Cloning difficulties

[TheGrandPuba]

So my buddy tried taking 2 cuttings from his lemon skunk mother and after 12 hours they look quite sad and it doesn't look like they will make it.

They are under the dome at around 60-70% humidity, and 29 degrees Celsius. The rockwool cubes were soaked in water with a squirt of lemon juice for 24 hours, but they seemed to be too wet so they were dried out for 14 hours or so.

The cuttings went right in after being dipped in cloning gel. They were about 5 inches and taken a few inches away from the main stem because the branches are quite large and couldn't fit in a humidity dome. They were cut at a 45 degree angle with a blade cleaned with alcohol.

He might have shaved too much 'skin' off the bottom of the stem and exposed the inner stem to the air, that's my only guess of what could have gone wrong.

Thanks for reading, any insight is appreciated.

[higherthanamile]

I would recommend that when you clone, taking your cuttings and submerging them in water and then clip again below the surface before you dip them in any clone gel. That will almost certainly eliminate any air from compromising the clone.

HTAM

[farmergiles]

Careful with the lemon juice, it`s very acidic.

[sirsmokalot989]

The rockwool doesnt need to be dried out before you put the clones in... Actually opposite... I keep mine moist at all times i think the rockwool holds nice pockets of air which is why you dont want them submerged but kept moist at all times... Also did you check the ph of your water? That can be crutial to new roots

[higherthanamile]

^Second that two times.

[Cerebro]

yeah, just sounds too fussy
scraping stem, lemon juice
it seems that clones are happy to just be popped into a glass of some decent room temp water
i haven't heard of too wet rockwool b4

[TheGrandPuba]

Thanks for the replies,

I've got most of my info on cloning from this page
A batch of clones in rockwool - Grasscity.com Forums

and the guy who wrote it said that the cubes should just be damp and not soaked.

Might have to try dipping them in water next time and using less lemon juice.

The PH was around 5, but all that was used was one of those cheap water testers (I'm not sure how accurate they are)

[Cerebro]

have you read fg's sticky?
Clonamatix - With Pics!
i've heard of many teething issues with rockwool

[slunt]

Don't know why you are using lemon juice, but it's definitely not necessary for cloning.
Air pockets are rare also, not much of a worry usually.
Your temps are too high. 25/26 C is the aiming point.
The plants transpire moisture when its hot and can't take any in because roots are not developed.
Rock wool needs to be damp, not wet. The plant will take a long time to grow roots to seek moisture if the stem is wet or submerged.
What kind of light are they getting? CFL bulbs are good for this or any cool Floro tube will do at this stage. 24 hours on.

[TheGrandPuba]

They are under floros right now, on for 24 hours. I thought high temps were good for clones, isn't that why some people use heating pads under the tray?

The temps are so high because they are right above the 400w metal halide, i suppose the MH could be turned off and the mother could survive under floros for a week or so.

I'll check out that sticky, thanks Cerebro.

[slunt]

The heating Pads are used for keeping the roots warm in a cooler environment. With fans and vents and coolers working to shed the light heat sometimes the grow area is cooler than ideal for babies. People who grow in winter climates also have heating warmth issues which pads are great at alleviating.

[Cerebro]

what about humidity slunt? what's the aiming point there?

[sirsmokalot989]

I know that clones want a higher humdity point which is the only reason i thought the heat would be for
im not sure what exactly but i know if you use a dome for rooting you dont need to cut the tips of the leaves to lower transpiration as theres way more moisture available
i know jorge explains the exacts in his grow bible

[slunt]

Babies love the warm moist atmosphere but you have a fine line to tread between proper atmosphere and a warm cooking sauna which causes stem rot and fungus.
Spraying the plant tops with a light mist every 2 days keeps things perfectly under a dome until roots can develop and transpiration is no longer a hazard to worry about.
I find that when you have higher humidity that the leaf tips droop and touch each other or the ground and mold can form. Cutting the tips off keeps the leaves up and open to absorb light energy.