Will T-12 be ok for growing mother for clone purposes?

[pointer80]

Hello everyone, I am a new grower and I will be investing in some good grow lights (quantum boards) in the not so distant future but for now I want to get some clones started and what I have for lighting right now is some T-12 fixtures that I use to start my veggie seedlings. I believe the bulbs are between 4000-5000K. I was wondering if these lights will work well enough for growing a couple plants from seed big enough to use as mothers for producing some clones. Thanks for any advice.

 

[TorturedSoul]

They'll work, they just produce their light across a four foot long tube instead of from a point or small bulb, so you'll want to pack them in (which can be a RPITA if using standard hardware store fixtures) to help compensate for that. There's a little more to it than that (tightly-spaced bulbs still send a big chunk of their light upwards, which means a decent reflector is warranted, but you'll probably be reflecting much of that light back into the bulb it came from or another bulb, since they're all close together, et cetera), but they'll work.

Remember that they don't penetrate well (at all) into anything approaching dense growth, and that bulbs can lose a fairly significant amount of illumination (as they age) before they have lost enough for the gardener, using only his or her eyeballs, is able to notice a difference - so consider using new bulbs if possible.

 

[Jackalope]

It should work ok. Mother plants do not need a ton of light. The wider footprint of the light will help you spread her out. Wider is better for lots of clone sites. Keep her topped so she doesn't grow to tall. Once she is spread out the less intense light should help the branches stretch enough to make good clones.

 

[pointer80]

Thanks guy's. One more question, How old or "big" should the mother be before taking cuttings from her? Once again thanks.

 

[Jackalope]

I have not kept a mother before so this is random info. Here are things you need to consider.

How many clones are you going to need. And how often you are going to want them.For most people a mother will supply more clones then they really need. Once it starts bushing out they will be everywhere. You need them long enough to do well. It is best to get at least 2 leaf junctions below the soil. So they need to be long enough to do that. Also the harder a branch is the better they seem to clone.

In lots of cases for every clone you take you create 2 more. By the time she has branches big enough to clone it is old enough. Size is all that matters. You need to leave it plenty of plant matter to work with so don't take to many at one time. Never take more than half of the good branches.

Like I said I don't use mothers and that is only general info. Others may have better suggestions.

 

[pointer80]

Thanks for all the info guy's. greatly appreciated,