Taking cuttings; we’re all doing it wrong

Yes, I’ve been doing it wrong too! Bro-science tells us that we should be taking cuttings from the top most portion of the plant, strip all leaves and cut the new leaf tips when we take cuttings. As it turns out, this isn’t at all the best way to go about taking cannabis cuttings. While there may be some truth to those extra leaves providing a place for mold to grow, the right solution doesn’t seem to be in cutting the leaf tips off. Here is a summary of the recent research performed on the topic of cannabis soft-tissue propagation:

  • Leaving 3 leaves had the highest success rate and leaving 2 leaves had the second highest success rate – both of which are better than stripping all leaves.
  • Leaving leaves whole (not cutting tips) increases success rate significantly.
  • Position of cutting doesn’t matter. Cuttings taken from the top of the plant and the bottom branches have very similar success rates.
  • Rooting hormones, specifically IBA (indole 3 butyric acid), greatly enhance root density and success rates.

As always, don’t take it from me. Check out this KIS Organics Cannabis and Cultivation Science podcast and listen to Dr. Kaplan talk about his research on the topic (00:40:00 through 00:50:35). I’m changing the way I take cuttings, how about you?

Happy Harvests!
— The Lit Farmer —

Removing leaf tips, as shown in this cutting, decreases success rates.

Published by Eric

Lit Naturals founder, Eric McSwain, serves as Chairman of the Board for the Missouri Cannabis Industry Association. He is also a certified caregiver and patient. Eric's wife is also a caregiver and he also mentors several other caregivers in the state of Missouri. Eric's passion is for educating patients in the use of cannabis as well as at-home cultivation.