ok so I finally got my white wedding clones, but they are in rockwool which I have absolutely no experience with..been searching the web over and over and can't find an exact answer on how to plant in soil..some say keep the block about an inch above soil and others say cover completely in soil and cover a few inches of main stalk..I understand the watering gest of it, but the actual planting has me stumped..will be going into happy frog soil in 3 gallon pots until they move to their final 10 gallon pot, in 6x6 tent with 3 mars hydro t600 and mars ii 900, 8 inch oscillating fan, right now they're still building a good root system in 2x2 tent with 1 mars hydro t600 until I figure out how to plant them properly..thanks, any advice welcomed, this is only my second grow
Clones started in rockwool, how to properly plant into soil
- Thread starter newfie709
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rock-wool is intended for hydro formats, one major problem is rockwool holds so much water. in hydro formats there is no such thing as too much water…. because the roots have adapted to extract oxygen in a wet enviro….. (water roots versus soil roots)
but that equation changes with soil, with most soil types the roots can’t live in constantly wet environment due to lack of oxygen, we manage this by letting the soil dry out between watering sessions before adding more water. overwatering in soil is very common cause of hitting the wall, like prolly the number one cause for newbies…
dont jump on anything right away but let the crew put in their work to advise you better
welcome aboard Newfie709
but that equation changes with soil, with most soil types the roots can’t live in constantly wet environment due to lack of oxygen, we manage this by letting the soil dry out between watering sessions before adding more water. overwatering in soil is very common cause of hitting the wall, like prolly the number one cause for newbies…
dont jump on anything right away but let the crew put in their work to advise you better
welcome aboard Newfie709
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- #3
thanks @013..so yea, my last grow didn't go great..well I cant really complain, I had 2 plants gifted to me so it was a very unplanned grow, one hermied,1.7oz in total dried, and one revegged, 5oz total..so I still got very good smokeable bud..but learnt in one grow what most learn in a life time, if ever..lmao..id just like to see what an actual nice grow feels like, obviously there will be some issue or another, but u get it..lol..but seems like I'm off to a mehhh start right off the bat..bahaha..but im willing to give it a go..just not hydro, cause I got no set up for that..
A couple of years ago I put some cuttings in some of the smaller rock wool cubes; the ones that were not wrapped with the foil/paper.
Once the cuttings had roots starting to poke out from the rock wool the cube was placed in the next size larger pot and treated just like it was being transplanted from a small container of soil to one that was bigger. The roots and the plant adapted quickly and before long the roots were well into the soil. Not long after it was hard to tell that there was a rock wool cube in the soil. The rock wool soon seemed to hold water about the same as the soil around it.
After the harvest I pulled the stem out and the rock wool was still visible. Tossed it on the garden and the next spring I found it but the rockwool was breaking apart. That was the last I saw of it.
Rock wool is interesting. Made from stone and chalk that has been super heated until it melts. Then the melted stone is turned into long strands so it looks like 'cotton candy'. Except, it does not dissolve like the candy stuff, it just stays as rockwool but slowly falls apart. The rock wool used for gardening is different than the rock wool used for insulation and does not seem to have the same problems.
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- #5
thanks for the input.. shes actually going into dirt tmr..upon further inspection, and reading numerous sites, I've concluded the roots only go as far as the actual center plug!! haven't gone into the huge block! which makes this so much simpler!!!
Great.
Watch the plant for the first week or so. Sometimes the roots react to going from an almost water environment of the Rock Wool cube to the soil. The plant might show some droop in the leaves as it adapts. It did not always happen and I do not remember any of the clones dying; just a few days of wilting and then back to business as usual.
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- #7
ok perfect! transplant went great..the roots were probably an inch or so out the bottom of the small rw cube. I actually went ahead and potted last night considering they do most of their root growing at night. I gave the medium(happy frog) a good soak with plain ph'd water, put in the seedling/cube in, and now to let her do her thing, checked on them as soon as lights came on this morning, both are still standing tall, and no signs of wilting so far, hopefully little to no transplant shock..lol..Ill keep a close eye for any signs of stress..thanks for the infoGreat.
Watch the plant for the first week or so. Sometimes the roots react to going from an almost water environment of the Rock Wool cube to the soil. The plant might show some droop in the leaves as it adapts. It did not always happen and I do not remember any of the clones dying; just a few days of wilting and then back to business as usual.