Cloning Cannabis

In this article, we’ll go through the ins and outs of cannabis cloning in order to give you a better idea of what it’s all about. You’ll learn how to clone cannabis plants as well as the advantages and disadvantages of cloning versus growing with seeds.

If you’re interested in becoming a cannabis grower, finding out if you can clone cannabis plants is beneficial. Plant cloning is taking a sample from an existing plant in gardening and agriculture. Then, to ensure that you end up with a “copy” of the original, put it in a stimulating atmosphere and enough nutrients to mimic it.

When you’re cloning cannabis plants, it’s a good idea to select ones that have exceptional traits so their talents may be carried on.

Clone-only marijuana growers like this approach since it has several advantages over germination. Cloning is a tried-and-true method of increasing your yield and harvest while maintaining quality.

However, you can only clone once you’ve identified the healthiest and most successful plants. You must also be able to tell male from female plants apart. For the record, a single mother plant may create up to 50 offspring each week!

While there are no guarantees when it comes to marijuana propagation, cloning is as close to one as you’ll get. Plus, it’s considerably easier than you’d imagine! So without further ado, let’s get started on marijuana plant cloning.

What is plant cloning?

Plant cloners take cuttings from their best plants and use them to make replicas. Cannabis clones are genetically identical individuals produced by a technique that does not utilize sexual reproduction. Mother Nature may, however, clone plants without any human help. A new plant’s taking root after another plant has sent out a “runner,” which is a sort of modified stem, can result in a clone plant.

Hundreds of plants, such as blackberries, strawberries, dandelions, and crab apples, employ natural asexual reproduction known as apomixis to reproduce. Cannabis does not self-clone like other plants. To create a clone from a marijuana plant, you must take cuttings.

Cannabis clones are genetically identical plants produced through a technique that does not involve sexual reproduction.

What are the benefits of cloning cannabis plants?

Aside from the obvious, a genetically identical carbon copy of a successful grower is another incentive for a cannabis farmer to clone a plant. Clones provide benefits including:

1. Faster growth cheaper: Cloning cannabis plants skips the germination and seedling phases, which can last many weeks. A cutting from a mother plant may begin developing roots as soon as root development begins in the vegetative stage of growth. In addition, growers may save money by not having to buy seeds. Without continuous investment in seeds, a healthy and stable mother plant may produce limitless cannabis clones without requiring additional resources.
2. All females: Because cannabis mother plants are almost always female, there’s no danger of inadvertently including male specimens to a garden. You may also accomplish this by purchasing feminized seeds from a seed bank, but it will generally cost more than normal seeds.
3. Multiple harvests: Cloning allows you to duplicate your best female plants while also producing greater quantities and more regular harvests. Cloning may help both indoor and outdoor growers produce additional harvests before the winter season.

Are there any downsides to cloning plants?

Cloning cannabis plants isn’t without its problems, and there are certain risks. Cloning marijuana plants is more predictable than growing them from seed, but this advantage might be a negative if growers aren’t cautious. Any faults that exist in the parent plant will be reflected in all of the cuttings, leaving a grower with an invalid crop. Plant cuttings might contain pests or diseases carried by the mother plant that may be difficult to get rid of.

Clones can provide less cannabis than new plants produced from seeds since they don’t have a taproot, the originating root that protrudes from the seed and extends deep into the soil. You may reduce the chances of a lower yield by growing cloned plants indoors and employing effective cloning methods.

How to clone a cannabis plant

The first step in duplicating a marijuana plant is to obtain the correct equipment. Here’s a list of everything you’ll need:

• A healthy mother plant (at least one month old) with vegetative limbs ranging from 4 to 20 inches (10 to 50 centimeters) in length
• Razorblade
• Cup filled with water
• Rooting medium
• Rooting hormone
• Fluorescent light
• Cloning humidity dome or plastic bag to cover the cutting

Make sure you keep the mother plant in vegetative mode and remove it from any additional plants. To prevent bacteria from getting into clone roots, wash the razor blade before taking cuttings and try to work in a clean area. Choose a branch with at least four nodes on the cannabis mother plant and fresh-leaf development characteristics. Cut off a section of the stem at a 45-degree angle below the top two nodes. After making sure your cut was made at a 45-degree angle, put the end of the stem into a cup filled with water.

To prevent air bubbles, which are known as embolisms, root hormone application is advised. A rooting hormone will also help the plant grow faster and get more nutrients. After dipping the cuttings in the rooting hormone, place them in a rooting medium such as rockwool cubes. For moisture retention, put the rockwool cubes or other rooting medium under the humidity dome. Until your roots can absorb water, maintain a humidity level of 75% to 90%.

The roots should form over the next few days, which indicates that it’s time to transplant the clones. If you don’t want to plant the plants just yet, you can keep them in the refrigerator for up to three months. The cells of clone plants may burst if they are kept at temperatures below 40 degrees Fahrenheit (4.4 Celsius), as they would in extreme cold. Clones will not survive exposure to such low temperatures.

Bottom line

Cloning is a straightforward procedure that comes with several advantages for growers seeking to duplicate a favorite plant. Making notes while you experiment with cloning will help you figure out what works best for you and your plants.