How Long Should My Clones Take To Root?

[Smokin Moose]

After about a week you can test to see if your plants have started to root. Remove the humidity dome and leave it off for between twenty minutes and two hours. Watch the clones for any signs of wilting while the dome is removed. If the plants have not wilted at all then they probably have enough root development to support themselves. If no wilt is noticed leave the dome off, if they are wilted, spray the cuttings and dome and replace the dome on the tray.

Once you have determined that the plants can support themselves, stop misting the cuttings and leave the humidity dome off. (NOTE: Once the plants have roots, constant misting can actually be harmful to the plants).

If the lower leaves start to turn yellow and die, don't worry, it is perfectly normal. It is the plant feeding off of itself to sustain life, moving valuable nutrient and water from the older growth. Do not remove any dead growth until the plant is well rooted. If you remove the dying growth the plant can starve and die completely.

 

[misterman1961]

This really helps me, thanks!

 

[Malcolm]

This really helps me, thanks!

I took thirty clones and within eight days, twenty three had roots. The other seven were "showing" the next day. By day ten all were in medium, in eight inch containers and very happy, big smiles! lol. This is my usual return time and I do it three times a month. I keep the humidity and the ambient temperature at 72*. Every day I "air" them for a bit by sliding the dome back about a 1/2 inch. I use root "plugs" and clonex gel for the cuttings and clonex solution for the plugs once placed in the tray. I fill the tray to about an inch with solution and that's it until roots show. That is enough to maintain them until then. Of course if it takes you longer to get roots then you may want to check the moisture level of your tray to avoid drying out. I use a soiless mix in my containers and do not give them any nutes for the first month, the mix contains enough nutes to sustain cuttings for that time period. They receive 18hrs of lighting under 600watts of HPS and 400watts of MH lamps and six hours of "quiet" time. There is however a low level illumination from the cloning area which is constant so it is never completely dark, only during the flowering cycle when it is absolutely important...

 

[redfox30]

It can take up to 2 weeks if your heat and humidities not right.

 

[Malcolm]

It can take up to 2 weeks if your heat and humidities not right.

My rate of return so to speak, was not always as rapid as is now. Your right on the money Redfox, temperature and humidity is crucial in achieving quick results. I remember the days of two to three week waiting periods and then losing some to wilt and stem rot. It seems like a long time ago now but I do remember when, lol...

 

[wyattsgrandpa]

Hey guys, I am somewhat new to cloning and I am working with Trainwreck strains only. My last two sets of cuttings, placed into oasis cubes, have failed to root. After 15days, I started inspecting them and found the bottom of the cuttings to be white and deformed, like a little ball on the end. I use new razor blade with each plant, cut at a 45 degree angle under water, dip in clonex, and place in a pre-moistioned Oasis cube. All are then placed under a humidity dome and then under a 4 foot twin bulb T8 at 18- 6 cycle. What I do not understand is I have had great success with this exact same procedure??? What am I doing wrong?

 

[Malcolm]

Hey guys, I am somewhat new to cloning and I am working with Trainwreck strains only. My last two sets of cuttings, placed into oasis cubes, have failed to root. After 15days, I started inspecting them and found the bottom of the cuttings to be white and deformed, like a little ball on the end. I use new razor blade with each plant, cut at a 45 degree angle under water, dip in clonex, and place in a pre-moistioned Oasis cube. All are then placed under a humidity dome and then under a 4 foot twin bulb T8 at 18- 6 cycle. What I do not understand is I have had great success with this exact same procedure??? What am I doing wrong?

I use Rapid Rooters which are pre-formed organic plugs in the shape of a small volcano so to speak. I set them in my tray with the "volcano" facing upwards as they usually do. They stand very nicely this way. I poke a hole into the "spout" about an inch using a pencil for the new cutting to slide into. I slice my cuttings on as much as an angle as I can, dip in Clonex Gel solution and set into the root plugs. They are then set into the tray into which I then fill to about one inch evenly with Clonex solution for rooting, mixed with water. I use a convex dome which allows for more height. I keep the humidity and ambient temperature at 72* for the entire time until they root under 24 hours of light. I have roots every time within 8-9 days without fail. This is of course barring any unforeseen "accidents". By the way, those "deformed" white balls at the end of the cuttings were the beginnings of roots. Hope this helps...

 

[StoneyCt2010]

Hey guys, I am somewhat new to cloning and I am working with Trainwreck strains only. My last two sets of cuttings, placed into oasis cubes, have failed to root. After 15days, I started inspecting them and found the bottom of the cuttings to be white and deformed, like a little ball on the end. I use new razor blade with each plant, cut at a 45 degree angle under water, dip in clonex, and place in a pre-moistioned Oasis cube. All are then placed under a humidity dome and then under a 4 foot twin bulb T8 at 18- 6 cycle. What I do not understand is I have had great success with this exact same procedure??? What am I doing wrong?

Make sure, whatever you do, that you NEVER DOUBLE DIP with the cloning gel. What happens is when you dip your clone into the gel, it "activates" the gel, rendering in usless, after a few hours.. Always seperate or pour out the gel onto a paper plate or something... always throw out what you dont use... Dont reuse or return unused gel. Once you dipped the gel is active and after a few hours is no good......

 

[bizz]

Hey guys, I am somewhat new to cloning and I am working with Trainwreck strains only. My last two sets of cuttings, placed into oasis cubes, have failed to root. After 15days, I started inspecting them and found the bottom of the cuttings to be white and deformed, like a little ball on the end. I use new razor blade with each plant, cut at a 45 degree angle under water, dip in clonex, and place in a pre-moistioned Oasis cube. All are then placed under a humidity dome and then under a 4 foot twin bulb T8 at 18- 6 cycle. What I do not understand is I have had great success with this exact same procedure??? What am I doing wrong?

in december, I put 48 cuts in oasis cubes and had 100% success with roots popping after 3 weeks, used dip'n'grow...

air temps were cold, but I was using heating pad connected to controller set to 80'... still it took 3 weeks...

"After 15days, I started inspecting them and found the bottom of the cuttings to be white and deformed, like a little ball on the end."

Sounds like roots forming... were the leaves wilted or perky?

took some cuts last sat/sun, waiting on roots... heating pad controller circuitry went on the frizt tho and some of the leaves got crispy yesterday from too much heat leaf is crispy but cut is still alive... curious to see results, if the fried ones can make it...

 

[wyattsgrandpa]

Thank you all for the information, My clone room is a constant 72 degrees, with humidity at around 50-60 percent in the room. My first two runs were done exactly the same and they popped at 7-12 days. The third run went 22 days before they popped with a 40% rate, and this run is at 19 days and only two of 40 have popped. I pour out the clonex into a small container and discard what i do not use. The mothers are all healthy. Maybe I am expecting them to pop to soon, and just got lucky with the first two runs?

 

[wildmanmaxx]

Dude listen to these people THEY KNOW MORE THAN ANY BOOK WILL tell you

 

[RandyL]

I cut some clones a month and a half ago for my second generation of plants, and they took a good 15 days to show enough roots to plant them. But I also made the mistake of using the larger 1-1/2" rockwool cubes, and not poking out the hole all the way to the bottom of the cube. A couple actually had roots growing up out the TOP of the cube, as it was the easiest way out of the rockwool! I used the Clonex gel. I dipped each stem in the gel, and left a pretty heavy layer of Clonex on the stem when I put it in the rockwool.

All is good now, though. I learned from that.

 

[Slowpuffer]

I don't know, maybe the strain (trainwreck) is just hard to clone. But that's only a guess !! I have cloned different phenos of white widow, and some definately clone easier than others !!

 

[Jasonlee247]

Make sure, whatever you do, that you NEVER DOUBLE DIP with the cloning gel. What happens is when you dip your clone into the gel, it "activates" the gel, rendering in usless, after a few hours.. Always seperate or pour out the gel onto a paper plate or something... always throw out what you dont use... Dont reuse or return unused gel. Once you dipped the gel is active and after a few hours is no good......

NOT TRUE. Cloning gel is not meant to be double dipped due to bacterial or fungal contamination. Most gels use Indole-3-Butyric Acid (IBA) as the main ingredient. It has a shelf life of many months if stored in a cool place like the fridge. I have been re-using my IBA based gels until I have to roll the stem around the inside wall of the jar just to coat it (like scraping out the last of the Mayo. lol). I have been doing this for years, and consistantly get roots in 5 - 7 days, ready to transplant in no more than 10 days with 100% success rate. (not that I'm condoning double dipping)

There are a few tricks to getting better results cloning.
1. add a vitamin rich additive with B1 to your motherplants nutrient mix. (I use Technaflora ThriveAlive Red) This should be done at least for a few days before you plan to take your cuttings. (1/4 strength will do)
2. I highly recommend taking your cuttings 20-30 minutes after a watering your mother plant to help ensure a well hydrated cutting. Cutting underwater is not needed! ...and quite awkward.
3. when taking your cutting, you want to cut diagonally thru a node (it helps me to first cut the branch from the plant a little below the node, and then make your final diagonal node cut when at your cloning station right next to clone gel.) You want to cut and quickly dip into the gel as not to allow the cut to seal.

If your cloning an elongated branch without a nearby node you can make your diagonal cut werever and use your blade to vertically score the stem on the bottom 1/4" in four or five lines around the stem. The gel will seal these areas and your roots will grow first from were you scored the cutting. This takes a little practice, but isnt all that hard once you get the hang of it.

oh, also, this is just my opinion, but Oasis cubes should stay in the fake flower department. They have no place in the 'real' garden. IMO
Try Coco Coir, rapid rooter plugs or Rockwool.

sorry, I tend to ramble when buzzed, but I Hope I helped.

 

[Jasonlee247]

Thank you all for the information, My clone room is a constant 72 degrees, with humidity at around 50-60 percent in the room. My first two runs were done exactly the same and they popped at 7-12 days. The third run went 22 days before they popped with a 40% rate, and this run is at 19 days and only two of 40 have popped. I pour out the clonex into a small container and discard what i do not use. The mothers are all healthy. Maybe I am expecting them to pop to soon, and just got lucky with the first two runs?

Sounds to me like you might have a pythium problem or similar fungus. Your success rates seem to be dropping from run to run. You might want to try replacing your tray and dome if you use them. Do you allow standing water in the room? Check the lower stem of your unsuccessfull cuttings for any mushiness or foul odors - right were you cut. You can also add Trichoderma species to your initial watering to fight pythium before it starts.

 

[Malcolm]

NOT TRUE. Cloning gel is not meant to be double dipped due to bacterial or fungal contamination. Most gels use Indole-3-Butyric Acid (IBA) as the main ingredient. It has a shelf life of many months if stored in a cool place like the fridge. I have been re-using my IBA based gels until I have to roll the stem around the inside wall of the jar just to coat it (like scraping out the last of the Mayo. lol). I have been doing this for years, and consistantly get roots in 5 - 7 days, ready to transplant in no more than 10 days with 100% success rate. (not that I'm condoning double dipping)

There are a few tricks to getting better results cloning.
1. add a vitamin rich additive with B1 to your motherplants nutrient mix. (I use Technaflora ThriveAlive Red) This should be done at least for a few days before you plan to take your cuttings. (1/4 strength will do)
2. I highly recommend taking your cuttings 20-30 minutes after a watering your mother plant to help ensure a well hydrated cutting. Cutting underwater is not needed! ...and quite awkward.
3. when taking your cutting, you want to cut diagonally thru a node (it helps me to first cut the branch from the plant a little below the node, and then make your final diagonal node cut when at your cloning station right next to clone gel.) You want to cut and quickly dip into the gel as not to allow the cut to seal.

If your cloning an elongated branch without a nearby node you can make your diagonal cut werever and use your blade to vertically score the stem on the bottom 1/4" in four or five lines around the stem. The gel will seal these areas and your roots will grow first from were you scored the cutting. This takes a little practice, but isnt all that hard once you get the hang of it.

oh, also, this is just my opinion, but Oasis cubes should stay in the fake flower department. They have no place in the 'real' garden. IMO
Try Coco Coir, rapid rooter plugs or Rockwool.

sorry, I tend to ramble when buzzed, but I Hope I helped.

Great post, very informative...

 

[MisterPeabody]

I'm not familiar with oasis cubes, so I'm not sure of their composition. I've used Rapid Rooters and Rockwool Cubes, both of which I believe to retain a little too much water for the delicate job of cloning. It could be a water too much, but I have seen many clones as well as seedlings go to waste because of too much water or water retention, presumably a combination of the two. I have been using the hard coco type pellets that grow (expand) when it get wet. It stays moist-but not like a sponge. I use tap water (that has set out for 48 hrs) mixed with 1.1 ml of House and Garden's Root Stimulator. I PH the water to 6.3 and let r rip. The ppm of this mixture is between 250 and 280 ppm. Very mild solution. Far as cloning duties, Deep Water Culture w/fogponics or for larger batches I use 4 gallon homemade aeroponics unit. The fogponics/Deep Water Culture takes around 10 days to root and the aeroponic unit does the trick in about a week. Both are reliable.

Evolution Of A GrowCab-From The School of hard Knocks
Grow Cab Ventilation Redesign-All About Heat
Deep Water Culture with Fogponic Contruction

Thank you all for the information, My clone room is a constant 72 degrees, with humidity at around 50-60 percent in the room. My first two runs were done exactly the same and they popped at 7-12 days. The third run went 22 days before they popped with a 40% rate, and this run is at 19 days and only two of 40 have popped. I pour out the clonex into a small container and discard what i do not use. The mothers are all healthy. Maybe I am expecting them to pop to soon, and just got lucky with the first two runs?

 

[PitViper]

H&G Roots Excell......its the best

 

[Jasonlee247]

i like the H&G line too, but man, that sh*t is expensive.
Do you use the full line PitViper?

 

[bc33]

I live somewhere in British Columbia Canada. I have been a comercial grower for 18 years. I cut clones on a weekly basis. I always bat a about a 90% success rate. In my opinion keep it simple. I dont use any special nutrients for my mothers. I keep up on my spraying neet for pests. keep my room and gear clean my tray washed in between batches of clones. I dont use razors or cut under wanter or any of that. Just scissors at a 45 and dip in rooting powder stem root # 2. I use jiffy 7 pucks and domes unde 24 flouresent light. 5 -15 days rooting time. I open the dome 10 minutes per day for air. I also make sure my pucks are not too wet but just the right amount of mousture. By this method I have produced 15000 clones every month for the last 5 years. I would bother with the expensive additives or any of Keep it simple