Did you know that you’ll be ready on how to use a cloning machine in only four steps? The term cloning of plants might sound limited to scientists, but UK gardeners can learn this skill and perform it with proper preparation and research. After all, cloning plants is a quick and sure way to make reliable copies of plants at a lower cost.
If you want to preserve your plants’ qualities, cloning is an efficient technique to do so. You save time compared to waiting for plant seeds to germinate, and you won’t be limited to the plants you can do. The parent plant’s health will still be safe, but you can always grow and start your plants in the greenhouse to be confident that they’re ready for cloning.
How To Use A Cloning Machine: Comprehensive Guide
Preparing the machine
There are many cloning machines in the market, but you can generally prepare one by filling it up with water. How much water should you add? Check the water level for the machine, and remember to use water at 65 to 68°F.
Attach the misters and pump and test the machine if the spray can cover the lid’s entire surface area. Since you’re starting from cuttings, you can encourage their growth by adding a nutrient mix. Like checking the water temperature, ensure that this solution is at 68°F and check the reservoir if the pump overheats it.
Setting the environment
After filling the machine with water and nutrient mix, you can start setting it up. Most experts recommend using a humidity dome for the cloning environment. You can skip the dome in the polytunnel since it’s easy to maintain the humidity indoors.
Check if the percentage is below 60, as this indicates that you need to increase humidity. Additionally, the best temperature for the cloning is between 700 to 75°F to guarantee success. Another advantage of cloning in the polytunnel is that it’s easy to maintain this range and add grow lights to support the cuttings further.
Using the machine
Once the machine and environment are ready, you can start cloning. Taking the cuttings from your parent plants is straightforward, considering it’s the most common way to clone and propagate. However, you want to check guides from universities to know how to make different kinds of cuttings to familiarise yourself with the concept.
They include herbaceous and softwood, semi-hardwood, hardwood, deciduous, root, and leaf cuttings. For the cloning machine, you’ll be using stem cuttings. Insert the stem in the cloning machine’s neoprene disc so that 2 inches of it is below the bottom of the disc.
This size is crucial for the spray to target it later on.
After using the cloning machine, it’s typical to feel nervous, especially if your plants look leggy. However, they should recover after a few hours. You can also lightly mist the plants to support them from becoming rootless.
Typically, the cuttings can take two days to develop roots. Bright white roots should indicate healthy growth, while brown or grey roots means the water temperature needs lowering. Once the rooting starts, it’s also best to change the reservoir overall.
In one week, the cuttings should be thriving, but don’t be tempted to transplant them yet. Wait for around ten days so that they develop their secondary roots. Secondary roots indicate that you’re ready to transplant, which would be convenient if you use polytunnel; the outdoor environment is not optimal.
What Is A Cloning Machine?
You might be thinking, why would there be a need for a cloning machine if propagating plants from cuttings is relatively easy anyway. The significant difference and advantage are that it’s possible to root all of the cuttings at a 100% success rate. You can do the traditional method or use an aeroponic or hydroponic machine, but a cloning machine takes half the processing time without much monitoring.
A cloning machine is a plastic square with a pump, nutrient mixture, and mist or aeroponic spray nozzles. There are disks at the top that can be hard or soft, and they would receive the cuttings. The pump is then responsible for forcing the nutrient solution through the nozzles to mist the cuttings.
You can always propagate plants by cuttings or divisions to clone them. However, it’s a valuable skill to learn how to use a cloning machine if you want a 100% success rate on all your cuttings. Additionally, cloning machines take a shorter time with minimal intervention than using an aeroponic or hydroponic system.
To use one, prepare the machine by filling it with water and nutrient solution. Afterwards, check the cloning environment and its temperature, humidity, and lighting system. These conditions make it easier to use polytunnel since maintaining them is more comfortable in the UK indoors. You can then insert the cuttings in the discs and wait until they root.
It can take some hours for the cuttings to recover and a week to start growing roots. However, never transplant the cutting until they have developed their secondary roots. For transplanting, you can also do it in the polytunnel until the outdoor environment is optimal.