Cloning for Growillas

The Art of Propagation

Sounds heady, right?  Well it kinda is.  Cloning plants is one endeavour where having the mythical “green thumb” will certainly help you.  Some people take to cloning instantly, with little trouble, and successfully propagate their plants of choice for years to come.  Others however, often experience a tough start finding a technique that will work for them, and are forced to resort to other means, like purchasing clones at a garden store or taking cuttings from a friend.  As any pest expert will tell you, the first way to prevent mites and other parasites from taking hold in your garden is to control where your plants come from.  The clones found at garden stores are exposed to the elements, the whims of their proprietor,  and the bugs, spores, and microbes that are trafficked in by the public at large.  For these reasons as well as many others, many professional gardeners prefer to propagate their own favorite plants.  We have a sure-fire technique for cloning almost any plant that we’ve documented here, in order to help any cloning noobs out.  As you are about to find out, it’s much easier than you may think.

Supplies and Setup

Before starting, you’ll need the following supplies.  1) Oasis rooting cubes are the brand we prefer. 2) Fresh clean razor blades. 3) Cloning trays with domes at least 10 inches high. 4) Rooting gel (we prefer Clonex), 5)  a heating mat for keeping the roots warm, and 6) and a mild bloom solution with a little nitrogen in it, like a 5-10-10 or a 2-5-5.  You’ll also need a cutting board and some clippers.

Put your cubes in a tray, prepare a mild and tepid (70 degrees) nutrient solution using your bloom formula, at approx. 1/4 the strength of the recommended amount. Soak the cubes in your tray, filling the tray so that the water is level with teh top of the cubes.

In order to ensure vigorous clones, you also need to make sure your mother plant is as healthy as possible.  We do this by feeding the mother plant 3-5 days before cutting with a healthy dose of an evenly balanced nutrient, like a liquid 5-5-5.

It’s also important to setup your cloning space, because you’ll want to put your finished clones directly into their new home when ready.  Make sure you find a space that can accommodate two flourescent four-foot lights, and one to four cloning trays.  Place your heating mat on the shelf or surface, and hang your light so that it is approx. 4 inches above your dome.  Make sure you use a timer or other device to regulate the temperature of your heating mat.  We turn ours on for 30 minutes, then off for 30 minutes.  Some heating mats will come with a thermostat and can be set to an exact temperature.  Either way, use a hygrometer to watch the temp and humidity levels of the dome and the root zone in order to make sure you aren’t over or under heating your babies.

The Cuttings

When choosing which branches to cut off of your mother for cloning, think about how you want to manicure and manage your mother plant.  If your plant is getting tall, take the tops from the lead branches.  Think of your mother plant as a banzai tree.  This will encourage your plant to produce more branches in a shape that is desirable for you. As well, when selecting branches, look for material that needs to be thinned from the plant in order to encourage air flow and reduce sites for molds, mildews, and buggers.

To take your cuttings, you’ll need a small pair of shears and a shot-glass full of Clonex.  Make sure you are cutting from thick, healthy branches, with at least 5-7 inches from the lowest node on the stem. Cut the branch from the plant, making a nice clean cut as close to the attaching stem as possible.  Use your razor to make nice clean cuts along the stem, cleaning up small branches and leaf sites except for the last two good leaf formations.  Cut the remaining leaves back so that the entire radius of the finished clone is approx. 2 inches. Make a 45 degree cut, 1/4 inch below the lowest node/internode, dip your stem (approx 1+ inches worth) in rooting gel, and then insert into the hole on the oasis cube, firmly pressing the stem far enough in to keep it stable, but not all the way through the bottom. Your clone should have a nice, clean stem, approx. 4-6 inches long, emerging from the medium, with 4-8 leaves on top, each cut down so that the entire clone, when looking down on it, is approx 2 inches wide.  This ensure nice airflow throughout the tray and dome.  When you are finished, you will have a tray with several evenly spaced clones, ready for a dome and placement under a light and onto a heating mat.

The Environment

Now that your clones are ready to go into their environment, make sure your domes have the vents open, or if necessary, cut vent holes into the top of your dome.  Place the dome onto the tray, and place the tray on your heating mat.  If necessary, take the time now to adjust the height of your lights.  Lastly, now that your trays are sitting comfortably, rotate the dome very slightly, so that approx 1 inch of the dome overhangs the tray.  This ensures a natural air convection from the bottom to the top.

Once a day the dome should be remove for 5 minutes in order to exhange the air completely.  In addition, while the dome is off, go ahead and flush the nutrient solution by flooding and draining your tray, then filling again with a fresh mixture of 70-degree diluted nutrient solution.  Repeat nutrient flushing every 2-3 days.  After approx. 7-10 days you can remove the dome completely and shortly after you should have vigorous root growth.

Posted Monday, December 21st, 2009 | In Guerilla Speeks.
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