Ice-tube cloner from WallyWorld

[Budley Doright]

Over the past years Ive had very good success with this cloning with many different plants....

SO I recently started a bunch of seeds.... and as I normally I took 3 clones of each plant one row in the cloner (9 X 3) = 27 clones....


So this one plant is just a growing machine growing like crazy....

So I go back to my cloner find the correct row.....and voila....


No f-ing roots on any of them????


I think wtf....


Well growers like this dont come around that often so I decide to chop the plant up it was flowering heavily...and do a regrow on it....


this plant also leaned pretty heavily to autoflowering......

Anyway the regrow went pretty will and I took a whole cloner 27 cuts and left the mother intact....


This weekend will be two weeks.... sunday.....

Normally I never keep clones past 2 weeks....


Here I have this super hard to clone bitch and I will have my way with her.....

I get a couple shots at this bitch since I have a rapidly growing mother and whe can fill a cloner each of the next couple weeks at least...

Normally when I check for roots I sort of tease the plant out.... I sort of shimer it out applying pressure.... If it has no roots I put it back in and press the verm back....

THat seems to be the cause of death however.....


What Im going to do instead is to not screw with the clones just to see if I have roots out the bottom.....

SO Im going to do a little experimenting with methods for that hard to clone gal.... I will be feeding the plants along....

They were small clones they still for the most part look good.... One has sent roots to the blue caps......

I wont disturb the plants until they root or die....... Once I see roots they will be pushed out and put into small translucent cups and continue monitoring root growth....


This is not something Ive done before but will be interesting...... I dont expect a high percentage in this batch but lets see if I can improve in the next couple cloners......

 

[Budley Doright]

well today was day 14 in cloner 1...

I didnt hit my magic number 80% but got 18 out of 27....


They actually are just a little slow imo....


Since I rarely wait 14 days these are just a little slow....


For the next cloner other than feeding Im not going to mess with them at all until 14 days have gone....


Im pretty sure I killed a number of them by pulling on their stems to see if they had roots....



I suspect that several died after pulling the stem free from their original place.....

Ill post an update in two weeks.... hoping for at least 80%


Since Ive never got less than that......

 

[darkhollo]

I bought one of these and ran some clones in it. I didn't count the number of days but all rooted 100% success rate. BUT when i tried to pull them out i couldn't get the perlite to let go. Maybe i need the finer stuff? It was so jammed up in there that i damaged roots trying to get them out.

Any thoughts?

--dh

 

[Budley Doright]

I think most of us use a penny and a pencil or dowell to push the penny and clone from the bottom ....

The penny fits the tubes perfectly.....

 

[overmyhead]

just pulled out 27 of 27 (for the 2nd time) no heater this time - left them for about 20 days in the shade just for kicks. Also did a small branch (about 8 inches with three sub branches) in a small rx bottle with holes drilled in the bottom. One thing that makes me feel a little better about putting them in is if i let them sit in a cup of water for a couple days - just to let the wound seal up without the chance of an embolism. I am more convinced every day that this is a revolutionary thread!

 

[vicious bee]

Its true on the light....

Too much and the plants want to start doing photosynthesis .... they yellow from using up nitrogen and often die young....

I use tube flouros.... kitchen and bath.... about 18 inches away....

Use a long light cylcle.... at least 18 hours light.... make sure they get a short dark cycle....

Ah HA . I've been having a little trouble with my latest batch. Went back and read through the thread to see if my problem was listed. I added another light in the general area. I believe I have too much light. I wouldn't have thought that too much light was a problem as long as they didn't burn. I didn't catch that comment on too much light the first time I read it. I have a small 2 lamp 24'' fixture that should be perfect.

 

[overmyhead]

Ah HA . I've been having a little trouble with my latest batch. Went back and read through the thread to see if my problem was listed. I added another light in the general area. I believe I have too much light. I wouldn't have thought that too much light was a problem as long as they didn't burn. I didn't catch that comment on too much light the first time I read it. I have a small 2 lamp 24'' fixture that should be perfect.

I just put it in the shade of their mothers - works great

 

[Biggy]

way to keep the juices flowing like the innovation keep it up

 

[mrred]

staight coco with no rooting hormoes works fucking great in these

 

[Budley Doright]

MRRED.... could you specify the brand.....

COCO is one of the mediums Ive not tried....

However not all coco is equal....


some have the consistancy of peat.... others is chunky and stringy.....
I expect you are using the more peat like type.....

 

[mrred]

botanicare boss bag, it has 2 layers theres like a mat of stringy coco and the fine peat like coco, i just the fine stuff, no reason i bought the boss stuff , only stuff that had at the time

 

[10jed]

First ever cloning attempt and using this method so far I am at 100%. I have a tiny veg/clone/mom cabinet so I had to improvise a bit. Couldn't find the trays at walmart because it is winter and apparently nobody drinks bottled water this time of year! I used 1.25" PVC (4' for $1.79 at home depot) with a small square of t-shirt material held on the bottom with a rubber band, fine vermiculite and kept res temps 80-85. Easy as can be! Got roots in 8 days for all but 1 of my potential moms. That cut is still alive and the plant has been a slow poke since day one as well as the fact it has never been too healthy. I'm new so basically clueless! I do still expect it to root. Strain of all 4 is Joey Weed's Apollo 11 f2's btw.

Really easy method and highly recommended!!! I wish the OP was still around so I could say thanks.

Jed

***edit*** to say that I used ph'd water with 1 drop per gal superthrive, and Shultz TakeRoot powder.

 

[10jed]

I used 1.25" PVC (4' for $1.79 at home depot)

Actually I just 1 upped myself! Tonight I found 4' clear poly florescent tube covers for under $2, and I cut those down. Now I don't have to guess if the roots are filling in! Thin, brittle plastic so they don't cut too easily so WEAR EYE PROTECTION IF USING A CHOP SAW!

Jed

 

[thc43]

chrissy gifts for friends and the odd family member just about ready to be potted up and hardened off..


I find these cribs work a treat $3 each normaly id use coco over a bed of perlite sometimes i use pucks. i always have half a bag of coco around so it makes sense to use up first.









with a few left overs for an outdoor grow once i get mt solar water pump.

 

[vicious bee]

Actually I just 1 upped myself! Tonight I found 4' clear poly florescent tube covers for under $2, and I cut those down. Now I don't have to guess if the roots are filling in! Thin, brittle plastic so they don't cut too easily so WEAR EYE PROTECTION IF USING A CHOP SAW!

Jed

Excellent idea! Going to try that. I have some hard to clone strains and it would be great to know if their done. The original poster is still around it's Burnt Rope.

 

[Budley Doright]

well today was day 14 in cloner 1...

I didnt hit my magic number 80% but got 18 out of 27....


They actually are just a little slow imo....


Since I rarely wait 14 days these are just a little slow....


For the next cloner other than feeding Im not going to mess with them at all until 14 days have gone....


Im pretty sure I killed a number of them by pulling on their stems to see if they had roots....



I suspect that several died after pulling the stem free from their original place.....

Ill post an update in two weeks.... hoping for at least 80%


Since Ive never got less than that......

Here is the update...

Today is actually only day 13.... but I noticed about 7 of them had roots coming out of the holes in the blue caps...

So I removed the caps to find 100% rooting....


I had considered this a difficult to clone plant but it was just a few days slower than many....


One thing I did confirm .... and it was a bad habit on my part....

I would frequently test whether they had roots by gently pulling the stems of the clones.... If the medium pulled with the stem it was rooted....

if the stem slipped out of the medium... no roots... I would then replant the medium around the stem.....


I confirmed that this is a bad practice... Some of those died in my last batch.....


Better is to look for roots coming out of the bottom.... when you see that.... remove the blue caps.....


I just did that and have 100% survival and rooted....


I will no longer be yanking on the clones to see if they have roots....


THis business of not being able to see root growth is an issue as pointed out by our new poster......10jed

However until they start making these from clear plastic is the best they make....


Im perfectly happy however leaving them in the cloner for 14 (or less)days and pulling out a well rooted clone.....

 

[justanotherbozo]

how many hours or times a day do you check on your cuttings?

i look in on my cloners once a day, just because i don't want to let myself get too lazy. the truth is, you only need to check it and make sure the reservoir hasn't dried out, i've had a couple bad runs 'cause i got lazy and let the res dry down to within a 1/2 inch of running completely dry, definitely not a good idea.

hey Burnt Rope, hope all is well with you. i'm still using a borrowed connection so still no pics of the new cloner box, maybe next week.

btw, because i only run a small SOG for my head, i find i always have too many clones so i decided to see what happened if i left my clones in longer. i did one run for 17 days and 1 run at 20 days and both runs had awesome results, fact is, leaving them in longer meant they all have well developed root systems rather than just a few roots. (the run i left in for 20 days had root systems actually growing 6 inchs out the bottom!)

 

[Dödsknark]

I read "World class stoner new at walmart"

Couldn't quite figure the title out so had to check in. Only to discover I've already read this thread.

OT I know.

 

[10jed]

Hey guys! First off, thanks BurntRope for this awesome idea!!! The clear tubes I think are going to work really good for checking roots. I am just getting started in all of this and have been doing multiple visual inspections. I know that couldn't be good! I don't care though at this point, I really want to see what is happening down there so I know what to expect and if I loose some it is nbd.

That all being said, these clear tubes are about 1.5 inches inside so they may be a little big. The clones I pulled had rather small roots (6-8 roots about 1/4" long) and I may have pulled them too soon, and watered the soil too much at planting time, and generally just cursed them with my vast newbiness. I just don't know! I'm sexing my potential moms so I am anxious.

I do have some questions for you pros though!

1. What is minimal-average-ideal root length and number of roots for planting to soil?

2. I have read in other threads using rapid rooters and whatnot that it is best to plant into nearly dry soil so the roots stretch right away, and does this apply to rooted cuttings without the rooting medium attached?

3. Do you guys hit them with nutes right out of the gate or let them pull from the soil for a couple weeks? (I'm now using FFOF btw.) Also, bloom or veg nutes?

The clones I've planted are not taking off like I had hoped so I think I am doing something wrong. Although there is some new growth after a week. I'm struggling with the moms too trying to figure out what they need so it is what it is. Moms, have been screaming for Mg and N which they are now getting so I think that end is coming around. I'm now working up the soil with lime to help the MG and am starting to be less gunshy about feeding them.

Anyways, if you guys could shed some light on the above that would be great. Also, just curious how long the ice cube tubes are... my tubes are about 3-4 inches.

Jed

 

[10jed]

Here are a few pics if anyone is interested. Stuff floating in the res is vermiculite. It gets hung on the t shirt scraps when filling the tubes. I'm looking for an end cap for these and will probably use those rubber feet you put on chair legs. Crap on the floor is dog hair lol.





The heat source for this comes from the lights below the middle shelf that are attached to the heatsink-shelf that is made out of a cut piece of floor tile. this directs heat to my cloner and also leaves an airspace under the upper (mom) shelf to keep that cooler. I have been playing with this cab for a month and was using glass for the lights "heat sink" up until the other day. I had it set up like a labyrinth light trap where air flowed across both levels of bulbs through glass, blah blah blah. I kept my lower chamber where the 2 27w bulbs are, at or below ambient temps but had troubles keeping the upper chamber that has only 2@ 13w below 80. Whatever, it now works and keeps me upper 70s on both levels but I had to shove a peice of the bubble insulation under the cloner because it was going over 90 once I went to the tile. With the little bit of insulation it stays mid 80s. The tile also holds heat pretty well when lights are off, which is nice. The res chamber I'm using is actually a slimline water dispenser made to go in the fridge, cut in half.

This cab is 7"x17"x24" and I should be able to stuff 5 moms, a 1/2 gallon-ish lst'd plant, 2 more clones in starter pots, and 12 clones in the cloner. The cab is light tight, and dead silent. I am going to be revising my ventilation and adding a carbon filter though. These plants don't stink in veg but the soil does, and as I obtain more moms I'm sure I'll find some stinkers. Also, with my upper 70's now, come summer I will be struggling with temps again. I'm 8-10 over ambient now and I have no intention of running my AC at 70 all summer!!!





Again, thanks for the inspiration for this cloner. If I can do it, it is easy! Oh, and have you guys tried germing/sprouting seeds in yours? That works too!!!

Jed

As an off-topic aside, the clone standing up is an Apollo 11 and looks to be the Genius pheno based on the zigzag stem. Not bad for only popping 4 seeds! Hopefully its a girl!!