Cloning questions

ive never cloned a plant before, but i like the thought of it, knowing ur going to get a female. My question is what do i clip off my girl to clone and how to get it going?

lol yea a noob question sorry people i couldnt find the answers.

lol i guess no one is noob enough to respond....i understand

Ok heres a quick reply. The best clone is going to be the top cola area but can be another area.Some have there best ways but what has worked for me at a 100 percent survival rate has been this way.You will need a few different items. A new sterile exacto knife(walmart 2 bucks) or even a new razor blade.If you going to plant in soil there are few options either seedling trays with good clean soil or a 1 inch rockwool cube will do.If using rockwool soak it 24 hours in advance in water.If soil just fill the tray cubes dont pack it.You will need a humidy dome or similar device to put clones in and keep humidy and warmth in. A heating pad is suggested to help keep humidity up.Ok you will also need cloning powder or cloning get.Gel like clonex is great or a powder like Shultz work well.For lighting a simple cheap $8 shop light with 2 floros will work perfect.
Ok process.I like to have a bowl of room temp water at hand if possible check the ph for best results aroind 5.5 or 6 is best.If your just gonna go for it tap should be ok but not perfect.You will want to take clones first from cola or top of plant which is also going to "top" your mother making it start to bush out and split to 2 top growth so thats actually a plus anyways.You can take lower cutting also.I always look for places to cut where there will be a few bigger fan leaves and at least 2 inches of stalk/stem.Ok you found a branch it has couple leaves on it you wanna cut the stem with the exacto knife at a 45 degree angle make sue you have about 2 inches of clean stalk on the new clone as you will need it to put in the soil.I place the cuttings in the bowl of water.Speeed is a good thing here.Ok you have cuttings.You want to hold the cutting stem in the water and trim the end at a 45 degree angle just a little for a clean bacteria free cut while its under the water.Netx you will take the cutting and dip the cut end in the rooting pwder or gel about a 1/2 inch.You now have a 1/2 inch coated stem.If its powder tap lightly to remove excess.Now poke a hole in the center of each tray cube where dirt is.Push the clone into the hole (toothpick makes good size hole) so that the stalk is about inch into soil.Press soil around the stalk covering it but do not pack it.Thats about that repeat to all clones.Now once thats done you will place the grow dome on the heating pad I like to put a 1/2 spacer between the pad and dome bottom so not to over heat the new roots.set the trays of clones inside.I then use a water botle to mist the clones thoroughly then place the dome lid on.Netxt use to boxes or hang the shop light right next to the dome as close as it can.Your now cloning.Now what you have to do is watch these daily.Your gonna see moisture on the clear dome build up which is good.You'll wanna open the dome every day I usually do it twice a day for 15 minutes each to let fresh air in.You wanna watch to make sure the clones do not dry out but do not over water. remember they do not have roots right away so leave mist them so they get water.I watch and if the dew inside seems light or if gone re mist the tray so leaves drip and soil is lightly wet.Do this for about 7-10 days.by 10 days you should have rooted clones. they seedlings should stand tall and even show growth.Dont worry if the first day or 2 they seem droopy as they is normal just keep that light on them and give them fresh air during the day.Practice will make you better.once they have roots you can transplant to new pots.Do as few transplants as possible as each transplant adds stress.Do not use big lights when cloning the floro is more then enough.When transplanting give a good watering wen done.Good luck and search google for more help and pictures...

great post fletch. That should help a lot of noobs.
My first time cloning I over watered big time and the cuttings turned yellow and bloated.

Some varieties are easier to clone than others. There are Sativas that will sprout roots so easy, you can (almost) stick them in the ground and forget em. But then there are some early Indicas that you can baby and they will just sit there and starve to death. So there are a few things you have got to look at.

Help the roots grow. Figure out where the roots will grow on your cutting before you actually cut it. Keep this portion of the stem dark for a week or two by wrapping some tape around it. This is called "etiolation" and will encourage rooting. Make the cutting with a sharp anvil pruner or very sharp scissors, and sterilize them after each cut. A dull pruner will crush the stem and it will be harder for the roots to form. A razor blade will make an even cleaner cut, which will also help rooting, but don't blame me if you cut yourself. Try to make the cut at angle to increase the surface area it has to absorb water.

The plant needs air to help the roots form, but don't let any get in the stem. This will cut off the capillary action and make the poor cutting work harder. Immediately dunk the cut end in water or rooting solution to prevent this from happening. You could even take it over to the sink and make a second cut under running water if you're really worried about it. Leave it in the rooting solution for a day or so. If you just leave it in the water, you might get lucky and sprout some roots, but they really need some oxygen. You can actively provide O2 by aeration or passively aerate by using an airy medium.

Another thing that makes the cutting work harder is breathing itself. Use a plastic dome or humidity tent to limit transpiration and keep the medium from drying out, and. Half of a 16 oz plastic drink bottle fits right on top of a 3 inch clay pot. Another way to limit transpiration is to cut about half off of each leaflet. You will still have the same number of leaves on the stem, but the surface area has decreased. This also helps control fungus by preventing the leaves from contacting the dome or the medium.

The proper lighting is also important. Direct sunlight will heat the air in the dome too much, but they're not going to root in the dark either. Fluorescents are ideal for this. An HID is OK if it’s not too close, or you could even give them a bit of indirect sun from a window if you can keep them warm.

You’ve kept an eye on the pH and the nutes, and you see it’s starting to grow again, so its safe to assume that it has roots and you can remove the humidity dome. Occasionally a cutting may wilt a little at first, but give it a mist and it should perk up. If none of these tips help, either consider tissue culture or finding a different mother.