Organic Cloning? --Just Realized I've Been Using Poison!

[bonkia]

I root with azos now get roots in a week! It's really cheap too, I've been useing the same $30 bag for over a year and I clone alot...

 

[Big Sky]

5ml of gh rapid start and 3ml of superthrive , i use a 24 site turbo kloner, 5 day roots with some strains-
something to take into consideration here when cloning- not all strains are created equal!!! some strains wont clone for shit as others will try to jump into a pot and plant themselves regardless of the method, medium, or rooting agents used-

 

[OctoberDee]

Interesting read, I too am using Indole-3-butyric acid 0.1% in form of schultz TakeRoot. After reading this thread I'm gonna try using nothing and see what happens. I just used the TakeRoot this morning on a few clones. I'll take more later and just soak in water with nothing and see how long they take. Usually after 10 days with TakeRoot I'd have shoots. I doubt it's seriously toxic in small amounts and I'm sure the stuff breaks down after time but it sounds like it's not safe to have around.

 

[burn4me]

1. Horticultural Uses – Willow bark contains natural plant growth hormones which can be used for rooting new cuttings. This is the area that we’ll be looking at in this article!
   One of the most amazing properties of willows is their growth! Coppicing a willow (that is cutting it back to ground level) will result in numerous rods growing from the base that will grow at an amazing rate of 1.2-3.0m in a single season. A broken willow branch left in water will grow roots. Willows successfully root from very thick pieces of stem, this method is known as taking “trunk cuttings”, and a stem as thick as a human thigh will take root of put into damp ground. Willow cuttings can even grow if put in upside-down (but please do the right thing and put them in the right way up)! This property of willows is due to the naturally occurring plant rooting hormones that they contain. We can take advantage of this naturally occurring hormone, and make extracts that we can use to induce rooting on cuttings of other plants.
   

“Willow Water” – How it Works
“Willow Water” is a homebrew plant rooting hormone that is easily made and can be used to increase the strike rate (growth of roots) of cuttings that you’re trying to propagate.

The way that it works can be attributed to two substances that can be found within the Salix (Willow) species, namely, indolebutyric acid (IBA) and Salicylic acid (SA).

Indolebutyric acid (IBA) is a plant hormone that stimulates root growth. It is present in high concentrations in the growing tips of willow branches. By using the actively growing parts of a willow branch, cutting them, and soaking them in water, you can get significant quantities of IBA to leach out into the water.

Salicylic acid (SA) (which is a chemical similar to the headache medicineAspirin) is a plant hormone which is involved in signalling a plant’s defences, it is involved in the process of “systemic acquired resistance” (SAR) – where an attack on one part of the plant induces a resistance response to pathogens (triggers the plant’s internal defences) in other parts of the plant. It can also trigger a defence response in nearby plants by converting the salicylic acid into a volatile chemical form.

When you make willow water, both salicylic acid and IBA leach into the water, and both have a beneficial effect when used for the propagation of cuttings. One of the biggest threats to newly propagated cuttings is infection by bacteria and fungi. Salicylic acid helps plants to fight off infection, and can thus give cuttings a better chance of survival. Plants, when attacked by infectious agents, often do not produce salicylic acid quickly enough to defend themselves, so providing the acid in water can be particularly beneficial.




Willow water can be made from cuttings of any tree or shrub of the willow family, a group of plants with the scientific name of Salix. The more cuttings that are used and the longer they are soaked in water, the stronger will be the resulting willow water. Recommendations for the exact method of soaking vary. Cold water can be used, and soaking times of four or more weeks are often quoted. Other gardeners use boiling water to steep the willow twigs and soak the mixture for around 24 hours.





How to Make “Willow Water”
Here is the procedure for making willow water:

1. Collect young first-year twigs and stems of any of willow (Salix spp.) species, these have green or yellow bark. Don’t use the older growth that has brown or gray bark.
2. Remove all the leaves, these are not used. Don’t waste good green material though, compost the leaves or throw them in the garden as mulch.
3. Take the twigs and cut them up into short pieces around 1" (2.5cm) long.
4. The next step is to add the water. there are several techniques to extract the natural plant rooting hormones:
   a) Place the chopped willow twigs in a container and cover with boiling water, just like making tea, and allow the “tea” to stand overnight.
   
   b) Place the chopped willow twigs in a container and cover with tap water (unheated), and let it soak for several days.
   
   
5. When finished, separate the liquid from the twigs by carefully pouring out the liquid, or pouring it through a strainer or sieve. The liquid is now ready to use for rooting cuttings. You can keep the liquid for up to two months if you put it in a jar with a tight fitting lid and keep the liquid in the refrigerator. Remember to label the jar so you remember what it is, and write down the date you brewed it up, and to aid the memory, write down the date that it should be used by, which is two months from the date it was made!
6. To use, just pour some willow water into a small jar, and place the cuttings in there like flowers in a vase, and leave them there to soak overnight for several hours so that they take up the plant rooting hormone. Then prepare them as you would when propagating any other cuttings.
   The second way to use willow water is to use it to water the propagating medium in which you have placed cuttings. Watering your cuttings twice with willow water should be enough to help them root.
   

In Summary
As you can see, this is a garden potion that is really easy to brew up, and it keeps in line with the Permaculture principles of avoiding waste and caring for the Earth – no purchased synthetic chemicals, containers, it’s all natural, and best of all, free! So, next time you’re out on a hot summer’s day enjoying the shade and natural cooling provided by a majestic willow, grab a few twigs and take them home to help you in propagating plants for your garden!

 

[angry monkey]

Water. If I have an aloe leaf handy I will dip it in fresh aloe goo. I started getting faster results when I stopped adding rooting compounds.

 

[cachimbo]

Is there a preferred organic cloning compound?

I've been using RooTing Hormone from Green Light for years. It works. I cut, get wet, dip in power and then put directly in dirt. I know radical stuff, cloning in organic dirt, lol :) But it works.

So I was wondering "whats in this stuff..." The label blew my mind and had to share with you guys!

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Here are the ingredients from the first graphic. When it didn't list 99.9% of the product directly, I had a funny feeling about this RooTing.

Active Ingredient
Indole-3-butyric acid 0.1%
Inert Ingredient 99.9%​

The side effects that are suggested under the FIRST AID page are pretty scary. Not that I have ever had any problems, I am positive I've inhaled some and get it all over my fingers all the time. Regardless this is an eye opener for my personal safety. Phrases like "take off contaminated clothing" are not what I expected to read on the label.

Do you see the last graphic I posted says it's in violation of federal law to sell plants made with this. It goes on to say it's purpose is for ornamental uses only and specifically says not food.

Alright Big Dogs, how should I be cloning to cut out the last chemicals in my garden?

IBA is a fantastic cloning agent I use 0.8% for 30 yrs. Very effective