Rockwool Cloning 101

[The Poet]

Today I will attempt to clone my 'Satori' and 'Oregon Grown OG'
in rockwool. Never having used it before this will be interesting.
It's early and I have a run to make first but today is the day!

The Poet...

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[The Poet]

Never having even thought about 'Rockwool' I was surprised when a new guy at the Hydro store put some Rockwool and a T5 light in front of me and said that I needed it.
After studying a little {thank God for the internet!}
I used Rockwool rather than Root Riot cubes to clone my Satori and Oregon Grown OG.
I didn't know if I should try it on a few first before risking all the clones but after sticking one in the Rockwool I just threw caution aside and went for it!
I cloned 2 doz Satori and 2 doz Oregon Grown OG.
That's all the clones I could get off these plants and even though the mothers will live to make more clones, if this doesn't work I will be shopping for seeds.
I risked it all after feeling the tight fit of the Rockwool on the clone.
It fit perfectly and I used a 4"-5" clone, a much more sturdy clone than I used to use.
It felt real good and I have confidence in the Rockwool and the new guy down at the hydro store too.
{The same guy who said "Water when they need it" and fertilize too, "when they need it"}

I wrapped 6 cubes with a rubber band, soaked them en-masse 10 seconds, cut a clone, dipped it in Clonex and stuck it in the Rockwool.
{A 1/4 dose veg nute in the soaking water}
Wow!
Rockwool cloning is easy and I have great faith in it.


We will see I guess...


The Poet...


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[The Poet]

OK, that was 3 days ago, 72 hours.
This is the fourth day, almost sunup and I just checked their moisture, watered them en-masse dipping the cubes half way in water with a 1/4 dose of veg fertilizer.
They all were sturdy and looked as good as they did 72 hours ago. No sagging or discoloration of the leaves, they look great. They all are perfect and growing like Kudzu!
I must have just learned the art of cloning. I can't believe it!

That is rockwool works better than root riot cubes, larger clones help too.
If they were going to sag they would have done it by now.
Evidently I have 24 Oregon Grown OG and 24 Satori clones!
So the new guy at the hydro store was right!
I did need rockwool cubes to clone in and the T-5 light uses very little electricity, 24 watts.


God is great Sabu...


The Poet...


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[The Poet]

Day 9... all of the clones are alive and looking as pert as they did 9 days ago.
I transplanted 9 which were rooted to 2 litter hempies w 'Fox Farms' soil.
The dome was removed at day 6, but since some of the little ones are not showing roots I think I'll water them today and put the dome back on.

The guy at the Hydro store was right in that 'Rockwool and the T5 light', along with {cutting clones 4" 5" long}, is a superior way to take clones and it looks like I will have a 100% success rate doing so.

I have learned something else useful about growing.
Next time I go to the Hydro store I'll take the new guy a cold Shiner Bock and thank him.


The Poet...

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[The Poet]

Day 14, of 48 clones, 34 are rooted and planted in soil and 14 have roots but need a few more days in the incubator.
All are alive and so 100% survival rate was easy in the Rockwool.
I have 24 Satori and 24 Oregon Grown OG clones, my desert island #1 and #2.
Rockwool is a great material for cloning but cutting clones 4" 5" made a great difference too. The last 14 clones have roots and are not sagging in the least, I'll plant the in soil in a few days.

So... I guess the guy at the Hydro store was right about me needing Rockwool and a T-5 light. 25 watts rather than 125w, and I save 100 watts rooting my clones.


The Poet...


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[zem]

nice read Poet, thanks for sharing, similar to what i do : http://www.marijuanapassion.com/forum/showthread.php?t=73676 I use floral foam oasis which is very similar to rw and smaller cuber 1"x1"x1.5" in automatic flood and drain, and have similar results i use cfls to warm up the area, if i dont my rate will go down, so make sure that your t5 is enough to warm your cloner in colder times

 

[trillions of atoms]

I have never been a fan of RW.

That's just me.


Hydroton has superior arreation hands down.

Arreation is key for the wet/dry cycle.

A fan on the substrate is recommended. The sooner you can dry the medium and flood again the better.

 

[The Poet]

Atom dude,

What's Hydroton, and where can I get it?
Garden supply store, but is it real common?


Poet...

 

[WeedHopper]

I used bubblers and neoprene incerts. 100% success with clones. Never used Rock wool. Seen it used though. Loved my bubblers, ,all DIY. Then straight into my 5gallon DWCs.
Where are the pics Poet?

 

[The Poet]

Zem,


The 'new guy' down at the Hydro store talked me out of getting a heat pad. But when cloning I keep the house thermostat on 80 degrees.


Poet...?

 

[The Poet]

Of 24 'Oregon Grown og' and 24 'Satori' cloned in Rockwool, all 48 have taken root and are perfect clones...
48 live clones out of 48 started, that's a 100% survival rate with the Rockwool and it sure was easy.


Thank you...


The Poet...♪

 

[WeedHopper]

Wheres the pics,,,yehaaaaaa

 

[oldgrow]

I have never been a fan of RW.

That's just me.


Hydroton has superior arreation hands down.

Arreation is key for the wet/dry cycle.

A fan on the substrate is recommended. The sooner you can dry the medium and flood again the better.

IF you only knew

 

[sopappy]

I have never been a fan of RW.

That's just me.


Hydroton has superior arreation hands down.

Arreation is key for the wet/dry cycle.

A fan on the substrate is recommended. The sooner you can dry the medium and flood again the better.

whoa, a fan on the medium? hydroton?
I'm ebbing and flowing a tray once an hour, sits for 55 minutes
are you suggesting I should wait until the pellets are completely dry?
I can't blow dry, I have a fan pointed up for CO2 (thanks, HP)

Do you start seeds or clones in hydroton? How?
I hate those dam plugs and am having great success just dropping seeds in to the pellets. wet the pellets, one layer below

 

[sopappy]

Zem,


The 'new guy' down at the Hydro store talked me out of getting a heat pad. But when cloning I keep the house thermostat on 80 degrees.


Poet...?

I use them but I have a temp control on it, those things can get away from you. I've seen temps as high as 30 C plus

house temp needn.t be that high, I doubt it will help much, the seed needs to be wet and warm, but the warmth just speeds things up, 1 wk vs 2, big deal
But I can't clone worth a dam so no comment on that
(top of fridge is better than nothing)

 

[sopappy]

Atom dude,

What's Hydroton, and where can I get it?
Garden supply store, but is it real common?


Poet...

Quite common, I've seen it with pellets all the same size and some with all kinds of a diameters. Inert too, no pH concerns but you can cut a drain hole in bottom of bag and rinse them before you use them (hose in top)
powder sits in bottom of rez, clogs filtres,
and it is RE-USEABLE.... no more "Great Escape" dirt discard runs
the more banged up and chipped they get, the better
(rinse with H2O2)