When it comes to growing plants indoors, cloning is an important skill to have. Cloning plants is the process of taking a cutting from a “mother plant” and nurturing it to grow roots. The new plant that is created from the cutting is an exact replica of the “mother plant” and is genetically identical. This method can be used to propagate any number of plants from a single starting plant.
The process of Cloning can feel very intimidating and risky for most growers who have never taken cuttings or clones. We’ve all been there at some point, staring at your cuttings for weeks, waiting for any sign of roots – only for them to wilt away and die. Or, perhaps you are too afraid to even make your first attempt!
Do not worry, because Deltagrow is here to save the day. We believe absolutely anyone can get a 100% success rate, if they just follow our comprehensive guide and take things slow. We are also here to help at any time, give us a call, message, email or whatsapp – and we promise we won’t stop helping until you get that 100% success rate you’re searching for!
Before you can get started, you’ll need to gather absolutely everything you need. Here’s a list of everything we suggest using and their purposes:
Once you have everything you need, move onto the next step in order to get started! We’ll paste a list of places where you can get everything at the end of this article.
Yes, you read that correctly! When it comes to cloning, cleanliness is next to godliness. You need to ensure absolutely everything is sterilized – from your countertop to your scissors. Wipe everything down with alcohol from top to bottom. This is the number one factor that will determine your success rate. Don’t forget to wash your hands!
Now for the fun part! First, you’ll need to ensure your plant is completely turgid. This means that it has absorbed as much water as it can, and the stems are nice and full of liquid. Give your plants a good watering just before you take clones.
Next you’ll want to make sure you have all the tools you need in front of you. Fill the glass with clean RO water, so that you can use it to hold cuttings while you get them all ready.
With everything in front of you, start inspecting your plant and identifying nice thick branches which you can take cuttings from. The stems should be hard and woody, not soft. We like to keep our clones on the thicker side of things.
Start by using your scissors to take cuttings, ensuring they are not too tall for your humidity dome. Place each cutting into the glass of water whilst you finish taking the rest off your plant. Once you have a good amount of clones, let them soak in the glass of water while you prepare your Jiffy Plugs for the clones. Trim all the unnecessary leaves and nodes from the bottom up, leaving at least 3 nodes at the top of the clone.
Use a sterilised chopstick to make the holes in your Jiffy Plugs slightly bigger, preventing the hole from damaging the exposed tip of your clones. Take a clone out of the glass and place it on your sterile surface, and use a Surgical Blade to cut the exposed tip off the clone – ensuring you have a 45 degree angle. This will make it sharp and easy to poke into a Jiffy Plug. Immediately dip the very tip of the clone into your cloning gel (0.5cm) and then place the clone into a Jiffy Plug.
Complete the process by picking up the Jiffy Plug, and squeezing it tightly around the stem of your plant. This step is probably the most important after cleanliness. It ensures the stem and rooting zone make full contact with the Jiffy Plugs substrate. Ensure your Jiffy Plugs are properly moistened.
Repeat this process for each clone one by one until all your cuts are in a Jiffy Plug. Now you can place your clones into a Humidity Dome, give them an even misting of RO water and place them 50 – 75cm from your LED grow light. Keep the vents on your dome sealed for the first 2 weeks, only opening it to re-mist every 8-12 hours (once in the morning, and once in the evening.) Keep checking the jiffys every day to see if they are dry. Don’t make them too wet – just moist. Use your spray gun to water the jiffys by misting the tops or aiming each on with a thin stream.
After 2 weeks, you should start to see explosive root growth. You may have to pull a Jiffy or two out to check the bottom for roots. If you don’t see anything happening, be patient and they will start exploding soon!
Repeat this process for each clone one by one until all your cuts are in a Jiffy Plug. Now you can place your clones into a Humidity Dome, give them an even misting of RO water and place them 50 – 75cm from your LED grow light.
Keep the vents on your dome sealed for the first 2 weeks, only opening it to re-mist every 8-12 hours (once in the morning, and once in the evening.)
Keep checking the jiffys every day to see if they are dry. Don’t make them too wet – just moist. Use your spray gun to water the jiffys by misting the tops or aiming each on with a thin stream.
After 2 weeks, you should start to see explosive root growth. You may have to pull a Jiffy or two out to check the bottom for roots. If you don’t see anything happening, be patient and they will start exploding soon!
So there you have it! You can achieve a 100% success rate with your clones. Here’s a quick run through everything we spoke about:
Don’t hesitate to give us a call, message, email or whatsapp – and we promise we won’t stop helping until you get that 100% success rate you’re searching for!
To finish everything off, we’ve made a list of Big No No’s that we see many growers make the mistake of doing:
