Cloning Gel...What Is The Best?

starting to look for mothers. starting to get my perpetual garden going and am looking for a good cloning gel. i have heard about Clone-ex, and a few other brands. are they all the same, basically? will i save money by buying the bulk tub? whats the shelf life on something like that? if i get the biggest tub (to save money actually) how long will it last ON MY shelf? im not planning on growing massive quantities, but my main goal is to harvest something every 15-30 days. so i will be using it quite frequently. money is no object. i want only the best for this. i dont think my body is a temple, more like an apartment, but still. i got live with this mess of a shell for a few more years, at least...lol!!

thanks again for the advise. soon i will have a master plan and have it all down. until then i appreciate all the assistance that comes my way.

I've used Clonex gel and solution for years. The 100ml bottle last me a couple of years easily.

Keep in the fridge when your aren't using it and never dip cuts into the main bottle. Put some in another bottle for cuts, so you don't contaminate all of it.

Wet

The cheapest one.

Clonex is my preferred brand.
It does have a shelf life however, around 12 months. I dont know about the US but here in the UK, the bottles have a use by date stamp.
I use a small syringe to take a few ml out of the bottle, place it in a small container to use. Once I have finished with it, I discard it. It is cheap enough to throw away since cross contamination could prove a lot more expensive than a few ££ on a new bottle. As Wetdog said, do not dip your cuts into the bottle for the same reason.
Peace W

Olivia's works great

I prefer clonex over olivia's.

There are different types of cloning solutions that contain different active ingredients,the most effective brand cloning agent is ANY BRAND THAT CONTAINS INDOLE-3 BUTYRIC ACID as the active ingrediet.

Clonex is a flat out act of theivery with a huge profit margin,this is why all grow shops push the product as being the best,clonex contains 1% indole-3butyric acid & 99% inert/inactive ingredients & is sold from $20 up to $40,you can get the same volume of many other cloning agents that use the exact same ingredients as clonex for $3 to $5 a bottle.

Shultz root tone,$5 at any home depot,lowes,menards,meijers,k-mart,ace hardware,garden center ect & the powder form is the exact thing as clonex gel,powders work just as well as a gel but if you must have a gel you can mix any powder containing indole-3 butyric acid with non petroleum based k-y jelly & get the same results as clonex gel or straight powder.

Bontone rooting powder is another product i know of that contains the same ingredients as clonex,just read the ingredients on the bottle & save atleast a 20 spot,clonex is nothing special & has no special properties or ingredients.

wow!! panhead your amazing!! i just read a few pages of some of your threads. i can't wait to try out the 4-day dry method. seems really interesting. id love to run a test on my family and friends. im going to keep an eye out on your posts. thanks for posting!!

rootech and some great white and youre stylin dude... the great white is just for an extra push tho the rootech will work great on its own.

you know all cloning gels are mostly exactly the same thing. They all work. I have used every one that i could get my hands on. The one that i have chosen to buy continually is Dutch Master Replicator. None of my cuts fail, and on most strains, i'm ready to transplant after 9 days max.

hormex isn't a bad choice either if you can find it.

Main things you want to look at is what the Indole Buytric acid % is at..... Its the active ingredient that helps produce roots. I always find gels are around 0.25-.5%...... Where powders can be higher.... I usually use Root Burst powder and its 0.7% and i get amazing results.... like 99% success rate, obviously their are other factors involved, lighting, genetics, health of the mother etc. And the powders tend to last longer than gels. Gel's can go bad if its not stored properly. I've had my Root burst powder package for like a year and half now.

I use Dutch Master Replicator and I get roots like this

Anyone buy straight indole butyric acid and use that?

I make a batch every Spring. When willow trees are flowering in April/May (here in Michigan) I strip a bunch of new leaves and buds from a couple branches. At home I chop up the willow parts so everything fits in a 2-quart cooking pan. Fill with water until an inch or 2 from the top and put to simmer. I'll simmer until I crash when I turn the gas off but leave the contents in place. Next day I'll simmer all day and strain off the liquid that evening. When I go to take clones I use my willow water in the cup that holds the new clones. The color of my water is the same reddish color you see in cloning gels.

Good luck, BigSteve.

Clonex is probably the best stuff around. Very easy to use and ive always had a high success rate with it.

Especially if you are going to be doing a lot of cloning, I'd say keep it simple.

I have a huge success rate with nothing more than a grow plug and water. Give the plant what it wants and it does the work for you.