# Can you clone an autoflower?

> You can root a cutting from an autoflower, but it is impractical. The clone keeps flowering on its parent's age-based clock, so it starts flowering while it is still rooting and finishes tiny, often only a few grams. An autoflower also can't be kept as a mother. To repeat a good auto, grow its seed again, or breed from it.

- Canonical: https://genetixbay.com/knowledge/answers/can-you-clone-autoflowers.html
- Topic: Basics · Type: How-to
- Evidence: Grower practice · Status: Draft: awaiting expert review
- Full article: [Photoperiod vs autoflower, and how autoflowering is inherited](https://genetixbay.com/knowledge/basics/photoperiod-vs-autoflower.md)
- Also asked as: Cloning autos | Do autoflower clones work? | Can I take cuttings from an autoflower? | Can you keep an autoflower mother?
- Updated: 2026-10-31 · Licence: CC BY-SA 4.0 (https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0/), attribute "GenetixBay Knowledge Base (genetixbay.com/knowledge)"

## Short answer

Yes, an [autoflower](https://genetixbay.com/knowledge/glossary/autoflower.md) cutting will root, but it's rarely worth it. The clone carries on flowering on its parent's clock, so it flowers while it's still rooting and finishes as one small bud. You can't keep an auto as a mother either. *Grower practice*: almost nobody does it twice.

## Why

An auto flowers by age, not by night length. Autoflowering is a [recessive trait](https://genetixbay.com/knowledge/glossary/recessive.md) at a mapped [locus](https://genetixbay.com/knowledge/glossary/locus.md), *Autoflower1*: plants with two copies flower even under [continuous light](https://genetixbay.com/knowledge/glossary/24-0.md) [1]. [Gene](https://genetixbay.com/knowledge/glossary/gene.md) dosage at that locus changes flowering time [3], but no light schedule switches it off.

A cutting is as old as its donor. Cannabis passes from a juvenile to an adult, flower-ready stage on its own [2]. A cutting from a 4-week-old auto is already adult, so it starts flowering as soon as it can, with no veg to build a frame.

[Photoperiod](https://genetixbay.com/knowledge/glossary/photoperiod.md) clones work differently. Under [18/6](https://genetixbay.com/knowledge/glossary/18-6.md) a photoperiod cutting stays in veg as long as you like, which is why [mothers](https://genetixbay.com/knowledge/glossary/mother-plant.md) and [clone-only cuts](https://genetixbay.com/knowledge/glossary/clone-only.md) exist at all.

## The numbers

| | Autoflower cutting | Photoperiod cutting |
|---|---|---|
| Rooting time | ~7–14 days | ~7–14 days |
| [Veg time](https://genetixbay.com/knowledge/glossary/veg-time.md) you control | None | As long as you like |
| Can be kept as a mother | No | Yes, for years |
| Typical result | One small bud | A full plant |

## What to do

1. To repeat a great auto, grow more seed of the same line.
2. To keep its genetics, [pollinate](https://genetixbay.com/knowledge/glossary/pollination.md) it with a good auto male and grow the seed out.
3. To make a photoperiod version, cross to a photo and select from the [F2](https://genetixbay.com/knowledge/glossary/f2.md) (about 1 in 4 autos reappear).
4. If you clone one out of curiosity, take it early, from a healthy plant, and expect a novelty, not a harvest.

## Common mistakes

- [Taking cuttings](https://genetixbay.com/knowledge/glossary/cloning.md) in flower and expecting a full plant.
- Putting an auto under [12/12](https://genetixbay.com/knowledge/glossary/12-12.md) or 24/0 to "hold" it as a mother.
- Crossing an auto to a photo and expecting auto seed in the [F1](https://genetixbay.com/knowledge/glossary/f1.md).

## Related

- Full article: [Photoperiod vs autoflower](https://genetixbay.com/knowledge/basics/photoperiod-vs-autoflower.md)
- Answers: [how to clone cannabis](https://genetixbay.com/knowledge/answers/how-to-clone-cannabis.md) · [is a clone the same as its mother?](https://genetixbay.com/knowledge/answers/is-a-clone-the-same-as-its-mother.md)
- Articles: [breeding autoflowers](https://genetixbay.com/knowledge/breeding/breeding-autoflowers.md) · [clone-only preservation](https://genetixbay.com/knowledge/breeding/clone-only-preservation.md)
- Terms: [autoflower](https://genetixbay.com/knowledge/glossary/autoflower.md) · [mother plant](https://genetixbay.com/knowledge/glossary/mother-plant.md)

## Follow-up questions

**Why don't autoflower clones get big?** Autoflower clones stay small because an auto flowers by age, and a cutting is as old as the plant it came from. By the time it has rooted, in about 7–14 days, it is already flowering, with almost no veg time to build roots and branches. The result is a single small bud, which rarely justifies the space and light.

**Can I keep an autoflower as a mother plant?** No, you can't keep an autoflower as a mother plant. An auto ignores the light schedule, so long days won't hold it in veg: it flowers at its set age, finishes and dies like any annual. To keep a genotype you like, collect its seed, cross it with another auto, or make a photoperiod version through a breeding project.

**How do I keep a great autoflower going?** To keep a great autoflower going, breed it. Pollinate it with a good auto male, or another auto, and the seed will be autos too, because the trait is recessive and two autos give 100% autos. Crossing to a photoperiod gives all-photoperiod F1 seed, and autos reappear in about a quarter of the F2.

## Sources

1. Toth JA, Stack GM, Carlson CH, Smart LB. 2022. Identification and mapping of major-effect flowering time loci Autoflower1 and Early1 in Cannabis sativa L. Frontiers in Plant Science 13:991680. https://doi.org/10.3389/fpls.2022.991680
2. Spitzer-Rimon B, Shafran-Tomer H, Gottlieb GH, et al. 2022. Non-photoperiodic transition of female cannabis seedlings from juvenile to adult reproductive stage. Plant Reproduction 35(4):265-277. https://doi.org/10.1007/s00497-022-00449-0
3. Kurtz LE, Brand MH, Lubell-Brand JD. 2023. Gene dosage at the autoflowering locus effects flowering timing and plant height in triploid cannabis. Journal of the American Society for Horticultural Science 148(2):83-88. https://doi.org/10.21273/JASHS05293-23