I made an offer on the bodhi Black triangle thread. I didn’t get a male, so I’m willing to send snips to anyone who wants some. (Just help offset shipping)
Now, it has come to my attention that there are quite a few growers that are not yet comfortable with rooting snips. Soooo much cheaper sending snips, so I’m going to type up a little tutorial.
DISCLAIMER
This is the way that I clone, the way that works for me. I have been cloning this way for almost 3 decades with great success. If your way is better, super cool, go make a thread all about it.
It seems every time a post is made about cloning, it gets picked apart. I mean to sound like a dick, it is necessary for this situation.
On with the show then!
First I wash my hands and wipe down my space with bleach and water.
Then I put down a tray for the plant I’m going to clone
Grab 4 or 5 root riot cubes and plop them into my container I got lemonade in with my daughter at the town wide garage sale the last time before she got all grown up on me.
Open up the clonex, but put it somewhere stable and out of the way. Trust me
Grab the plant, slap it in the tray… gingerly
This is Icy Grape x Rainbow Belts
Remove any dead or small crap off the bottom, then open a fresh razor blade. My mom bought these in 1994.
Not much dead crap on this one…
Select your branch. I’ve Cloned tops and bottoms, there is really no difference that I’ve noticed. I do use the lowers exclusively now, only because I top all of my plants to level the canopy. This creates plenty of options under the skirt for me
Slice that puppy off close to the stem. I like to do one at a time, sometimes if you let them sit for too long they will develop an air bubble or pocket causing them to damp off.
Cut off all branches and leaves except for the top. Removing all of its sources of energy “encourage” the clone to shoot out roots quickly to avoid starvation.
Side note:
I’ve Cloned many plants with secondary branches and fan leaves left on, by the time they root, all those leaves are dead and growth tips are in survival mode. Ones I cleaned up were xplanted into bigger pots and only 2 or 3 weeks away from going into the bloom tent in the same amount of time.
Armed with this knowledge, one can use it to an advantage. Say your mommy plant needs a haircut, or your next strain is going into the bloom tent. But you don’t have much room. … leave some branches and fans on. By the time it roots and recovers you’ll have room to veg it out.
Back to the show
Select a spot on the stem where there will be a couple of nodes in the plug
Scrape the outer layer off with the back of the blade
Make sure all the little strips you scraped off are removed, or else the will rot and kill off your clone
Cut the stem at a 45
Dip
Yes I Dip right into the bottle. Been doing it for soooo long.
Insert, and give any top fan leaves a snip
Tuck in and Lable
Make sure the lighting is indirect, or low low wattage. You want them to panic.
Set your temp controller on your heat mat to 86-88. I put the probe into a spare root riot plug
Fill with water to just below the cubes. You would rather be too little than too much. But always make sure there is some.
To quote Arnold Schwarzenegger “Listen to me now, hear me later, but remember always.” Maybe that was Hanz and Franz?
Never spray the clones. Spray the dome if you need a humidity boost. I always leave the vents fully open. The steady heat and the water provide plenty of moisture.
Wash your tray in-between uses.
Always use fresh blades.
Always play music in your grow area
Wash your hands
Keep your Sox dry