Triage checklist — can this branch root?

• Length: 4–8 inches is ideal. Shorter (down to ~3 in) can still work if it has a node. Longer is fine but trim it before sticking.
• Nodes: needs at least 2 nodes — one to bury (where roots come from) and one above to keep leaves on.
• State of the leaves: firm and green = good. Slightly droopy = OK, will perk up in water. Crispy / brown / hollow = it’s gone, see cut fresh.
• Stem condition: a clean snap is fine. A crushed, torn, or split stem needs to be re-cut above the damage with a sharp blade. You can’t root through crushed tissue.
• Stage of the mother: vegetative = best. Early flower = workable but slower (the clone has to revert back to veg before rooting, which adds 1–3 weeks). Late flower = poor odds.

If your broken branch passes the first three points, proceed to Step 2: gather supplies. Re-cut the bottom inch cleanly at a 45° angle right before you stick it (Step 4 in the steps section).

• Identical genetics. A clone of a plant you already love is the same plant. A seed of the same strain is a sibling — similar, but never identical.
• Known sex. If the mother is female (or has shown pre-flowers), every clone is female. No 50/50 male coin-flip like with regular seeds.
• Faster. A rooted clone skips germination and seedling stage. You save 2–3 weeks vs. a seed.
• No cost. Trim during training, broken branches, lower “lollipop” cuts — clone candidates fall out of normal grow operations for free.

• Sharp blade — a fresh razor or scalpel beats scissors. Wipe with isopropyl before each cut.
• Rooting medium — see the comparison below. Cheapest workable: a small cup of plain water. Best beginner: a Rapid Rooter or a rockwool cube.
• Rooting hormone (optional but recommended) — gel (Clonex) or powder (Hormodin / Olivia’s). Roots a few days faster and improves success rate. Honey works as a mild backup.
• Humidity dome — a clear plastic cup, a clamshell from the produce aisle, a takeout container, or a proper seedling tray with a clear lid. Anything that keeps the air around the cutting at 80–100% humidity.
• Light — gentle. A bright windowsill, a 18–24“ T5 fluorescent, or a low-power LED at distance (your tent light dialed down to ~30% from far away). Cuttings cannot drink yet, so strong light cooks them.
• Spray bottle with plain water for misting the inside of the dome.

Whether your cutting came from a broken branch or from a planned trim, the procedure is the same once you have it in hand.

1. Wipe the blade with isopropyl. Cuttings die from infection more often than from drying out. Sterile is non-negotiable.
2. Strip the bottom leaves. Remove every leaf and stipule from the bottom 1–2 inches. That section is going underground (or under water). Leaves below the medium rot.
3. Trim the top leaves in half. Big fan leaves on top transpire more water than the cutting can replace. Cut each remaining leaf to half size with scissors. The cutting will look sparse — that’s correct.
4. Make the rooting cut. With the cutting laid flat on a clean surface, slice off the bottom inch at a 45° angle. The angle increases surface area for rooting hormone and water uptake. Cut through a node if you can — root primordia cluster there.
5. Apply rooting hormone (optional). Dip the bottom 1/2–1 inch in gel for 5 seconds, or in powder — tap off the excess. Don’t double-dip the bottle (cross-contamination); pour a small working amount into a separate cup.
6. Insert into the medium. Push the cutting into a pre-soaked Rapid Rooter or rockwool cube up to where the leaves start. In water: just submerge the bottom 1–2 inches. In soil: pre-make the hole with a pencil so you don’t scrape off the hormone going in.
7. Mist and dome. Lightly mist the inside of the humidity dome and seal it. The cutting drinks through its leaves until it grows roots, so the dome is doing the work.
8. Place under gentle light. 18/6 photoperiod, low PPFD (100–200 µmol or a windowsill). Keep room temperature 70–78°F. Too cold = no rooting; too hot = wilt.

This is where most beginners lose clones — not at the cut, but in the two-week wait.

• Days 1–3: Dome stays sealed. Mist the dome interior daily. Don’t check the cutting — you’ll lose humidity. The cutting will look slightly droopy. That’s normal.
• Days 4–7: Crack the dome for 2–3 hours a day to introduce gradual airflow. New leaf growth or perked-up posture means rooting has likely started. Do not tug on the cutting to check — you’ll snap any baby roots.
• Days 7–10: White roots become visible (in water) or push out of the bottom of the plug (in Rapid Rooter / rockwool). Increase dome venting to 50% open.
• Days 10–14: Once roots are 1/2”+ long, harden off — remove the dome for longer periods, then completely. Now you can transplant: the rooted plug goes into a small pot of seedling-grade mix or coco. Wait another 5–7 days before introducing nutrients.
• Watering during rooting: the plug should feel moist, not wet. Squeezing should not produce a stream of water. Overwatering rots the cut surface before roots form.

Honest expectation: 60–80% success on your first attempt is a good result. Pros running clean rooms hit 95%+; rookies hit 30–60%. Take a few cuttings if you have the option, not just one.

Sometimes the branch is past saving. Take a deliberate cutting from somewhere else on the same plant instead — same genetics, much better odds.

• Crispy, hollow, or fully wilted leaves that don’t recover after 30 minutes in water.
• Crushed/split stem longer than ~1 inch — you’d cut above all the damage and end up with too short a cutting.
• Visible mold or rot at the break.
• Already in mid–late flower (you’re not yet, but for future reference).

If you’re cutting fresh: pick a healthy lower side branch with at least 2–3 nodes that won’t be a top cola anyway. The plant won’t miss it — in fact, removing low growth (“lollipopping”) helps the canopy.

If you find a phenotype you love, a mother plant is a permanent veg-stage plant kept under 18/6 light forever, used as a clone source. Take cuttings every 2–3 weeks, root them, flower them. The mother stays vegetative and produces an endless supply of identical genetics.

You don’t need to commit to this on grow #1 — but if any of your three (Alpha / Foxtrot / Kilo) ends up being your favourite, take a clone before flip and keep it under a small T5 in a separate space. That’s how you preserve a strain you love past the harvest.

Three walkthroughs — pick whichever style clicks for you. Watch one before your first cut.

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