Sexing, and questions on mother plants

[Guest]

Alright ... I can see this question getting kinda huge and involved so I'll keep it as brief as possible.

 

I'm a little dubious as to which method to sex plants with. From my research I know that there are the main 3 ways... observing preflowers, flowering clones, or flowering then revegging.

 

Has anyone observed the preflower technique to work successfully? It sounds like quite easy but how reliable is it?

 

Flowering clones seems to be the best method, but how long would this take? From what I've been reading, obviously you must wait until your plants are old enough to take cuttings from, then one must wait until the cuttings are rooted and then more waiting until the flowers appear. Sounds like a good 2 weeks, at least. By then, the potential mother plants could be a little too large to handle, or am I getting this wrong? What's a good size for a mother?

 

Flowering the plants sounds like a great way to determine which plants are female, but then I have heard that forcing the plants back into a state of vegetation can cause a fair bit of stress. Has anyone done this? Any lasting effects? I'm guessing that clones taken from a revegged female would almost be as hard to root as clones taken from a plant in flower.

 

Also, regarding mother plants ... will a clone taken from a suitable female plant make a good mother or is this a no-no? I've heard somewhere that crops spawned from a clone won't do as well as the original mother, is that true or a load of rubbish? I've also no idea on how to choose a good mother plant so if someone can give me a few pointers here that would be great

 

Hrmm lots of questions there... that'll do for now

[Tom]

My preferred method is to use clones, you have the basic idea, but it can be done another way too, you can also start flowering the plants after taking the clones and then discard the clones from the plants that show male in the grow room, you would also know which plant was the best producer as well, if you tip your plants the tips make excellent clones. Clones can be taken during the early stages of flowering too, they take longer to strike and can have a higher mortality rate though.

 

I've heard somewhere that crops spawned from a clone won't do as well as the original mother, is that true or a load of rubbish?

Total crap mate, the clone is the same plant as the mother with the same genetics so it has the same potential as the mother plant.

 

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[Buster]

Has anyone observed the preflower technique to work successfully? It sounds like quite easy but how reliable is it?

 

This technique does work. Pre flowers are shown on the 4th - 6th node and are a sign that the plant is mature and ready to flower.

 

The down side to this method of sexing is that the plants have to be grown to a reasonable size before they will start to show pre flowers while still in veg.

 

 

Buster.

[Guest]

Sweet thanks for the advice tom.

 

Just a few q's... so you think the flowering clones method is the best way? I gotta admit it sounds like it, what do you think of sexing by preflowers though?

 

EDIT: Ah thanks buster 4th - 6th node is 12-18" isn't it? I'm just guessing there. In any case that's a good size for a mother, I reckon.

Edited May 20, 2003 by Bubba

[Tom]

Sweet thanks for the advice tom.

 

Just a few q's... so you think the flowering clones method is the best way? I gotta admit it sounds like it, what do you think of sexing by preflowers though?

 

EDIT: Ah thanks buster 4th - 6th node is 12-18" isn't it? I'm just guessing there. In any case that's a good size for a mother, I reckon.

That's just my preferred method, Buster is right too of course, females can show the pre-flowers quite plainly, it's just that I like to confirm it beyond doubt (mine).

 

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[Mr Putard]

G'day, I read somewhere on the net couple of weeks ago that reverting to veg from flowering damages the genetics of the plant... anyone heard this also?

[Buster]

Just so there's no confusion Bubba, I would say that the method Tom has is (IMO) probably the best method and one that I would use.

 

The info I gave you was just from my own experience and reading.

 

All good info given to you here

 

 

Buster.

[happyherb]

when growing from seed i turn each plant into a mother/dad and take clones then put the clones into 12/12 to find there true sex while mum and dad are still in veg growing waiting then to be ripped if you dont want males for breeding or redy for cloning to start the grow.i then also throw out the clone that gave me the plants sex.this is the best method i have found but there are small variations that you could change to suit your needs or experince.happy herb.

[Guest]

Hey guys, ta for the help, looks like the flowering clone method will be my choice

 

Hrmmm, anyone know what a good size for a mother plant is? And on what basis to pick a mother?

 

I'd need a mother that could spawn LOTS of clones... for my own ambitious setup, and I plan to help some friends out as well spreadin' the love!

[Tom]

Hrmmm, anyone know what a good size for a mother plant is? And on what basis to pick a mother?

 

She/they only need(s) to be big enough to supply the amount of clones you need at cloning time, for a mother you always pick the best clone from the best plant, if you tip the tops of your plants then use the tip for the mother clone.

 

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