What comes in your head when you read the word “clone”? If you are a nerd or a geek or a sci-fi enthu-cutlet like us, you must’ve thought about some futuristic process or something. Right?
But here, clones mean a different thing altogether.
A clone is a cutting, like, a branch, that is cut off of a living weed plant, which will grow into a plant itself. A clone has a similar genetic makeup to the plant it was taken from, known as the mother plant.
Why Clone Cannabis?
Cloning cannabis guarantees that you’ll get an accurate replica of your plants.
You’ll have the option to replicate your buds, and you can be confident that the new ones will be females.
Indeed, even feminized seeds aren’t guaranteed to deliver all females.
Contingent upon the process used to deliver them, some feminized seeds yield high hermaphrodite plants.
Hermaphrodites are also called “hermies,” have both female and male reproductive organs. Hermies can fertilize themselves and the rest of your yield. You’ll wind up with powerless, seedy cannabis.
Setting up the Mother Plant:
There are three foolproof ways to prepare mother plant for cloning:
- Flush the nitrogen from the mother plant before cloning. The reason is, nitrogen in your clones will force them to keep making leaves instead of focusing on root development. Prevent adding supplements to the mother plant’s water five days before you intend to take cuttings.
- Add more potassium and phosphorus to your supplement blend pre-cloning. These two supplements force plants to grow new roots and reinforce existing roots.
- Continue taking care of the mother plant. Advocates of this technique guarantee that is changing your routine stresses the mother plant.
Method for Cloning Cannabis
Before you start cloning, you’ll need to gather these materials:
Clean blades
Cloning chemical
pH testing kit
Starter cubes/ containers with growing medium
Grow light
Spray bottle
Cloning Procedure:
Wet your growing medium using water with a pH of around 6.0 and 6.5. Assuming you’re using Rockwool as a medium, soak cubes in the water a night before cloning.
Clean up and sanitize your razor with an alcohol swab. It will prevent any contamination.
Pick a spot on the lower part of the mother plant that shows new growth. The lower parts of the plant contain chemicals that force clones to root.
Cut each clone at a 45-degree angle around 4 inches from the tip of the branch.
Then, scrape it from the bottom.
Remove all lower leaves from the clones and cut the upper leaves around half.
Getting rid of foliage will force the clones to focus on root development.
Plunge the bottom of the clone in the rooting chemical.
Plant your clones in individual holders. Push down around the clones to get them in the growing medium.
Put your clones on a waterproof plate and place them under the light. Ensure you leave ample space between clones and the light source to prevent issues.
Keeping an appropriate distance is significant if you’re using halogen or MH bulbs, radiating more heat.
An 18-hour light cycle is excellent for establishing clones.
You can use a humidity arch and a heating cushion to improve the rooting climate if you have them.
Your clones should create thick, white roots in 7–10 days.
Now, you have mastered the art of cloning weed, and we hope you make the most out of it.
