Mother Plants

Marijuana Horticulture

by Jorge Cervantes

Any plant can be cloned, regardless of age or growth stage. Take clones from mother plants that are at least two months old. Plants cloned before they are two months old may develop unevenly and grow slowly. Clones taken from flowering plants root quickly but require a month or longer to revert back to vegetative growth. Such rejuvenated clones occasionally flower prematurely, and buds are more prone to pest and disease attacks.

Any female can become a mother. She can be grown from seed or be a clone of a clone. I interviewed several growers who made clones of clones more than 20 times! That is, clones (C-1) were taken from original female grown from seed. These clones were grown in the vegetative stage, and clones (C-2) were taken from the first clones (C-1).

Blooming was induced in (C-1) two weeks later and (C02), grown in the vegetative stage. Then, clones (C-3) were taken from the second clones (C-2). This same growing technique is still going on with clones of clones well past (C-20) and there has been no apparent breakdown in the potency of the vigor of the clone. However, if mothers suffer stress, they produce weak clones. Mothers that are forced to flower and revert back to vegetative growth not only yield less, they are stressed and confused. Clones that grow poorly are generally the result of poor, unsanitary coning practices.

A clone is an exact replica of the mother pant. Each mother’s cell carries a DNA blueprint of itself. Radiation, chemicals, and poor cultural practices can damage this DNA. Unless damaged, the DNA remains intact.

A female plant will reproduce 100 percent females, all exactly like the mother. When grown in the exact same environment, clones from the same mother look alike. but the same clones subjected to distinct environments in different grow rooms will often look different.

A six month old plant produces more cannabinoids than a one month old plant. By cloning, a horticulturist is planning a THC-potent plant that will continue to grow in potency at a very rapid rate. A month-old rooted clone acts exactly like a four-month old plant and can be induced easily to flower with a 12-hour period.

Keep several mother plants in the vegetative stage for a consistent source of cloning stock. Start new mother from seed every year. Give mother plants 18-24 hours of light per day to maintain fast growth. For best results, give mothers abut ten percent less nitrogen, because less nitrogen promotes rooting in clones.