Cloning a cannabis mother plant comes down to three things: a healthy donor, a clean cut, and a rooting space that stays warm and humid. Take a 4 to 6 inch cutting from lower growth, slice just below a node at a 45 degree angle, strip the bottom leaves, dip the stem in rooting hormone, and tuck it into a moist, airy medium. With 18 hours of light and temps around 75°F, most cuts root in 7 to 14 days. Keep the mother in veg the whole time and she will hand you clones for months.
Optimal Water Schedule for Cannabis Mother Plants
What Makes a Good Mother Plant
A mother is a female cannabis plant kept in the vegetative stage so she never flowers. You are not growing her for bud. You are growing her for stems. I look for tight internodes, strong side branching, and zero sign of mites, mildew, or virus. A clone inherits whatever the mother carries, pests included, so a dirty mother means a dirty garden for the next several rounds.
cannabis mother plant lighting
Run her under 18 to 24 hours of light to hold veg. Many growers use 18/6 so the plant gets a dark period, which some say keeps her healthier long term. A 3 to 5 gallon pot is plenty. If she gets root bound, growth slows and cuttings get woody and hard to root. Replacing a mother every 3 to 6 months with a fresh clone of herself keeps vigor up, since long chains of clones from clones can drift.
how to keep a cannabis mother plant
When to Cut
Wait until the mother has been in veg at least 4 to 6 weeks. New growth roots faster than old growth, but shoots that are still soft and lime green tend to wilt. Aim for stems that snap instead of bending, usually the middle and lower branches. Take no more than a quarter to a third of the foliage in one session. Cutting her bald sets you back weeks and stresses the plant. Morning, shortly after lights on, is the best window because the cuts are full of water.
What You Need
- Sharp scissors or a scalpel, cleaned with alcohol between plants
- Rooting hormone, gel or powder
- Starter cubes, rockwool, or a small pot of light soilless mix
- A humidity dome or clear tray cover
- Clone tray with drainage
- pH meter or drops
- Optional: heat mat set to about 75°F
Step by Step
- Water the mother a few hours before you cut so stems are hydrated.
- Pick a shoot with 3 or 4 nodes and cut it 4 to 6 inches long.
- Make the final cut just below a node at an angle. Skip this and the stem sits flat on the medium and takes in less water.
- Trim the lower leaves and any leaf tips, leaving 2 or 3 nodes of foliage.
- Dip the stem an inch into rooting hormone. Tap off the excess if you use powder.
- Poke a hole in the medium and slide the stem in, firming the medium around it.
- Mist the dome, cover the tray, and set it under low intensity light.
The Rooting Environment
Clones have no roots, so they drink through their leaves. That means high humidity, roughly 70 to 80 percent, and a medium that stays damp but never soggy. Cuttings need light, but strong light makes them try to grow leaves instead of roots. A shop light a couple of feet above the tray works fine. Crack the dome open for a few minutes a day after day three to swap air. Once you see roots at the edge of the cube, lift the dome for good and start feeding a mild veg nutrient mix.
Common Problems
- Total wilt in a day: the cut dried out or the light is too intense. Dome on, light lower.
- Yellow leaves from the bottom up: normal in small amounts as the cut eats itself for energy. Widespread yellow means she is starving, so a light feed helps.
- Mushy stem at the medium line: too wet and too cool. Dump the water, raise the temp, and start over.
- No roots after 3 weeks: stems were too woody or the temps sat in the 60s. Heat mat, fresh cuts.
Check your state law before you set up a mother room. Home grow rules on plant counts and clone limits vary, and a mother counts against your total.