Cuttings, big cuttings, and VERY big cuttings. An exploratory thread

[Guest]

What size cuttings do you take and how big do you think cuttings can be and still remain viable? Does your cloning method support VERY big cuttings, like 12" or more with 8-10 well developed nodes? Are the implications of being able to consistently root cuttings with a couple weeks veg growth already in place as significant as I think they are or am I just imagining things? Most clones I see on growing boards are very very small. Not tha thats a bad thing.

 

[TokerBabe]

I'm sure any size cutting is possible as long as the mother is healthy. Personally, I like a nice 4-5" cutting. Some will take a larger cutting if looking to produce another mother.

I have been rooting in water but am now going to start experimenting with alt. ways to root faster. Per/ver, peat pellets we'll see.

TokerBabe

 

[Captain Canibus]

I had a 14" branch break off a big MF in veg. I cut it into sections just above the internodes and put them in an aero cloner. I've kept 2 of the clones and the most bottom clone off the branch is going to be a monster. Whenever I prune a plant in flower, I throw the small branches with growth tips in the cloner.

My suggestion is to experiment. I'm just a hobbyist, but just trying things yields knowlege. Plastic cups, some perelite, cloning gel and some water don't cost much.

 

[Guest]

Here is an example of a very large cutting. Ive not seen any bigger, so I'm assuming it qualifies as very large.

Notice no leaf discoloration after almost two weeks off the plant. This means the plant will have maximum efficiency with which to process light when it is rooted

 

[Guest]

more

The funky way this one is facing is because some of them were growing off the plant horizontally. They switched back to normal looking overnight

These are all 10" -12" tall

 

[Guest]

If I could promise that 90% of the existing leaves remained green and healthy throughou the process, isn't there a large advantage to being able to root clones with this much growth already attached?

The biggest problem I think I'll face using cuttings this big is developing a root system large enough to support the foliage before transplant to soil

 

[EHP]

Caprichoso i have tried various methods of cloning i.e aero cloner/soil/plain water and always found the most simplistic method to be a 4-5" clone placed in plain water.. as above.

 

[Guest]

As far as I can tell, water cloning will root any cutting any size with little difference in time between the sizes. Again I ask, if you could add a week or two worth of veg growth just by changing the size of your cutting, arent the implications of that pretty large as far as growroom efficiency goes? Would it change the rules as far as SOGging goes? Maybe one wouldnt have to use four plants per sqf and would still be able to keep the elevated harvest schedule that makes SOG the highest yielding method. Im just theorizing here, or trying too

 

[Captain Canibus]

From my experience, the larger the cutting, diameter of the stem, the more roots you get. A stem of 5/16" diameter may get 20 roots and another that is only 1/16" grows 3-4 roots. It seems to me that when I get a clone with a bunch of roots, it does the best by growing the fastest.

One thing that I suggest that you should try is to make 2-3 clones out of one of your cuttings. See how they do compared to the others. My reasoning is that there needs to be a balance between the root system and the plant. When you have a large top on a clone the plant needs to support itself AND grow a root system. Most of the time the cutting does little until the root system can support growth.

I know you're looking for the fastes/best way to go. Keep tryings different things. Even if you take 20 clones off of one plant, they don't all do the same. Take the best, throw the rest.

My biggest clone in hydro now was an accident. I broke off a big branch (a little longer than yours, but about 3/8" dia), cut it into 4 clones. The clone from the lowest portion of the branch is doing best and the rest, I discarded. Same branch, same method/conditions, different growth rates.

 

[Guest]

This kinda shows exactly that Capt.

This kinda shows exactly that Capt.

These cuttings are all members of the same generation. The first big one above is in this group. The other cuttings are smaller with the normal smaller diameter stem and far fewer roots


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[Guest]

The next generation of very large cuttings

The next generation of very large cuttings

These are all 12" or taller and all have a leafspan of 10" or more. Went in the water 4 or 5 days ago

That third one from the left has an enormous amount of foliage compared to the others

 

[Guest]

update

update

My subject clones are rooted to soil and preparing to go into the veg area. They lost one leaf each to root growth by yellowng and withering. The bottom pic shows seveal generations of cuttings, (The middle of which has roots already) includng my largest to date, 16" and 12 nodes with branching. Think they'll root?


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[Guest]

Told you they were going to get HUGE

Told you they were going to get HUGE

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[Guest]

Damn, I was thinking of continuing this thread when my room starts back up. My pics must have been lost in the crash, or whatever happened.

 

[Guest]

I like to take about 7" tall cuttings just to decrease the amount of time I need for vegetation since if growing indoor i only grow to 18" then flower, and it takes almost no time for the plant to grow to that level once its transplanted into my grow medium.

i like to root in coco / pert with ph adjusted water. the mixture washes off the roots very very easiliy

 

[Guest]

I switched from rapid rooters to peat pellets and that's probably what I'll use from here til forever. When I first started, the resources I read said to cut small cuttings from the bottom of a plant. I had alot of problems and failed cuttings that way. Now I take larger cuttings from the top where the stems have had a chance to thicken up a bit and I get 100% rooting rates with lush green clones.

 

[Harry Gypsna]

ve found the opposite to be true, as I think it was cap explained, it is to do with the auxins, the highest concentration of which is in the new tips, and shoots.

 

[Guest]

I take mine 5-10 inches, i dont like small cuts because they take longer to veg... really you just gotta decide where to spend the time .... rooting or vegging.... as the bigger ones prolly tend to take a few days longer to root, but can entirely skip veg if you want if you start with big enough cut.

THC

 

[BuzzBob]

Okay... Well, this is timely for me, and more or less "On Topic," so let me ask this here...

When doing a run from seed {7 plants in this case}, and intending to pick a Mom from cuttings/clones taken from each plant, is taking the lowest four branches, and the growth tip of each, a good approach?

That is what I am thinking on my current run of SFxBBs... They are very branchy, and heavy with big top fan leaves. The lower branches are suffering a bit anyway, and should/will be pruned back. Do they make good clone candidates?

I am thinking four of each plant, in order to raise my odds of a viable clone from each seed plant...


Thanx!
-ForeverMore, Now That I Grow, Buzz'dBob

 

[Guest]

i really don't think it matters, assuming the cutting that is being taken is relatively healthy.... just visualize the plant and cut from branches that you predict will yield less or will recieve less light.... or take cuts from secondary branching. you don't need to take clones from the main stem, or main branches unless you want to.

use your prunings imo... especially if you're taking clones for mothers, you have more time to root and grow them out unless you're lookin to have them ready right away or something..... point is you don't need to take a prime cut off of a plant to make a high quality clone.

also, there is a product available from Advanced Nutes called VHO (very high output) which is a foliar spray used to stimulate growth of new branch / budsites and it seems to work great! maybe give this stuff a try if you are looking to get more cuttings out of your mothers. from their description it's good to use on mothers or production plants , tho personally i would stick to using it on mothers or vegging production plants..... they don't make it very clear .... i just assume stay away from spraying chems on my ladies in flower tho.

THC