Mother Plants

How old should a mother plant be to be a good mother plant? Mine are over a year old and I plan on using them into the future. Does keeping the same mother plant have any advantage do you know? I'm just hoping that as they mature they develops a unique flavor and effect. Like a fine wine. Does anyone else agree?

I don’t know your setup but I rotate them I find it harder to maintain them rotate as I. Take clones and the extras I just mom out and by the end of run ready set clip and do again

I just feel mother plant require more to each their own

IMO the longer the mother is alive the more complex it's internal structure is, the more nutrients it can process and the more acclimated it is to your environment. Makes for better breeding, clones etc.

Look at it like age. I was just conversating with someone considering taking the top of my 2 year old Mother plant to run a seed crop. The reason being her structure is so dense and tight, well developed.

If the mother plant I have is more aged and developed than the original breeders plant, my seeds will exhibit different features, possibly better ones, based on my environment and care. This is just my theory not sure if it's a thing.

tko2184 said:

I just feel mother plant require more to each their own

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It requires less, but more.

I def agree w this and have read this I think Ed rose. that book says it or Jorge Cervantes plant def matures but I was speaking in ref of just perpetuating

rcpilot04401 said:

How old should a mother plant be to be a good mother plant? Mine are over a year old and I plan on using them into the future. Does keeping the same mother plant have any advantage do you know? I'm just hoping that as they mature they develops a unique flavor and effect. Like a fine wine. Does anyone else agree?

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A clone is a identical clone of said strain with the exact same genetic profile. You will lose some vigour in veg after taking clones from the same strain over and over again.

But it takes 3+ years before that happens from my experience. That being said it doesn't matter how old the mother plant is, still a identical clone. You can't change something that's not there. You can argue that phytohormones and PGR's change it with cell multiplication and elongation but I have no reference to support this claim.

The clone will adapt to the same environmental stresses and changes as the mother plant do so the argument doesn't hold up to scrutiny IMO.

I always find that I kept my moms in medium/low lighting (side closet deal, 2x 60w QB) and I would end up with cutting them back over & over, periodic negligence, etc. Rotation became key for me; I probably don't keep a mother longer than a year or so before I've got something taller than desired.

As I would let them grow and then needed to heavily top them I couldn't go as low as desired or I risked losing it as that lower canopy wasn't getting deep light penetration and wasn't exactly thriving. When I was needing to top it was usually already to a point where I didn't want to feed them and get them thriving before - so after several toppings I needed to start new ones anyhow.

I also have been finding that I can deplete my semi-super-soils that I use for moms. I want low maintenance for the moms/clones-in-waiting so if I don't do a run (hobbyist here) for a few I end up with soil that starts running lean. Recently I've been trying out the NFTG OneShot for mother plant upkeep.

I have been running the same mother for going on about 3 years now. It has become far easier to clone, roots come in no more than 7 days. The vigor has increased, as I find myself cloning much more to control her. The plant has seem to "mature" over the years. The very tops have developed into a very nice ninja star, Shuriken type leaves, and they love to get skinnier. Also the fan leaves have developed from 9 fingers, to 11. She has also seemed to settle into a very nice bushy growth pattern, that makes it a dream to harvest. No matter how I try to shape the plant, it now develops into a shape it prefers. Too much manipulation brings down the yield. Potency has not suffered in the least.

I find zero difference in the cuttings taken from a young mommy to a 5 year old mommy. I love the bonsai mother technique, really helps maintain vigor long term.