always to have the plant as large as possible when going to flower. It is better to have to give it a hair cut, then for it to not be big enough, and end up with a wimpy yield. So I say, whatever works!

Newbee growers, seem to have more problems getting the flowering clones to root.