Can anyone tell me the benefits and downfalls of using either rockwool cubes or clay pellets to clone? Any help would be appreciated, I can't deside and I'm going to buy shit so I can take clones tonight.. Thank you! +rep for help!!!
Both are used together, you root your clone in small rockwool cubes, then place some pellets (hydroton) in the bottom of the pot, put your clone/rockwool cube in the middle and fill around and on top of the rockwool cube with more pellets. The clone (or seedling) is now ready for the hydro system, and will stay in that pot and medium until harvest.
Sorry I meant peat pellets not clay pellets. Like this. Peat Pellets - Seed Starting - Burpee I wanna know whats better for cloning then transplanting to soil.
Peat pellets are pretty fragile when wet, but will work fine.........I've had my best cloning results with Rapid Rooters......they will work in soil and in hydro.....It's really a matter of preference. I've had problems with rockwool plugs before.......you really need to pay attention to the moisture in rockwool cubes, they tend to hold water for a long time, which potentially leads to damping off at the stem.
Perfect thanks again chunk, this isn't the first time you've come to me with the right info first post! +rep buddy.
If you're trying to be a smartass, you're not doing a great job of it, especially when you were the one who asked the wrong question in the first place. Peat pellets (jiffy pucks) are good for rooting clones, and are designed for a soil grow and not a hydro grow, reason being that when the roots grow, the peat will get into your hydro nutrient solution and keep raising the pH level. And if you have misters or drippers it will clog them. Rockwool is also good for rooting clones, but as Chuck said, if you keep them saturated with water/nutrients it will cut of the oxygen supply and cause root rot. It is best dipping the bottom of the cube in water/nutrient solution, and let the rockwool wick up the water/nutrients, allowing a mixture of nutrients, water and oxygen to get to the roots. Through trial and error you can perfect either method to work for you.
I use rockwool with kickass results ever time. What people dont understand is: you dont need to water them everyday, they just like to stay damp. Oxygen is just as important as water if not more during the cloning stage. The quickest I have seen roots was when I forgot to water for a weekend, I left for two day and came home to use cuttings rooted in a matter of 6 days. Rockwool works for soil or hydro, the rapid roots I would only use in soil. I have known a few peeps to use them in hydro but the shit falls apart and screws with the resv. Not worth it.
i really like rapid rooters, they're a great product, i used them in soil and with hydro i just packed it around with hydroton. The rapid rooter/hydroton combo works great because it doesn't add anything besides a stable growing environment. rockwool and peat are usually acidic and may or may not cause you extra trouble (i lack experience enough to say, but i've seen others complain)
