How many watts do you use to root cuts?

Moppel · Apr 27, 2010

i was just reading another thread about lighthours fom cloning and didnt wanna go too much offtopic, so i figured i would start this thread.

How much watt you guys think is the best to root cuts? Oh , and let us know in how many days (more or less) you got your cuts rooted.

slackx · Apr 27, 2010

I use a 23 watt CFL about 2 feet away on the heat pad

Hydro-Soil · Apr 27, 2010

Indirect room lighting, for the first few days, works great. Move em into stronger lighting as soon as they start showing some roots.

I've rooted in 2 weeks by just sticking cuttings in a foam circle and floating it in a bucket... right next to the other plants under a 12/12 1K HPS. It really depends a lot on what the cutting was used to... right before being cut.

Fastest rooting (For me) has been a medium strength fluorescent lighting setup.

Stay Safe! :tree:

Kcar · Apr 27, 2010

2 4' 32W T8 6500k bulbs. So 64. For up to two trays (144) clones. 24/7

10k · Apr 27, 2010

This IS a VERY controversial topic as the old school conventional cloning belief system was always close up and brightly lighted.

Fact is though, that cuttings root much better if they're not burning up precious energy trying to do photosynthesis now when they're much better off devoting their energy to making a root system.

I find they do much better a foot or two away from an ordinary fluorescent light fixture such as a single tube 20watt 2 foot long fluorescent fixture hanging a foot above the standard 10x20 rooting tray or aero cloner tub device (such as "Cheapo-Aero" heh heh)

Any closer to the lighting or more intense lighting will just promote poor rooting results as the cuttings will start yellowing off the leafs starting from bottom up, as the cuttings are forced to translocate available mobile nutrient from their limited foliage in a pointless effort to cope with photosynthesis without a viable root system.

hth

Hydro-Soil · Apr 27, 2010

10k said:
This IS a VERY controversial topic as the old school conventional cloning belief system was always close up and brightly lighted.

Fact is though, that cuttings root much better if they're not burning up precious energy trying to do photosynthesis now when they're much better off devoting their energy to making a root system.

I find they do much better a foot or two away from an ordinary fluorescent light fixture such as a single tube 20watt 2 foot long fluorescent fixture hanging a foot above the standard 10x20 rooting tray or aero cloner tub device (such as "Cheapo-Aero" heh heh)

Any closer to the lighting or more intense lighting will just promote poor rooting results as the cuttings will start yellowing off the leafs starting from bottom up, as the cuttings are forced to translocate available mobile nutrient from their limited foliage in a pointless effort to cope with photosynthesis without a viable root system.

hth

YEah.... what 10K said. :tiphat:

bullseye · Apr 27, 2010

controversial , how about rooting in the dark ?

about 8 weeks ago i took 18 cuts for a pal who needed them desprate i phoned him to pick them up (unrooted )
he did not call for them nexy day still sat there he was ready to go on holiday so i thought he aint coming dont want em sat around and binned them i tipped them in a old bucket that had about 2 inch of feed in it and a black bag then put it under a shelf in the corner of my grow room
3 wks later i picked up the bucket to empty it and pulled out the blackbag and under it all the clones were sat up looking great with nice white roots they were in 1 inch jiffy pellets sat in old nute water ? and thats no shit i dont have to lie to sound good just thought i would share it .the plants white russion glad they were rooted cos its a real keeper

bully.

El Toker · Apr 27, 2010

10k said:
Fact is though, that cuttings root much better if they're not burning up precious energy trying to do photosynthesis now when they're much better off devoting their energy to making a root system.

As a fact that doesn't make any sense. Photosynthesis is the process that the plant uses to convert light energy into chemical energy available to the rest of the plants metabolic processes. There is never a net energy loss in photosynthesis.

That said I tend to keep my cuttings in a aero propagator in a corner of the grow area, but that's about reducing the amount of heat, not reducing the light.

Phillthy · Apr 27, 2010

400w 6500k flouros.

Hydro-Soil · Apr 27, 2010

El Toker said:
As a fact that doesn't make any sense. Photosynthesis is the process that the plant uses to convert light energy into chemical energy available to the rest of the plants metabolic processes. There is never a net energy loss in photosynthesis.

Actually, it makes sense when you realize that photosynth requires water.

No roots... no way to replace the water. (yes, the plant absorbs a minimal amount of water through the stem and leaves. This isn't enough for ongoing-active photosynth.)

Bullseye, your story makes perfect sense, thanks for posting that bit up.

When I absolutely HAVE to have a cutting root (and time is not an issue)... I'll throw it in a cup with soil and tape a lid on it... stick it in a low-light corner. Within a month, it's a superbly rooted plant. *shrug* (when I use water that won't grow slime on boot leather, that is. :tiphat:

)

Stay Safe! :tree:

El Toker · Apr 27, 2010

Hydro-Soil said:
Actually, it makes sense when you realize that photosynth requires water.

No roots... no way to replace the water. (yes, the plant absorbs a minimal amount of water through the stem and leaves. This isn't enough for ongoing-active photosynth.)

Interesting, have you got any sources for that?

As the plant is more than 90% water anyway it's certainly not something that would be in short supply to the chloroplasts and it seems unlikely that the plant would convert more than a tiny percentage of it's own weight into starch, with the majority of that mass coming from carbon dioxide from the air. I don't see how the amount of water consumed would be in any way significant compared to water lost through normal transpiration and if that was the case, then you would expect clones to loose their turgidity under 50 W per square foot (which I believe is the optimal light saturation) but as long as temps remain low and humidity high, they don't.

However, I can't find any reliable figures online to back this up and it's three decades since I studied botany so I will admit that it's not exactly fresh in my mind.

Hydro-Soil · Apr 27, 2010

El Toker said:
Interesting, have you got any sources for that?

Sure... 7 years of watching plants. Edit: Meaning... clones rooted in low light are usually the healthiest of any cuts. The more intense the lighting, the nastier they tend to look, before rooting. Humidity levels don't seem to make a difference.

Nothing I can photograph or post a link to though. Try it yourself.

Stay Safe! :tree:

FreezerBoy · Apr 27, 2010

El Toker said:
you would expect clones to loose their turgidity under 50 W per square foot (which I believe is the optimal light saturation) but as long as temps remain low and humidity high, they don't.

50 wsf is for rooted plants. Unrooted cuts may be able to survive it but, it's not recommended. Further, with low light and small cuts, lethal levels of RH are no longer needed. I can go as low as 15% RH with no problems.

A single 23 watt cfl can root cuts from 3 feet away. If it does 3 feet in one direction, it does so in all directions, meaning a 6x6 foot space or 5184 starter cubes. How many people need over 5000 cuts at a time?

m0ff99 · Apr 27, 2010

FreezerBoy said:
A single 23 watt cfl can root cuts from 3 feet away. If it does 3 feet in one direction, it does so in all directions, meaning a 6x6 foot space or 5184 starter cubes. How many people need over 5000 cuts at a time?

I wish i had the space,time,money and manpower for a 5000 plant grow, that would be cosmic!!
:plant grow:

Moppel · Apr 27, 2010

i have always rooted cuts in a propegator , with 2 fluoros (53 watt) 4 inch above em (3 propegators with 252 cuts total). But i sure think you guys got a point here, thats why i started this thread...

El Jimador · Apr 27, 2010

I'm using 6 F32T8's placed about 4-5 inches from the tops for 20 hours per day. I've had very good success. I should add that I don't think you need 6, it's just that I sometimes root a number of cuttings and I need 6-8 of them for good coverage of my space. If you're just rooting a few cuttings, you could easily just use 2.

Growbrass · Apr 28, 2010

El Toker said:
Interesting, have you got any sources for that?

I'm not sure if plants require a state of stasis to root, but I do know that they root much faster/stronger when they are in stasis. And I don't believe a plant can be in stasis while also photosynthesizing. Thus it makes PERFECT sense that low light is the correct method for cloning. (low enough that the plant can't/won't try and produce/use energy for growth, rather use what energy it has to root in order to have more chance at survival)

I'm not a botanist, but I have read way too much on the subject. I am a stoner and do get shit mixed up every now and then(everyday) so there is always that chance.

Moppel · Apr 28, 2010

Growbrass said:
I'm not a botanist, but I have read way too much on the subject. I am a stoner and do get shit mixed up every now and then(everyday) so there is always that chance.

El Toker · Apr 28, 2010

Hydro-Soil said:
Sure... 7 years of watching plants. Edit: Meaning... clones rooted in low light are usually the healthiest of any cuts. The more intense the lighting, the nastier they tend to look, before rooting. Humidity levels don't seem to make a difference.
Try it yourself.

I've been rooting cuttings for a few years myself, and as I said earlier, I have also found lower light intensity seems to benefit them. I'm not disagreeing with that observation at all.

However, I am interested in the reason for this, and it was your theory I was questioning. It makes no difference to practice.

Simple observation and theorising without using the scientific method always leads to dodgy conclusions. Take a look at the vast body of "knowledge" on nutrient deficiencies that is different for every source with many contradictions. I take it all with a pinch of salt or Epson Salts on a particular UK forum.

El Toker · Apr 28, 2010

Growbrass said:
I am a stoner and do get shit mixed up every now and then(everyday) so there is always that chance.

Me too, that's why I'm not saying that things are definitely one way or another. I'm more interested in evidence based cultivation than opinion.

How many watts do you use to root cuts?

Grower for Life

Active member

Active member

There are FOUR lights!

burnt out og'er

Active member

Member

Member

Seven-Thirty

Active member

Member

Active member

Was blind but now IC Puckbunny in Training

Active member

Grower for Life

Member

Member

Grower for Life

Member

Member