Over the years I have taken cutting of many different types plant using nothing more than water or free draining gritty compost and generally had no problems.
Using cloning powders,liquids and gel can certainly have beneficial effects especially with hard to clone strains of cannabis such as big bud.
So adding a bit of honey for antimicrobial and antifungal sound ok to me and also something i will have to try.
If you already like honey then a small amout poured in an egg cup will sufice for your clones and you get to enjoy the rest of your jar, so the expense will only be cents/pence.
Something you may wish to consider is new growth willow bark taken in the spring.
Here is something I have cut a nd pasted from - DeepGreenPermaculture.com -
“Willow Water” – How it Works
“Willow Water” is a homebrew plant rooting hormone that is easily made and can be used to increase the strike rate (growth of roots) of cuttings that you’re trying to propagate.
The way that it works can be attributed to two substances that can be found within the
Salix (Willow) species, namely, indolebutyric acid (IBA) and Salicylic acid (SA).
Indolebutyric acid (IBA) is a plant hormone that stimulates root growth. It is present in high concentrations in the growing tips of willow branches. By using the actively growing parts of a willow branch, cutting them, and soaking them in water, you can get significant quantities of IBA to leach out into the water.
Salicylic acid (SA) (which is a chemical similar to the headache medicine
Aspirin) is a plant hormone which is involved in signalling a plant’s defences, it is involved in the process of “systemic acquired resistance” (SAR) – where an attack on one part of the plant induces a resistance response to pathogens (triggers the plant’s internal defences) in other parts of the plant. It can also trigger a defence response in nearby plants by converting the salicylic acid into a volatile chemical form.
When you make willow water, both salicylic acid and IBA leach into the water, and both have a beneficial effect when used for the propagation of cuttings. One of the biggest threats to newly propagated cuttings is infection by bacteria and fungi. Salicylic acid helps plants to fight off infection, and can thus give cuttings a better chance of survival. Plants, when attacked by infectious agents, often do not produce salicylic acid quickly enough to defend themselves, so providing the acid in water can be particularly beneficial.
Willow water can be made from cuttings of any tree or shrub of the willow family, a group of plants with the scientific name of Salix. The more cuttings that are used and the longer they are soaked in water, the stronger will be the resulting willow water. Recommendations for the exact method of soaking vary. Cold water can be used, and soaking times of four or more weeks are often quoted. Other gardeners use boiling water to steep the willow twigs and soak the mixture for around 24 hours.
One last thing I will add is it is beste to use a sharp clean sterile knife, using scissors will crush some of the planrt cells causing them to die right at the point you want roots to appear. Dead cell are more likely to be places where infection take hold.
Just occured to me this is an Autoflower forum (mostly. I realise photo's are also grown) but the subject of cuttings is a photo subject, just made giggle is all
How ever you take your cuttings please share your result with the rest of us so we can see how valid each method is, keeping a log and taking daily picture would also be a benefit, this way we can all learn together.
Peace
Growerz
