Cloning a top?

RamblinEvilMushroom

RamblinEvilMushroom

Member
Hey fellas, my 2 lemon pound cakes are starting to unfold their 7th nodes after a thorough soil watering yesterday. I've read that it's generally a good idea to top after the 5th node, so I figured I'd do that today given how they look. I've read that it's possible to clone the tops, and I'm wondering the best way to go about doing so. I've attached an image showing the cuts I wanna make in red (I read somewhere that you should cut all but the top 2 fan leaves to help rooting). I was planning on placing them in jiffy pellets or test tubes with water. Hoping to get a second opinion from you guys.

Thanks in advance!
 

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Tracker

Tracker

Well-Known Member
Yes, root the top cuttings. I've been doing mine in Rapid Rooter-type plugs with humidity dome over tray. If i'm not motivated to prep all the stuff, I put them straight in water...change water daily. No need for humidity dome over those in water cup...make sure there is at least one node below surface of water, soil, plug, etc.

Use low light until they root. You dont want them to do photosynthesis or try to veg too much while theyre rooting. I've been running 20/4 light cycle in clones.

Good luck! Peace :peace:

IMG_20210115_184836.jpg
 
simpleleaf

simpleleaf

Well-Known Member
I've read some folks make those very small cuttings, but I've had better success with larger cuttings from plants which are older. The smallest cutting I like is about 5", with several nodes, and make sure the final, bottom cut is diagonal through a node.
 
Tracker

Tracker

Well-Known Member
^^^Yes, sometimes I do larger or smaller depending on what the mothers have on them and space constraints.
 
RamblinEvilMushroom

RamblinEvilMushroom

Member
I appreciate all the feedback and quick replies!
simpleleaf said:
I've had better success with larger cuttings from plants which are older. The smallest cutting I like is about 5", with several nodes, and make sure the final, bottom cut is diagonal through a node.
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I'm wondering if I should maybe top at the 6th node instead, then. This plant looks like it has 9 fingers, and if I topped now, it'd be after its second set of 9. The cutting would be about 2.5-3" and have 2 nodes.

Originally I was planning on waiting to top until the next watering when I was going to start feeding them, so that they have more nutrients to boost recovery. This 2-3 inch top was maybe a quarter of an inch yesterday, which made me think they'd probably be fine if I topped them today, but I may go back to my original plan of topping just before feeding so that they have a couple more nodes to work with.

Tracker said:
^^^Yes, sometimes I do larger or smaller depending on what the mothers have on them and space constraints.
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That's the other thing, I don't have *tons* of space. My grow closet is approx 4x1.8x5, and I figured I could get away with a small scale scrog with 4 plants. I do have a shelf with minimal lighting that'd fit 3-4 clones and small plants perfectly, that way I can have more plants already started between harvests.

Since I forgot to mention in the OP, I'm exactly 1 month from seed, and these plants are about 8" tall.
 
RamblinEvilMushroom

RamblinEvilMushroom

Member
The plants seemed dry today, so I said fuck it and decided to top and water/feed. The clones have 3 nodes and are about 4" tall. I chopped off the big fan leaves, then stripped the stem and buried 2 nodes in jiffy pellets. For right now, they're sitting on a shelf above my (waterproof) grow light to hopefully keep them warmer and under less light.

The only plant I didn't top was a Chem Cookies that I ripped some roots off of during transplanting since it was looking kinda sickly up until recently, so I'll probably wait until the watering after next to top and clone.

I'll update the thread with whether or not the clones actually root!
 

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Mak'er Grow

Well-Known Member
As long as you allow the jiffy to dry out a little between waterings...basically dont keep them soaked 24/7.
You should have roots showing in 7-14 days usually.
Oh and dont spray the leaves/clones...just water the dirt part. :)
Best of luck and happy growin' :P
 
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conor c

Well-Known Member
The tops better in at least 1 way its just harder to root vs smaller branches the reason i say its better is its the meristem that is least likely to carry over pathogens if you consider its that bit you use in tissue culture for a reason its the newest growth
 
Jjgrow420

Jjgrow420

Well-Known Member
Smaller cuts will take longer to root and longer to start growing after root but if you have time then there's no problem
 
RamblinEvilMushroom

RamblinEvilMushroom

Member
Mak'er Grow said:
As long as you allow the jiffy to dry out a little between waterings...basically dont keep them soaked 24/7.
You should have roots showing in 7-14 days usually.
Oh and dont spray the leaves/clones...just water the dirt part. :)
Best of luck and happy growin' :P
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Thanks for the advice! I'll mist every few days or so, then.

conor c said:
The tops better in at least 1 way its just harder to root vs smaller branches the reason i say its better is its the meristem that is least likely to carry over pathogens if you consider its that bit you use in tissue culture for a reason its the newest growth
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I've read about this as well, which is an interesting thing to consider for the future. I hear that lots of people prefer to clone from tops, and some people prefer to clone from branches, so I wanted to try both to get my own experience with these plants (:

Jjgrow420 said:
Smaller cuts will take longer to root and longer to start growing after root but if you have time then there's no problem
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Absolutely, just wanted to top before starting a feeding schedule, and I won't be sad if it doesn't work out since I got these seeds for free and have way more in storage/on the way anyways! I'm planning on having a veg/seedling/clone room and a separate flowering room as well, so I should have all the time the plants need.
 
B

bigsteve

Well-Known Member
Tops are best for clones as they usually have the thickest main stems.

I would make a diagonal cut just above the fifth node. You want a length of main stem buried in cloning cup so they will root quicker.

Good luck, BigSteve.
 
medicaloutlaw

medicaloutlaw

Well-Known Member
Tracker said:
Yes, root the top cuttings. I've been doing mine in Rapid Rooter-type plugs with humidity dome over tray. If i'm not motivated to prep all the stuff, I put them straight in water...change water daily. No need for humidity dome over those in water cup...make sure there is at least one node below surface of water, soil, plug, etc.

Use low light until they root. You dont want them to do photosynthesis or try to veg too much while theyre rooting. I've been running 20/4 light cycle in clones.

Good luck! Peace :peace:

View attachment 4988500
Click to expand...
Now that is a nice tray of clones! Do the clone tops grow differently from a normal clone cut? This is the first time I cloned a top.
 
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