Maintaining a mother.

[stonedrone]

I am wondering how to care for a mother plant for cloning. Can I just keep it in veg. stage and trim the top when it gets too tall? I've been looking around and haven't found anything about this.

 

[That crazy vancouver guy]

yes

 

[canibanol cannonball]

i suggest pinching it as well.

 

[THCPezDispenser]

Guys how long can you get out of a mother? Will it eventually degrade, need repotting (or rather soil replacing as a larger and larger pot will quickly become impractical)? I guess hydro would have an advantage there... Is there a time when it should be tossed and replaced with a clone, or can it go on idenfinitely?

 

[born2killspam]

Anywhere from 20 days, to 20 years.. (Actually though, I've never heard of an actual 20yo plant..)

 

[lyfr]

i've only had mine for six months, in about a 7gal pot, but she shows no signs of slowin down I tie her down, have pinched her to the point i can no longer get "the squish" with my fingers...and the clones keep poppin out. i would suggest a big pot if you go soil so you dont have to worry about it for a long time.IMO

 

[TURKEYNECK]

..as long as it isnt an auto-flowering strain.

 

[Puffin Afatty]

:farm: bend Her over, tie her down, and have your way with Her :rofl:

 

[That crazy vancouver guy]

to answer yer question about how long u can keep a mother (of the same generation) going... theroretically... indeffinitely. Someone I'm getting clones off of, is rooting them from cuttings taken off a plant he started 14 years ago... as long as you supply it with what it needs for an indeffinite veg, you can keep the same plant for as long as you want... although, it is recommended that the rootball be maintained every once in awhile... I would simply remove the plant from the planter, wash out the pot to remove salt buildup, trim up/remove excess from rootball, and replant into fresh medium into the same pot and give it a shot of SuperThrive... hell... make the pot a nice ceramic, 3-5 gallon size, with a nice design on it and make it a house plant like I do during the summer :hubba:

 

[bombbudpuffa]

Yep. Trimming those roots every now and then is the key to keeping them around for a while imo. When you trim the roots all growth stops until the roots grow bigger again. Just be careful and don't trim to much or harm the tap root. I have some trimming to do today.

 

[stonedrone]

You got it. You can 'top' the plant for a clone. LST helps as well. Keep it short n bushy!!! Good luck and good growin!!!

First of all I would like to thank everyone for giving me simple answers. Just one more question, what is LST? I'm niether familiar with the vernacular nor the acronyms around here. Rookie stuff.

 

[HMAN]

http://www.marijuanapassion.com/forum/showthread.php?t=1519

 

[papabeach1]

First of all I would like to thank everyone for giving me simple answers. Just one more question, what is LST? I'm niether familiar with the vernacular nor the acronyms around here. Rookie stuff.

someone locally told me LST means "long stem tied down"

but I learn from this site LST is what? "less stress training"

both sound right to me.. but if any nodes did not grow from the bottom of stems after few weeks of LST. gratify it will be good idea..
keep moms smaller and still get more branches.. and go on..

someone did showed me what they did with the crops.. I didn't understood until this year.. pretty intz..

 

[bombbudpuffa]

LST means low stress training.

 

[Ettesun]

I am wondering how to care for a mother plant for cloning. Can I just keep it in veg. stage and trim the top when it gets too tall? I've been looking around and haven't found anything about this.

:watchplant:

Just popping in and thought I'd add my 2 cents since my mothers are so special to me. Without the moms there is nothing... they are most important part of the whole process.
Without the right mothers, you might as well buy clones, which usually are a total disappointment. You either get bugs or lose lots of dollars and time on inadequate strains.
Best to start with seeds and grow your own moms.
My mothers last through the year, then are put out in the summer to end their cycle in the fall. The moms inside are treated better than any other girls. They are spoiled rotten.
They get Thrive with each watering (1/2 cap per gal.) ... and only Thrive + H2O before cloning.
They get 16-0-0 (1/2 teas. per gal.) whenever the leaves pale a bit. They get a mild 3-3-3 with each watering. (1/2 teas. per gal.) and sprayed with Spray n' Grow/Coco Wet about once every couple weeks, except right before cloning, when they only get water spray. I keep them sprayed when needed with Take Down for the mites and Mold Cure when needed. They get misted almost every day. Any old or dying leave is cut with clean clippers. No stagnant water in saucers. Use the best organic soil you can afford. Nothing takes the place of good soil.
I only trim them when their tops hit the lights or when cloning. Lights are mixed warm and cool equally. They are usually under 24 hour light all winter to cut down on mildew and mushroom problems. 18-20 hours in summer/warm weather. Some strains will flower under 18 hrs... and auto-moms will bloom no matter what...
Their oscillating fans always move each plant gently and bring in fresh air ...just like outside in a breeze... and the radio alternates classic rock with country.
I told you they are spoiled! But most important... love and MUSIC! :rofl:
Just another old school hippie! :guitar: Have fun!
eace:

 

[bud.uncle]

I used to like to keep a couple of clones as moms.
Then when more clones were required for the flower room...........
I would often take excess clones and as they rooted, I would dispose of the previous moms and hold a few clones back as moms............
I have done this for over 18 months and would only let my moms slip when I had new genetics ready to take over the process again.
Space is the key here.
Having said that Bonsai is an option that I am keen to try for keeping various moms in a permanent state of veg.