I'm posting to ask the question of GC growers if anyone out there has had faster rooting time when using a heating pad to help stimulate their cloning process, when cloing in soil? I'm attepmting to help out my "local" Medicinal center, and myself naturally, by making a clone army. But having to wait 2 weeks for roots to kick is not going to get it done. So I need an edge and I dont have the money to but a fogger to make a cloning machine. Any input on my post would be great. Thanks
Al B Fuct says that upon starting with a mat and rockwool, he could set his calender by an 8-day rooting time.
I got rooted clones in 7-9 days on the dot every time with a wick-style cloner made up of solo cups, t-shirt strips and coarse perlite with a sandwich baggy to keep in the humidity and I would vent it daily and keep it about a foot from the light. No heating mat required and minimal cost.
I can vouch for perlite... I literally tossed some clippings from a bonsai I was making into a yogurt container with pearlite and what was probably too much water and got roots in 9 days. With some TLC that could probably be improved. E
yeah it is simple and works really well I used Krum's horticultural coarse perlite that works way better than your local store bought brand as it is much larger porous pieces compared to the "sand" most places sell. Definitely a considerable difference.
TIP: foggers are about $10 and create heat as well as ultra fine mist. I've had a fogger running for 20 days (or so ) now and did nothing other than take a few cuttings and toss em in, they make it stupid easy heating mats definatly help, and perlite + small container sitting in shallow water (with holes in the botom of the small containers) sitting on a warming pad is about the cheapest /easiest way to go for a nice easy high success rate
Where are foggers only $10 at, Mord? I'll go get one right now I didnt know you could go straight perlite.... makes cloning without a fogger-cloner that much cheaper for me in the future. Say Rich do you have a pick or your "wick-style" cloner. I have to be shown how to do a thing, you know? ANd E, when you say a little more TLC, do you mean like watching the water level and what not? Oh, by the by thanks for stoppin by ya'll. It good to have a place to go get live grow info
Heat mat and hormone, but don't use soil use a sand/peat mix. Make your cuts just below a node coz nodes contain a concentration of hormones and it'll grow better roots than if you cut between nodes. A propagation knife makes the best cuts but takes a while to get used to.
feel free to dig through the "my grow room" link in my sig for the web site. its in the 1st or 2nd page.. for clones, well this explains everything nicely. http://www.simplyhydro.com/cuttings.htm
I own a seedling heating mat and it has worked wonders for small seedlings as well as clones....even for germination as well. Younger more delicate plants love the warmth produced from the mat.
By TLC I mean trimming excess leaf, using a rooting hormone or solution, making the cut 45 degrees, scraping the the stalk and/or making small cuts in it, keeping a proper water level by setting up a wick system, heating the cloning container to 27-30 degrees celsius, using sterile utensils... I did none of this and had roots in 9 days. As Richard said, use course pearlite (granules are about the size of fish tank gravel, maybe a little smaller) as it has more and larger micropores, allowing for more air in with the water. I was very impressed with it, though. 3 months before I had a phobia of cloning... that has changed! E
unfortunately no pic but I am pretty sure I could explain it well enough. First you start off with about 8 16oz solo cups. THe bottom cup is the water reservoir, the top is the one holding the perlite and you poke 3 holes through the bottom and pull the strips of t-shirt or other cloth you may have that wicks well through the holes and make sure they are 3/4 the length of the cup. I leave enough hanging out the bottom so they coil up kinda when dropped over the reservoir. The other 6 cups you cut the bottoms off of as they are just used as spacers so the top cup sits a inch or 2 above the reservoir cup and allows the wicks to hang into the water. When I put the sandwich baggie over the top cup I usually wrap it tight against the cup and drop it in so that spacer cups hold it in place, tucked in if you will. Hope that was good enough explanation. I suggest you search wick cloners here and on the international cannagraphic there are many photos around of other wick cloners so you cna get the general idea.
Thanks yall. I think Im going to try a fogger and the wick methods and figure which works best for my grow schedule. I think I'm going to have to get really lifted, if you get my drift, to put the wick system together. Gonna do it by your explaination Rich only, no visuals I think I'm going to take a series of pictures of how I cut and prep my clones and see if I can improve on it through helpful hints. Say Bob, how much did that mat cost? I think they sell the ones around here for like $20, then again I havent checked Sprawl-Mart. Oh well, enough bothering folks with this thread. Again I really appreciate the help ya'll. Peace
To answer the origanal question, yes, heat mats do speed up the rooting process. If you are going to supply a "club" then they are going to want them in 1x1 rockwool cubes. ANd they are going to want alot. 72 cubes fit in a 12x24 propagation tray........
The main force that triggers plants from almost all varieties to develop roots from cuttings is temperature. Obviously, moisture is needed as well. The optimal temperature for the root zone is 78 degrees Fahrenheit. With a cheap propagation dome and some plugs and a low-wattage (17w or so) heat mat, cannabis cuttings can be potentially planted five to seven days after cutting them. The key is temperature.
Thanks for posting Hal and Dr, all are welcome.... all are welcome . Hal I'm not sure how they want them, as I have not been told by the man directly, just one of his folks hit me up and was wondering if I could help restock, but if they tell me they need em like that then I'll step my ganme up to meet their needs as best I can You know Dr, I'm not sure of the wattage on the mat but when I pick they cups up they are slightly warm to the touch on the bottom. Is that about what I should be feeling?
Just go out and get a meat thermometer or something similar to measure the temperature of your root zone. Higher wattage heat mats tend to get too hot and require a thermostat to control the temp. You can get a heat mat thermostat at your local hydro supply store.
Oh to have a local hydro store.... Where I live it went out of business over 12 years ago, and there hasnt been one since. I know it's been 12 years because when I was 17 I purchased a 6 "tomato" plant hydro bucket, probably more like todays bubble buckets I think, memory is a little fuzzy. The day I went in, the guy told me he was shutting down for good in a few days. I asked him if he could give me any pamphlets about "growing" in it. I was shocked at what he gave me, but he probably got his start in the "back room" if you know what I mean. So Im really screwed on getting all the cool things unless I drive for hours or order off the net I'm not overly worried about temp I just realized. I keep the heat pad on low and check the cups to see if they feel overly warm. If they do I shuffle them around, as some are getting better warmth then others. I really appreciate the feed back though. Keep up the great work ya'll