Cannabis strains are exact genetic copies of established cannabis plants, referred to as "mother plants". This means that if you have a plant that you like—whether for its size, smell, or effect—you can take cuttings from it to propagate again and again.
The mother plant must be strong and healthy because the genetics will be passed on to the clones. Before deciding which plants to use as broodstock, make sure you know the quality of the shoots that these plants will produce.
Here are some other factors when choosing mother plants:
Make sure the plant is female. The easiest way to determine the sex of a plant is to examine the nodes between the branches and trunk. Female plants have long hairy structures known as "stigmas". On the other hand, male plants have pollen sacs. (Hermaphrodites have both a stigma and a pouch.)
Wait for the plant to go through its flowering cycle so you can test the quality and vigor of the buds.
Do not clone plants grown from feminized seeds. This plant is less resistant to stress than other plants.
Avoid cloning plants that have mold, pests or nutrient deficiencies.
Let the plant go through its flowering cycle so you can test the quality and vigor of the buds it produces.
Some spaced cannabis growers have their own mother plants. In other words, they only use this plant for cuttings. However, this setup may not be the best option if you're short on space.
WHAT ARE THE BENEFITS OF CLONING?
You may wonder why anyone would take the time and effort to find the right mother plant and take the cuttings for cloning. Isn't it better to use good quality seeds?
The answer is that cloning cannabis plants has many benefits. First, clones are more reliable than seeds.
Because the clones are exact replicas of the parent plant, breeders know what to expect in terms of sex, appearance, growth pattern, smell, taste, and potency.
Another plus is that clones are cheaper to use than seeds. Instead of buying seeds that may or may not germinate, you can take free cuttings from the mother plant.
And since clones don't have to go through the germination or seedling stages, it saves a lot of time and effort.
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