Cannabis clones have become critical to the commercial cannabis market, making it possible for cultivators to produce hearty crops of premium bud in less time, for less money, and with less effort than ever before. Clones are more reliable, sturdier, and less expensive overall than growing from seed, which makes them an attractive option for new and experienced growers alike.
Clones are the obvious choice, but where should you get your clones? Is it better to create your own from reliable mother plants, or buy from a 3rd-party producer?
In this guide, we’ll be covering all the ins and outs of buying vs. creating your own cannabis clones, and why you should be buying yours from the top clone providers in Colorado.
What Are Clones?
To create a clone, cuttings are taken from mature mother plants and nurtured to develop root systems. Each cutting is typically just 6 inches long, so a single mother plant can easily produce more than 50 clones at a time. The clones are perfect genetic copies of the mother plant, so their viability is 100% guaranteed.
Benefits of Clones vs. Seeds
If you’re still starting all of your grows from seed, and aren’t sure why you should be using clones in the first place, here are some of the biggest differences:
- Guaranteed Genetics: Cannabis plants come in ‘female’ and ‘male’ varieties. The female plants are the more desirable of the two since they produce the flowers known to us colloquially as marijuana. Male plants can destroy a crop of female plants, and must therefore be weeded out before they can become mature. Although the male plants must be disposed of, it still takes time, money, and energy to grow them, resources that are ultimately lost.Clones are genetic copies of their mothers, meaning they are automatically guaranteed to be female! Clones are also chosen from the best, most potent, most desirable plants, so their genetics are just about as guaranteed as you can get.
- Increased Success: Because clones are cuttings from mature plants, they don’t need to go through the tender and vulnerable seedling stages. This makes clones far sturdier and resistant to disease, temperature changes, pests, etc, reducing the risk of crop loss. Combine this with the guarantee of 100% female plants, and your rates of success skyrocket.
Why You Should Buy Clones
Once you’ve decided to grow from clones, it’s important to find a reliable source to keep your operation replenished.
Some cultivators choose to produce their own clones, taking cuttings from mother plants cultivated in their facilities. While this is an option, it isn’t the most efficient or cost-effective option as compared to buying clones from a 3rd-party vendor. Here is an overview of the many reasons why buying clones from quality clone producers is a better option than creating them in-house.
Save Space & Simplify Environmental Requirements
Cannabis is particular, and in order to grow your own clones, you’ll need to accommodate their particular environmental needs. Mother plants require a huge amount of space and resources in order to continue producing clones, and cannot be kept in the same conditions as their ‘children.’ To produce your own clones, you would need separate facilities for mother plants, for clones, and for flowering, each with their own unique environmental controls and specifications.
By purchasing ready-to-flower clones, you eliminate the need for multiple growing environments and can focus on creating the perfect flowering rooms.
Save On Equipment Costs
Because mother plants, new clones, and ready-to-flower clones require different environmental conditions, they also require different types of equipment. Initial startup costs for the various lighting, HVAC, fertigation, and irrigation systems required to grow mother plants, nurture clones, and flower clones can be incredibly expensive.
By comparison, startup costs for grow facilities that purchase their clones are inexpensive since they’ll only need to cover one variety of lighting, HVAC, and so on. Flower rooms, in particular, are fairly low-maintenance and do not need nearly as many specialized systems as clone and mother rooms.
Reduce Labor Needs
While flowering rooms require a certain amount of care, they are nowhere near as high-maintenance as mother or clone rooms. Clone rooms, in particular, require a watchful eye, and growers should be prepared with comprehensive IPM strategies to prevent crop losses. With fewer rooms to monitor and only one growth stage to keep track of, cultivators that buy their clones from 3rd party vendors typically have lower labor needs, and therefore, reduced labor costs.
Harvest Faster
Although creating clones is a faster process than growing from seed, it isn’t an instant process. Cultivators spend years perfecting their technique for creating the perfect clones, and it can take days or weeks for clones to go from simple cuttings to healthy, viable plants. By buying your clones, you’ll reduce the time you spend waiting for your harvest, and be able to increase the number of harvests you have in a single year.
Better Strain Variety
Cannabis companies that specialize in cultivating clones often have exclusive or first access to some of the best and most sought-after genetics on the market. When you buy clones, you too get access to these exciting varieties and can choose from dozens of strains. Buying clones is the best way to explore new genetics, and experiment with new strains for your commercial grow operation without wasting time or resources.
Where To Buy Clones
If you operate a cannabis business or are an aspiring cannabis entrepreneur, there are few better places to settle than Colorado. Home to some of the best and most well-respected cannabis companies in the world, Colorado also boasts some of the best and largest varieties of clones available for commercial sale.
Klone Colorado is a wholesale cannabis company at the forefront of genetic development, creating some of the most potent and sought-after strains today. Now producing more than 70 unique strains, Klone’s impressive catalog can help you to grow your commercial cultivation business by expanding your repertoire and boosting your profitability.
At any given time, Klone houses at least 5,000 rooted clones, ready to be brought to your cultivation facility and put into flowering conditions. Whether you run an established cultivation business or are just dipping your toes into the world of commercial cannabis, Klone’s incredible staff can help you choose the perfect strains.
Summing It Up
Cannabis cultivators that buy clones from 3rd-party providers get the best of both worlds with 100% guaranteed genetics without the effort required to nurture cuttings! By buying clones, you skip right to the most exciting part of growing cannabis: the flowering stage. Clones help to save time, resources, and funds and produce impressive yields with guaranteed genetic qualities like cannabinoid potency, size, and fragrance. Because you’ll spend less time and energy growing each individual plant, clones also give you the chance to try a wide variety of strains.
To start exploring clones for commercial marijuana cultivation, visit Klone Colorado online! Be sure to check out our online store and visit our blog for more information about cannabis clones.
