Is It Still Safe To Buy Clones In South Africa?

Buying clones has always carried some risk, but with today’s prevalence of viroids and how common sharing clones has become – the risk is greater than it has historically been. Although these risks exist, it’s still reasonable to acquire clones from trusted retailers who get their stock tested.

If you’re on the fence about growing from seed or clone, there’s some really important considerations that need to be taken into account. On one hand, every clone comes from a seed and popping seeds is the only way to find your own unique phenotypes, but on the other hand clones are quicker to run through, ultimately giving you more flower.

But before you decide to buy clones or get cuts from a friend, there’s some very real risks that come with the process, some more concerning than others. When buying clones consider that common problems include:

• Contagious pathogens can infect other plants (HLVD for instance).
• Pests which can easily spread if not controlled in time.
• The plant not expressing the same in your environment.
• Clones not being what the seller claims.
• Selections that don’t match your preferences.

In this article I’ll dive more into each of these concerns, weighing out the pros and cons and at the end I’ll provide a few simple tips to avoid getting burned, so you can end up with healthy plants that don’t leave you with a bunch of regrets.

The Risk of Pathogens & Prevalence of HLVD

HLVD (Hop Latent Viroid) has become a global threat in the last decade as clones sharing and sales have exploded. In short, HLVD is a pathogen that is carried by cannabis plants and while often invisible to the naked eye – can completely decimate your mother library and leave you with two tough choices, tissue culturing your stock (pricy) or culling infected plants and starting from scratch.

What makes HLVD so challenging is that a lot of the clone sellers aren’t even aware they have it. It often only shows symptoms when plants are under stress, and if you don’t know your mother library well enough you may not even notice the impact it has on your plants. You may just assume it’s weak genetics or a bad environment.

Until the last few years HLVD was mostly a problem for growers in the United States, but with clones now being shipped globally, many places in Europe and South Africa have seen cases increase substantially.

There have been a couple of local facilities who have had to clear out their mother stock due to the viroid, which begs the question – who is selling infected clones and how do you know whether or not they are infected?

It’s a tough question to answer because even those with the paperwork showing their cuts were clean, probably took in some new cuts since that last test – potentially rendering those older results a minor safety net at best.

There are local clone retailers who put a lot of time, effort and money trying to ensure their libraries are clean – so finding a transparent company with paperwork is always going to be your best bet. Otherwise, there’s always a risk.

It’s not just HLVD that one needs to be worried about though, even diseases like Pythium, Powdery Mildew or Fusarium can be transferred from clones and ultimately infect a mother stock. So be careful out there! 

If you’re just growing the clones once each time instead of holding a mother library, you’re at less risk – since it can’t spread as easily. But keep in mind that many of these pathogens can also spread by using the same tool on infected plants as the clean ones.

A Vector For Pests

With the biggest risk out of the way, one should still consider the fact that many clones sold on the local market come with some pests. Most commonly we see Spider Mites, Thrips and Russet Mites show up in clones, and while Spider Mites and Thrips are somewhat easy to deal with if you get on top of them in time, Russet Mites are notoriously challenging and often go unseen due to their smaller size.

We’ve found that this is usually a problem that occurs with larger mother libraries or those holding their stock outdoors. Indoor libraries tend to be treated with more IPMs and better SOPs, because most clone sellers know how quick an infestation can take over in an indoor environment.

If you decide to buy clones, always first introduce them into a quarantine area for a few weeks so you can monitor for any pests, and also give them a run through with IPMs, cleaning up any potential pests that may have come with them.

Pests can be a real challenge once they get settled in, so treating all clones as though they’re infected for the first few weeks carries a strong benefit.

Phenotype Variation Means There Are No Guarantees

You see a killer looking clone on the gram, start connecting with the seller and finally get it in your garden. But the end of flowering comes and you’re not seeing the same expressions you fell in love with online.

This is a common problem, especially for those without full environmental control. Clones carry the exact same DNA (Genotype) as the mother, but how it grows comes down to its phenotype and some plants are more variable than others.

For instance, the real deal OG Kush is a killer when grown in cool temperatures, but push too much light or heat and you’ll end up with a plant that barely resembles OG at all. 

The variability in phenotype expressions is different for each clone – so the only way to really know is to ask the supplier if they’ve tested it in various conditions and find out how stable it is in different heat, humidity, light etc.

This isn’t so much about safety, as it is about understanding the plants you’re running. So before you pull the trigger, it may be worth finding out more details about what conditions the plants were run in when the pictures or video you saw were taken. It can help you ensure your environment will be able to bring out similar expressions.

Beware The Rename Game

Something a lot of growers aren’t aware of, is the prevalence of clones being called something completely different to what they are, for the sole sake of making additional sales or hiding the lineage of a cut so others can’t hunt their own iterations.

Be very wary of companies claiming to be selling elite cuts like OG Kush, Chem, Girl Scout Cookies, Gelato, etc. There are a few local guys selling authentic elites, like Golden Goose for example, but in most cases these clones are selected by inexperienced growers from white label seeds and are sold under the assumption that they are the same to the real clone.

These elite cuts are often called ‘Clone Only’ because they are specific clones from the same mother plants – kept or passed down for years, even decades. Such strains are extremely difficult to get into South Africa, and vast majority are not what the seller claims.

Knowing that your clone retailer understands these differences is important, and those with sufficient knowledge on the matter will be happy to discuss provenance and what exactly their clone is. Ask them if it was hunted by seed or imported, and if the latter – ask for COAs.

For example, a grower may hunt a pack of Exodus Cheese from Greenhouse Seed Co and not disclose that it was their own selection, which can cause buyers to assume they’ll be getting the real deal Exodus cut, a prized and rare cut held by only a few people in South Africa.

It’s Not Always What You Expect

Go into every clone purchase understanding that there is a chance that the plant may look great in images, but when it comes to effects and flavours, may differ entirely to your own personal preferences.

Very few people are able to rely on their nose to describe the nuances in aroma and flavour, which leaves a lot of marketing material making the clone sound amazing, but when you grow it, you’re unimpressed and the sweet, unique candy terps that were promised is actually just some generic citrus profile you grew bored of a decade ago.

To avoid this, try and get your hands on some flower from the clone you’re looking to buy and make sure that it aligns with what you’re looking for. One does have to consider the renaming issue here as well.

Effects are another big variable, and ultimately every person’s unique body and brain chemistry are going to change the types of effects they get. What someone finds heavy and sedating may be uplifting and energizing to you. And what one person finds weak, another may find extremely potent.

Put aside the THC percentages, and honestly – just try and get your hands on some flower. It really is the only way to ensure you’re getting what you want.

In Conclusion

Overall, running clones is a great way of reducing veg time. But they don’t come without risks, many of these risks, however, can be negated by trying to gauge how reliable your clone retailer is. Find out first hand knowledge from other skilled growers who can attest to the legitimacy and safety around the company’s clones and always use your own intuition.

You aren’t always going to get the plant to express the same way as the seller, but with good climate control one can usually get pretty close.

Just remember, there’s a lot of people willing to say whatever it takes to make a sale, so only go with trusted sources. And always place your new clones into a quarantine area initially.