The Dark Alley Club - Sad, seedy loners welcome.

Gentlemancorpse said:
I feel like cloning just defies logic. I've read every bit of advice on the internet, talked to tons of growers, and they all just disagree with each other lol.

When I first got this cloner it was working great for me. Then one day it just wasn't. That seems to be how things go for me though, every time I try a new method it works great for a month and then not at all! I never had great luck doing it the way you are but it was working at least occasionally. If this thing doesn't turn around this go around I'm just gonna try like 3 methods at once haha...

One way or another, I'm getting some rooted cuts of these gals going
Click to expand...
Rapid Rooters work for me everytime and are a good option because they use a binding agent which keeps the peat together, at least until the main stalk gets large.
The binding agent makes them a good option for planting in hydroton, or hempy, and of course they work great in any kind of coco or "soil" medium. If you've never tried them, I'd give them a go.

I have used peat pucks plenty in the past, and these last few rounds as a comparison to my utter failure with my OxyClone unit, but I always try to keep Rapid Rooters around. I don't know why they work so good, but I have never had a clone fail in them. And I get beautiful thick lush roots, and usually a day or two quicker than my peat runs. The last RR run had roots at 5 & 6 days, all of them.
 
I dig the organic cloning/seed starter plugs. But dont start seed in them. That and a fresh aloe is all I use. Great success.

Cloning is the most stressful process put on a plant/branch. Right next to revegging. Another tip...It helps to cut half the root mass away when trying to reveg a plant.


I used to use a large electric clone unit years ago. Had great success with it too...massive root growth. The pump kept the water temperature too high so it was a chore to keep it cool enough to keep rot at bay. A trick that really seemed to help was putting it on a 15 minute increment timer...or less. Clones take longer to root with a constant supply of moisture and rot much easier. Clones need to be teased into making roots and searching for water themselves. I used to set the timer to 45 minutes on and 15 minutes off after the first couple days of continuous running with the machine. It helped speed up the rooting and it gave the pump a chance to cool too. You may have to play with it for a bit. Keeping a close eye on it for the first few hours to make sure the clones dont get droopy. They shouldn't get droopy after a 15 minutes off cycle. The may have better timers now that can be programmed for 5 or 10 minute increments. But the 15 minute increment tab timers worked fine.

Starter plugs work well too. To each their own.
 
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DavidDellaRocco said:
I have also found that lower branches always root faster and more consistently. I read it somewhere way back and started taking lowers whenever I could, and it really seemed to help. That was when I wasn't having success as much and it made a big diff.
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I agree. Lower branches have older and lower hormones levels. The tops of the plants have a higher concentration of hormones that are driving for growth, not roots. The cutting needs to switch its hormonal focus to making roots. So it often takes longer to root a cutting from the top of the plant.

Nitrogen levels also play an important role in cloning. A lower (N) level helps speed up the process too.
 
Mine is also solo cups, but filled with perlite and placed in a sterilite tote with some water in the bottom. I keep the lid rested on bamboo twigs from a sushi mat, which seems to keep the humidity high enough while still allowing gas exchange. I can neglect the fuck out of this cloner and keep clones alive for months with a near 100% success rate.

I've been meaning to try rapid rooters for a while now though.
 
Fluffy Butt said:
Mine is also solo cups, but filled with perlite and placed in a sterilite tote with some water in the bottom. I keep the lid rested on bamboo twigs from a sushi mat, which seems to keep the humidity high enough while still allowing gas exchange. I can neglect the fuck out of this cloner and keep clones alive for months with a near 100% success rate.

I've been meaning to try rapid rooters for a while now though.
Click to expand...
Nice! Yeah, I do the same, only I use an inverted Sterilite container......lol.....


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......with the light sitting on the see thru top. I can click it shut and seal it right up for the first day or two. Then I prop the inverted base up like you do your lid with bamboos.
 
Kind024 said:
I dig the organic cloning/seed starter plugs. But dont start seed in them. That and a fresh aloe is all I use. Great success.

Cloning is the most stressful process put on a plant/branch. Right next to revegging. Another tip...It helps to cut half the root mass away when trying to reveg a plant.


I used to use a large electric clone unit years ago. Had great success with it too...massive root growth. The pump kept the water temperature too high so it was a chore to keep it cool enough to keep rot at bay. A trick that really seemed to help was putting it on a 15 minute increment timer...or less. Clones take longer to root with a constant supply of moisture and rot much easier. Clones need to be teased into making roots and searching for water themselves. I used to set the timer to 45 minutes on and 15 minutes off after the first couple days of continuous running with the machine. It helped speed up the rooting and it gave the pump a chance to cool too. You may have to play with it for a bit. Keeping a close eye on it for the first few hours to make sure the clones dont get droopy. They shouldn't get droopy after a 15 minutes off cycle. The may have better timers now that can be programmed for 5 or 10 minute increments. But the 15 minute increment tab timers worked fine.

Starter plugs work well too. To each their own.
Click to expand...

I appreciate the tips, I have an extra timer so I think I'll give this a try. I almost just took the pump out completely and just rain air stones alone instead because of the water temps but I like your solution better... gonna give that a try today!

I may throw a couple cuts in some plugs as well. I was having pretty good luck with some cups @Amos Otis recommended but as with with all the methods I've tried it just stopped working at a certain point.... consistent cloning is my white whale, but with all these clone only cuts I have now and my ongoing chucking attempts I need to get it figured out
 
Fluffy Butt said:
Mine is also solo cups, but filled with perlite and placed in a sterilite tote with some water in the bottom. I keep the lid rested on bamboo twigs from a sushi mat, which seems to keep the humidity high enough while still allowing gas exchange. I can neglect the fuck out of this cloner and keep clones alive for months with a near 100% success rate.

I've been meaning to try rapid rooters for a while now though.
Click to expand...

I tried a setup just like this a while back and didn't get a single clone to root in it! It really is mind boggling. I don't know any other aspect of growing where I have as much trouble replicating other people's success as I do with cloning! There's obviously some variable I'm overlooking
 
DavidDellaRocco said:
Rapid Rooters work for me everytime and are a good option because they use a binding agent which keeps the peat together, at least until the main stalk gets large.
The binding agent makes them a good option for planting in hydroton, or hempy, and of course they work great in any kind of coco or "soil" medium. If you've never tried them, I'd give them a go.

I have used peat pucks plenty in the past, and these last few rounds as a comparison to my utter failure with my OxyClone unit, but I always try to keep Rapid Rooters around. I don't know why they work so good, but I have never had a clone fail in them. And I get beautiful thick lush roots, and usually a day or two quicker than my peat runs. The last RR run had roots at 5 & 6 days, all of them.
Click to expand...

I use rapid rooters for cracking seeds so I always have them on hand... I've tried using them for clones a bunch of times and it just hasn't worked well for me, but after reading all of you guys comments on here I'm going to circle back and try some of your methods..... I'm getting tired of tossing cuts
 
Gentlemancorpse said:
I feel like cloning just defies logic. I've read every bit of advice on the internet, talked to tons of growers, and they all just disagree with each other lol.

When I first got this cloner it was working great for me. Then one day it just wasn't. That seems to be how things go for me though, every time I try a new method it works great for a month and then not at all! I never had great luck doing it the way you are but it was working at least occasionally. If this thing doesn't turn around this go around I'm just gonna try like 3 methods at once haha...

One way or another, I'm getting some rooted cuts of these gals going
Click to expand...
I can't clone in rockwool for some reason. Eventually they root but they're ugly. Clone king and rapid rooters never fail me. I fail me sometimes but have good luck with those. Also understand the need to find more space. I have multiples of multiples going for no reason other than pure addiction. My pig loves it she gets lots of plants to eat when I have to thin the herd every few weeks.
 
Gentlemancorpse said:
I use rapid rooters for cracking seeds so I always have them on hand... I've tried using them for clones a bunch of times and it just hasn't worked well for me, but after reading all of you guys comments on here I'm going to circle back and try some of your methods..... I'm getting tired of tossing cuts
Click to expand...
Yeah I hear ya....

I dip them 2/3 the way into pH'd plain water and that's it. They have mild dosages of some nutes afaik, so nothing is needed, maybe B1 or some stress reliever, but that would be it. Then I insert my dipped/gelled cuts.
After that, I try to stay away from direct watering the RR's until the plant is up-potted, and established. The osmotic action of the surrounding medium, and the roots themselves tend to keep them wet enough to pull thru.

Too wet, and I get purple stalked, stunted plants. So they can be a burden if you keep them too wet, heads up. Leaving them be until after up-potting and a little maturation has been the best choice for me.

GCG said:
I can't clone in rockwool for some reason.
Click to expand...

Same here. I gave up on rockwool long ago.

I still have sheets of it laying around here lol
 
Gentlemancorpse said:
I feel like cloning just defies logic. I've read every bit of advice on the internet, talked to tons of growers, and they all just disagree with each other lol.

When I first got this cloner it was working great for me. Then one day it just wasn't. That seems to be how things go for me though, every time I try a new method it works great for a month and then not at all! I never had great luck doing it the way you are but it was working at least occasionally. If this thing doesn't turn around this go around I'm just gonna try like 3 methods at once haha...

One way or another, I'm getting some rooted cuts of these gals going
Click to expand...
I've had close to the same exp with ez cloners. First few runs with a new unit & I'm at 100% success thinking I'm the king of clones, then one day it just stops & cuts get slimy & die. Not sure if I get a pathogen I cant see/detect growing in pump or manifold or what but I have two 32 site units just collecting dust here & two 64 site units at the other spot that all eventually had the same story. I ran every chemical cleaner I could thru them & they just never worked the same after I'd get slimed. I'd get some roots on a few but it took forever & they never looked like badass little beards like in the beginning.

I use rapid rooters in a dome now & it's like set it & forget it (other than a light mist here n there) for a few weeks & boom roots.?
 
Gentlemancorpse said:
I feel like cloning just defies logic. I've read every bit of advice on the internet, talked to tons of growers, and they all just disagree with each other lol.

When I first got this cloner it was working great for me. Then one day it just wasn't. That seems to be how things go for me though, every time I try a new method it works great for a month and then not at all! I never had great luck doing it the way you are but it was working at least occasionally. If this thing doesn't turn around this go around I'm just gonna try like 3 methods at once haha...

One way or another, I'm getting some rooted cuts of these gals going
Click to expand...

I've been takin cuts for near half a century. Dang im old!!
I think I've tried every apparatus and method known to stoners.
I've been back and forth with many of them.
Now i get 100% success every time, in fact i usually end up with more than i can use.
I ph water to 5.4 and wet rockwool plugs. Sling the water out and put into appropriate tray that fits them. Then i rewet them with clonex solution.
My clone cubicle is a 2x2x3 yent, it has 1 - 18w warm under counter flouecsent, 1 - 18w daylight under counter flouecsent and 1 - 18w under counter grow light flouecsent.
I take my cuts, dip in clonex gel and put in plugs in tray that holds them tight. Put dome on and check every 4 days and spray the inside of the dome.
Thats it, really basic and low maintenance.
10 to 12 days and all are ready for soil.
 
Skunky Dunk Farms said:
I've been takin cuts for near half a century. Dang im old!!
I think I've tried every apparatus and method known to stoners.
I've been back and forth with many of them.
Now i get 100% success every time, in fact i usually end up with more than i can use.
I ph water to 5.4 and wet rockwool plugs. Sling the water out and put into appropriate tray that fits them. Then i rewet them with clonex solution.
My clone cubicle is a 2x2x3 yent, it has 1 - 18w warm under counter flouecsent, 1 - 18w daylight under counter flouecsent and 1 - 18w under counter grow light flouecsent.
I take my cuts, dip in clonex gel and put in plugs in tray that holds them tight. Put dome on and check every 4 days and spray the inside of the dome.
Thats it, really basic and low maintenance.
10 to 12 days and all are ready for soil.
Click to expand...

So I feel financially invested in this hydrocloner (damn sunk cost fallacy at work) at the moment but your method is really appealing to me. I even have an 18"x36"x36" tent that's empty right now that I could easily set up like yours...
 
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