Grodan Gro-Smart 78 Plugs Tray – Heavy-Duty Double-Sided Propagation Tray

The Grodan Gro-Smart 78 Plugs Tray is a professional-grade, double-sided propagation platform designed to give your seeds and cuttings the ultimate start by maximizing airflow and completely preventing root rot.

Let's be real, starting seeds or taking cuttings without the right gear is a recipe for disaster. You carefully prep your clones, place them in a flimsy plastic insert, and hope for the best, only to find them sitting in a pool of stagnant water a few days later.

There is nothing more frustrating than losing half your batch to damping-off or root rot because your plugs were drowning. Wasting expensive seeds, losing precious time, and dealing with weak, tangled roots that snap during transplanting completely kills your growing vibe and sets your harvest back weeks.

Enter the Grodan Gro-Smart 78 Plugs Tray. This heavy-duty beast elevates your plugs, ensuring perfect drainage and oxygenation so your roots explode with healthy, white fuzz instead of turning to mush. It organizes your entire propagation phase, making it smoother, cleaner, and infinitely more successful.

Before starting your clones with the Grodan Gro-Smart Tray

Prepping your propagation station is key. Before you even take your first snip, you need to make sure your environment is dialed in. Unlike standard Grow Trays that just hold water, this tray is designed to fit perfectly into any standard 10x20 flat, so grab a matching dome to keep that humidity high.

Decide which side of the tray you need for your current run. One side perfectly cradles 78 individual 1.5-inch A-OK starter plugs or Macroplugs, while the flip side acts as a mesh platform for larger blocks or sheets.

• Soak your rockwool plugs in pH-adjusted water (around 5.5) before placing them in the tray.
• Sterilize your scissors or scalpels to prevent any nasty infections from the start.
• Use a quality rooting gel to seal the cut and speed up root development.
• Place the Gro-Smart tray inside a solid 10x20 flat to catch any runoff water.

During the rooting and germination phase

While your babies are chilling in the tray, the magic happens underneath. Because the Gro-Smart tray elevates the plugs, gravity pulls excess moisture down, while oxygen flows freely around the root zone. This air-pruning effect encourages roots to branch out thicker and faster, rather than just spiraling at the bottom.

Keep an eye on the moisture levels. You want the plugs damp, not soaking wet. Thanks to the smart design, you won't have to worry about them sitting in puddles, but you still need to maintain high ambient humidity inside your dome by misting the lid daily.

If you are running a full Cloning setup, you'll notice how easy it is to lift the entire tray to check for root penetration without disturbing individual fragile clones. It’s a game-changer for keeping your stress levels low and your success rates high.

After: transplanting and tray maintenance

Once you see those beautiful, thick white roots poking out of the bottom of the plugs, it's time to move them to their forever home, whether that's soil or Hydroponic and Aeroponic Systems. Because the tray keeps the plugs perfectly spaced, the roots don't tangle with their neighbors, making transplanting a breeze and eliminating transplant shock.

After your successful run, cleanup is ridiculously easy. Unlike those cheap, thin plastic inserts that crack after one use, this tray is made of heavy-duty hard plastic. Just scrub it down, or better yet, toss it in the dishwasher to sterilize it for your next batch.

Short- and long-term advantages and benefits

• Because it features an elevated design, you can prevent waterlogging, which means your cuttings are safe from root rot and damping-off.
• Because it is double-sided, you can use individual plugs or full sheets of blocks, which means you have total versatility for any propagation style.
• Because it holds exactly 78 plugs, you can maximize your space in a standard 10x20 flat, which means higher productivity per square foot.
• Because it is made of heavy-duty hard plastic, you can wash it in the dishwasher, which means you save money in the long run by never buying flimsy disposable trays again.
• Because it keeps plugs perfectly spaced, you can prevent roots from tangling, which means zero transplant shock and faster vegetative growth.

Frequently Asked Questions

What size plugs fit in the Grodan Gro-Smart Tray?

The 78-cell side is specifically designed to snugly hold 1.5-inch Grodan A-OK Starter Plugs or round Macroplugs, keeping them secure and upright.

Can I use this tray with a standard humidity dome?

Yes! The tray measures approximately 9.25” x 20” x 2”, making it a perfect fit to drop into any standard 10x20 flat and cover with a matching humidity dome.

How do I clean the tray after a cloning cycle?

It’s incredibly easy. You can wash it by hand with warm soapy water and a mild bleach solution, or simply put it in the dishwasher, as the heavy-duty plastic is built to handle high temperatures.

Do I need to use rockwool with this tray?

While optimized for Grodan rockwool, you can use other propagation media like peat or coco plugs, as long as they fit the 1.5-inch cells to maintain proper elevation and drainage.

Personal Experience of Pevgrow’s CEO (Alan)

I used to go through dozens of those cheap, crinkly plastic inserts every year. They’d crack, spill water everywhere, and honestly, my success rate with clones was hit or miss because they’d always end up sitting in a puddle. The first time I used the Grodan Gro-Smart Tray, it completely changed my workflow.

Before taking cuttings, I always run the tray through the dishwasher—starting 100% sterile is non-negotiable for me. During the rooting phase, I love how I can just lift the whole tray out of the 10x20 flat to check the runoff and root development without touching the actual plugs. The air-pruning you get from the elevation makes the roots explode. After about 10-14 days, transplanting is a dream because the roots haven't merged into one giant mat. If you're serious about your genetics, this is a one-time investment you won't regret.