Clone
Definition: A clone is a cutting taken from a living cannabis plant and rooted to grow into a new plant with the exact same genetics. Clones skip germination and the seedling stage, so they reach flowering sooner, and they always match the sex and traits of the plant they came from, usually a female mother plant.
How Clone works
Cannabis roots readily from stem tissue, which makes cloning one of the most useful skills a grower can learn. A cutting carries the identical genotype of its source, so a proven keeper can be reproduced for years.
Taking a cutting
- Choose a healthy branch tip 4 to 6 inches long with at least two nodes, from a plant still in vegetative growth.
- Cut at a 45-degree angle just below a node with a clean, sharp blade, then dip in rooting gel or powder.
- Set it in a moist plug or rockwool cube, trim large leaves in half to reduce water loss, and place it under a humidity dome.
- Keep it at 72 to 78°F (22 to 26°C), 70 to 80% humidity, and gentle light around 100 to 200 PPFD.
Roots usually appear in 7 to 14 days. Gradually open the dome vents once roots show.
Clones vs seeds
Clones are uniform and fast, but they inherit any pest or pathogen their mother carries, including hop latent viroid, and they lack the taproot a seedling develops, which can mean a shallower root system outdoors. Seeds start clean, offer new genetics and are easy to store. Autoflowers do not clone well, since a cutting keeps the mother’s age-based flowering clock.