6 Most Common Mistakes When Taking Cuttings and How to Avoid Them
Cuttings are a great way to propagate your favourite plants quickly and efficiently. Although it is a common cultivation method, many growers make mistakes that reduce the success rate of rooting clones. Do you want healthy and strong plants? Take a look at the six most common mistakes when taking cuttings and find out how to avoid them.
Successful propagation by cuttings requires not only the right technique, but also suitable conditions and careful handling. An unsuitable choice of mother plant, poor hygiene habits, poor acclimatisation or unsuitable humidity or lighting will reliably lead to failure. In this article, we will show you the most common mistakes made by growers and advise you on how to increase the chance of successful rooting of your clones.
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1. Unsuitable choice of mother plant
It is important that mother plants intended for taking clones are in perfect health. Cuttings from plants that are affected by pests, mould or nutrient deficiencies will have a low chance of rooting. There is also a high risk of transferring infection and pests from the mother plant to the offspring.
How can you avoid the mistake? For cloning purposes, always choose healthy mother plants with no signs of pest infestation, disease or mould. Plants in the peak stage of vegetative growth are ideal.
2. Poor cutting technique
When taking cuttings, make sure you follow the correct procedure and use sharp tools. An improperly made cut reduces the cutting’s ability to form roots. If the cut is made with a blunt tool, the stem may be crushed, which prevents it from absorbing water. When cloning, it is important to work quickly so that air bubbles do not begin to form at the ends of the stems.
How can you avoid the mistake? When taking cuttings from plants, first cut branches 10-15 cm long and immediately place them in water. Then trim the ends of the stems to the same length at a 45° angle. Immediately dip the clones prepared in this way into rooting gel and insert them into the growing medium.
3. Insufficient hygiene
Mould, pests or viruses are easily transferred from one plant to another during propagation and can destroy your entire future crop. Therefore, follow basic hygiene rules and always work with clean and sterile tools. Do not smoke while taking cuttings and wear disposable gloves.
How can you avoid the mistake? Work in a clean environment, use gloves and disposable scalpels, and sterilise them again before each cut on a new plant. Suitable sterilising agents are ethyl alcohol or Purolyt.
4. Unsuitable humidity and temperature
Fresh clones need humid air so that they do not wilt, but excessively high humidity slows rooting and increases the risk of mould spreading. A sufficiently high temperature is also important.
How can you avoid the mistake? Monitor temperature and humidity using a thermometer with a hygrometer. Root cuttings in a plastic greenhouse (propagator), where you should maintain humidity between 75-85% and a temperature in the range of 24-27 °C.
5. Incorrect light conditions
Cuttings need light for proper development, but lighting that is too intense or an unsuitable light spectrum can slow rooting and stress the plants. Direct and overly strong light increases water evaporation from the leaves, which then wilt. Conversely, if there is too little light, the stems of the young plants will stretch upwards.
How can you avoid the mistake? For rooting cuttings, use medium-intensity light (100–200 µmol/m²/s) with a blue-white spectrum. Special LED panels or low-energy fluorescent lamps are ideal. Once the first roots appear, you can increase the light intensity so that the clones acclimatise more quickly to stronger lighting.
6. Mistakes during acclimatisation
One common mistake is transplanting cuttings too early and not acclimatising them sufficiently to the new environment. If you plant cuttings with an underdeveloped root system into the growing medium, they will probably wilt. Likewise, a sudden change in conditions, especially a drop in air humidity, can stress the plants.
How can you avoid the mistake? Before transplanting the cuttings, wait until the roots have grown through the plug or cylinder. This should take one to two weeks. During rooting, gradually open the ventilation openings in the propagator so that the plants get used to lower air humidity.
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