Mafia Candy - RHG (Clones)

After a short recovery phase both in the grow room as well as out of it, I finally had the chance to clone out one of my new strains I'll be trying out this year! After a few setbacks, I've backed up and created myself a new system to catalogue my grows. That means I'll be able to keep daily logs and update as we go, so be sure to check back often :) The Setup (Cloning): When I take clones, I like to use a small amount of medium whether it's the premade soil pellets, starter trays, plugs, etc. This allows the new roots to quickly find their way to the bottom and start to prune themselves. This in turn helps to tell the plants to focus on growth rather than rooting more. For this run (and most), I used the following: - 6-count starter tray - Razor blade - Paper towel - 70% Isopropyl - 250ml distilled water in a short glass w/ 1tbsp H2O2 - Promix BX soil - Promix Rooting Powder I fill only 3 of the inserts with soil (now referred to as plugs) to allow adequate space and ventilation between the clones. It also makes it easier to remove the plugs once they are rooted without squishing the others. After sanitizing my razor with the iso/paper towel, I cut one of the lower branches off that's about 4-6 inches long (cutting close to the main stalk, but leaving a bit). I quickly remove any lower fan leaves leaving only the top 1-2 nodes. If I have time I'll usually snip the tips of the remaining leaves at this point. I then set this aside in the glass of water while I get more cuts. Once I have enough cuts I take them out of the water one by one, cutting about 1/2 inch off the bottom at an acute angle, then dip them into the rooting powder before sticking them into their own plug. Finally I saturate the homemade plugs with remainder of the H2O2 enriched water. I kept these 3 cuts in a humidity dome, spraying them with a fine mist 2-4 times per day for the first few days with vents closed-slightly open. Towards day 6 I aim to have the vents open completely, and stop misting by day 7. When the plugs get dry, I water from the bottom by flooding the bottom of the humidity dome with a light concentration of rooting nutrients and water (just enough for the bottom of the plugs to connect and absorb it). This is usually what gives the roots a second wind, and I usually see roots coming out through the bottom within 24-48 hours. These clones were ready in 10 days. Now, our journey begins! Day 1: M.C. 01-21 The first of 3 clones to show roots. Roots were starting to migrate upward. Potted to small starter pot (490ml). Promix BX amended with 30% perlite, 10% D.E. Lightly watered from bottom with SEEDLING water. Lightly misted with plain water. M.C. 02-21 The least rooted of the 3 first clones. Some swirling on the bottom of the tray, and a few strong and healthy root not pictured. Potted to small starter pot (490ml). Promix BX amended with 30% perlite, 10% D.E. Lightly watered from bottom with SEEDLING water. The new dry soil should promote root expansion over the next few days. Lightly misted with plain water. M.C. 03-21 Nice and healthy clone from the first set of 3. Beautiful spiral root at the bottom of the tray, and plenty of healthy off-shoots. The soil was at the perfect moisture content for potting, holding firm without excess water. Potted to small starter pot (490ml). Promix BX amended with 30% perlite, 10% D.E. Lightly watered from bottom with SEEDLING water. Lightly misted with plain water. Day 2: M.C. 01-21 The watering from the previous day has saturated the entire pot during the lights off period. I removed it from the tray to avoid further saturation. The plant will take 2-5 days to expand its' root system to the bottom of the pot I imagine, so there won't be much development until then. M.C. 02-21 The pot seems heavier from the previous watering, although it looks like it did not absorb enough as I can't feel where the water begins when sticking my finger in the soil. This plant will remain on the watering tray again today. I suspect this one will be a bit longer to root out and hit the bottom, maybe up to 10 days, but still viable! M.C. 03-21 The soil was mostly saturated with water from the previous day. Outer edges remain dry, so I did keep it on the watering tray for today as well. I can see this plant taking root in another 4-6 days I imagine. Day 3: M.C. 01-21 The soil has started to dry at the edge of the surface. I'm starting to notice a stretching from the tip as it pushes out a new set of leaves. This will be her 3rd node/set currently - the 2 that I left from the initial cut, plus this new developing tip. No wilting either yet, so the roots seem to be taking strong. Adding 250ml water to the tray just to keep promoting the roots to find the bottom of the pot. M.C. 02-21 The leaves look much darker and heavier today as a result of the second watering. Crazy how noticeable watering is when they are this small. There still some light green near the base of the 3rd node as it's trying to develop it while expanding the root system. Multitasking slows both down though haha, and still nothing past the initial cut yet. M.C. 03-21 The soil remains mostly wet, and I can see some growth on the 3rd node, and the leaves are starting to separate which is awesome to see already! I'm hoping it doesn't delay the rooting. The tips of the oldest leaves are yellowing as she drains some nutrients to support all the internal "construction". Day 4: M.C. 01-21 Despite watering before the dark period, the surface of the soil appears dry. I lifted the pot to weigh it, and it was definitely bottom heavy which is a good sign. The leaves are separating at the new node, with bright green fading to a darker green at the tips. I have a feeling that this one wont be far behind MC-03 for the roots to show now. Added another 250ml water to the tray. M.C. 02-21 The leaves have brightened up as some of the over-saturation has dissipated. The leaves of the 3rd node are quite long and thinner than those of the other clones 3rd nodes. Interested to see where that leads :) I'll leave it out of the tray to make sure it doesn't suck up any additional water for now. M.C. 03-21 She's got roots at the bottom in 4 days! I was so happy when I lifted the pot today and saw that little root poking out haha. I love when cut's go this well! The leaves from the 3rd node are continuing to separate and starting to parallel to the ground. Added 250 ml water to the tray Day 5: M.C. 01-21 The soil looks much better after more water came to the surface. There are still a few patches of light grey D.E./soil which I'm happy with to deter pests. The node space is much more noticeable today, and you can see the leaves drop naturally from their weight as they grow larger. Sure enough, when I lifted the pot, I saw the first root poking through the bottom! I'll let it stretch today and see how she is tomorrow. M.C. 02-21 The soil seems to be just starting to show signs of drying on the surface. There's definitely still plenty of water though, as the pot felt heavy when I lifted it. Not much development for this clone today, so I'm hoping the changes were subteranian haha. No water today for her. M.C. 03-21 The root at the bottom is bringing her friends for a drink haha. I'll be using this plant as my marker for when to repot if it keeps progressing like this! The leaves from the 3rd node are coming in thick and broad. The curve they do reminds me of "Pringle-mouths" haha. Day 6: M.C. 01-21 The leaves are becoming more broad, and I can see the start of the 4th node coming in! The soil has dried out a little as I had hoped, but the pot is still saturated with water, so I'll hold off on watering again today. Nice to see that she's gaining height already by the end of the week. M.C. 02-21 The leaves from the 3rd node are flattening out from their initial roundedness. I can just-to-say see the starting of the 4th node which is awesome too! The soil is finally starting to dry out at the top. I'll still leave it for another day to get some air into the soil. M.C. 03-21 The leaves have relaxed much more from their "praying hands" stature at the 3rd node, and I can see the start of the 4th coming in. Even more roots are appearing at the bottom, and I can see a few starting to turn and curl! I'd like for her to focus a bit more on the leaves though, so I'll hold on the water for her again today. Day 7: M.C. 01-21 The 4th node is definitely coming in nicely! The 3rd node still has some developing to do, as the base of the leaves still have their glossy new surface. If you look closely between today's and the previous days' photo, you'll see a very clear "corrugation" developing in the leaves of the new set, and they've almost doubled in size! M.C. 02-21 One of the leaves from the 3rd node is clearly developing faster than the other, as it's almost completely out while the other is still in an infancy stage. However the 4th node is still coming in slowly. She might fall a bit behind the other two from this point, but nothing we can't fix with some training later on down the road. M.C. 03-21 She won't listen to me now... Haha. She fell behind MC-01 a bit, but still going strong! In her defense, it MC-03 leaves seem to be coming in a bit thicker at the base which might be using more energy. The 3rd node has split completely but is still developing. The 4th node however doesn't seem to be slowed down much. Those roots at least should be doing something down there. Only time will tell!