The use of rooting hormones will help to speed up the cannabis plants‘ rooting development. Though the cannabis clone cuttings will transmit rooting hormones of their own to the wound, it will naturally take longer to root.
The stem of the clone cutting goes through an amazing transformation in its life when it is developing its roots. The cutting goes from producing green stem cells to manufacturing un-differentiated cells to fabricating root cells to be able to continue living.
There are many varieties of rooting hormones that are available in the marketplace and they range from liquids to gels to powder varieties. The types of hormones that are within these cannabis rooting hormones include napthalenaecetic acid (NAA), indolebutyric acid (IBA), and 2, 4- dichlorophenoxyacetic acid (2, 4-DPA).
When you purchase a commercially available rooting hormone it will contain anywhere from one to all of the synthetic hormones along with additional ingredients that help to prevent dampening-off such as a fungicide.
There are some products you can purchase that produce rooting products that utilize cannabis hormones. This type of bacteria helps develop roots and uptake nutrients better.
Application of the rooting hormones differs from one to another so be sure to read the labels on the rooting hormones to assure proper use. If you over-apply a rooting hormone you can run the risk of impairing rooting formation in the clones.
When using a liquid rooting hormone, many times they are mixed or diluted before they are applied to the cuttings. In some cases giving the cutting a 5 – 15-second dip into the rooting hormone solution will be enough for the cutting to absorb the concentrated rooting hormones.
Rooting Hormone Types
When using powder rooting hormones be sure to have the cutting soaked in water so the cutting will be able to gather up as much of the rooting hormone powder as possible. This will help to ensure that the powder sticks to all of the areas that will develop the roots.
Cloning gels are a great type of rooting hormones to use, their application and use are very simple. After you have re-cut the clone cutting underwater, you will then place the cutting in a cup that contains the cloning gel or even the cloning gel container.
In using the cloning gel, you can cut multiple cuttings and place them all in a container before you plant them. This gives you a place to hold the cuttings while having the time to set up the growing medium that you will be placing the clones into so they can develop their roots.
Cloning gels can further help eliminate the problems of an embolism. Another type of rooting hormone that you can use is an all-natural method since willow tree water contains substances that promote rooting in clones.
It has been found that using willow tree water will have about twenty percent (20%) more clones rooting than compared to using plain water. To make willow water, you will need to use the newer branches that are from this year as they contain the most compounds for rooting.
You will cut off these branches from the tree and chop those down to small 1 – 2 inch lengths. After cutting the branches down to size, you will soak the willow cuttings in a container of water and allow them to soak for about 24 hours.
After 24 hours you will then remove the willow tree branches and use them to start cloning. Sometimes people will even mix willow tree water with other commercially produced rooting hormones to root their cuttings.
Tips & Tricks For Growing Roots
- By cutting the stem at a 45-degree angle before applying rooting hormones, cuttings will develop more roots.
- Lightly scratching the surface underwater, where you are going to be putting the rooting hormone, will help the hormones to better penetrate the stem.
- You can split the stem in half, to expose the cambium layer, just under the “skin” of the stem by cutting the stem lengthwise underwater. This will open up more surface area for the roots to grow from.
Cloning Cannabis Checklist
Always keep your working area clean and free of anything that could cause pest and fungus issues.
- Disinfect the working surface and tools before cloning.
- Depending on your situation, either have the growing medium prepped and ready for planting clones or have your aeroponics cloner up and ready to go.
- You can store unused clones, but it is best to use what you take.
- Always keep an eye out for pests and fungi, and spray clones if needed.
- Check for root growth, but be sure to not damage the roots when looking.
- When roots are developed sufficient root systems, begin to harden the clones off by reducing the humidity.
- When clones are ready, you may transplant them into another growing medium.
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