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soaking rockwool,any additives?

yahooman

Well-known member
so i have never used rockwool to root clones,always peat pots
i just did some reading and it said to soak the cubes in 5.5 ph water,then drain and put in 6.o ph water along with rapid start and a weak veg solution....is this true?

can someone help a brother out?
 

mexweed

Active member
Veteran
yeah rockwool doesn't have anything in it, I used to do 1/3 strength cns17 for starting seeds, for cloning something like life cloning solution would work
 

amanda88

Well-known member
Rockwool's great for DWC guys but if you are heading for soil I'd go the rapid rooters even Jiffy's

good luck
 

Cannaseekr

Member
When i clone in rockwool I will add a 1/4 tsp/Gal of calmag, 1 drop per gal of grower secret or superthrive, and .5 ml/gal of roots exel ph'd to 5.6-5.8. I use this mix for rockwool, rapid rooters, and peat moss cubes and it gives my great results in all applications.
 

Mr. J

Well-known member
I wouldn't worry about it too much. When I clone in rockwool I don't even bother with pH or nutes or anything like that.

The critical factors are heat and humidity. You can get clones to stick in just about anything as long as you get those 2 things right. I get roots in a plain glass of water, no rooting hormones, as long as it's warm and humid.
 

sdd420

Well-known member
Veteran
That sounds right but you can go to grodan’s website and they lay it out for you. Peace sdd420
 

yahooman

Well-known member
When i clone in rockwool I will add a 1/4 tsp/Gal of calmag, 1 drop per gal of grower secret or superthrive, and .5 ml/gal of roots exel ph'd to 5.6-5.8. I use this mix for rockwool, rapid rooters, and peat moss cubes and it gives my great results in all applications.

ill try that thanks man
 

EvergreenState

Active member
You definitely have to correct for ph and then I use Dyna Gro KLN and rooting gel, following Dyna Gro's instructions, with great success.
 

hush

Señor Member
Veteran
You absolutely have to pre-soak all rockwool cubes in a pH 5.5 solution because that's what prepares the rockwool. They are processed in a very alkaline condition, so the soak isn't optional. I wouldn't worry about making it exactly 5.5 or whatever, though. It's perfectly fine if you don't have a pH meter and just want to squeeze a bunch of lemons into a bucket and soak your cubes in that. I have a sneaky suspicion that 100% of all the negative stories out there about rockwool are the result of not soaking them first.

But no, I've never bothered with adding diluted nutrient to the water. I just use pH-corrected tap water, and when the plants ask to start being fed, I start feeding them. Seedlings don't need nutrient until the first set of true leaves has unfurled. And rooting clones don't need nutrient for upwards of 2 weeks. Rockwool is awesome, and one of the easiest, most forgiving hydroponic media out there. That said, if I were going into soil (not sure if you are or not) I would rather use rapid rooters or some kind of compost plugs.
 

yahooman

Well-known member
i actually was reading a diy bucket cloner guide and i went to amazon today and can get all the parts for under $40 shipped so im going to make a bucket cloner...no more bullshit,just cut and turn machine on
 

yahooman

Well-known member
so after hearing from many people that clone machines work amazing i ordered all the necessary supplies....going to build it next week
 

yahooman

Well-known member
my new clone bucket!it was really easy to make and cost about $55 all in and i still have 38 net pots and collars so i just need a pump and bucket to make another,,gonna put in some clones tomorrow.i need to make some sort of `transparent lid
 

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TychoMonolyth

Boreal Curing
Nice bucket yahooman.

Just getting into cloning because I don't want to lose genetics that fell in my lap (Strawberry Cough and Trainwreck seeds from 10-15 year old seed packs).

Hey can you transplant clones to soil? Any thing I should know?
 

yahooman

Well-known member
this is my first time using this method,ill be transplanting into soil,cant see why you couldnt,just have to be gentle
 
I haven’t used rockwool in forever but it works well. I used to put my cubes in Tupperware container of ph’d water with clonex overnight. Can’t go wrong.
 

Facelesdoll

Active member
Clone powder or Gel is unnecessary. Use the money elsewhere. It is the ph, temps, humidity that are most important! Be sure through.cloning the rw stays hydrated enough. After 10 days of cloning do a small water feed. Easy peasy
 
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