Super Topping?

DTray

DTray

Member
Not sure what to call it, not sure if someone has done it before. I stumbled upon it on accident, i let a few clones get massive in some 16oz party cups got about 14 inches tall straight up verticle, light was kinda far awawy. well the side branches wernt much so i decided to cut the top 6 inches off and re clone the few like that i was not going to flower

well instead of throwing out the newly topped plants i left only the bottom four - six branches and tie them down and the plant started to grow awesome. here is a few pics of a Shrom plant still in veg and nodes GALORE. i also have another shrom and blue haze in flower that is the same ill get pics later when the lights turn on.

the shrom and blue haze in flower have bud galore, looks way more than the untopped shrom

I topped way more than a 3rd off this plant and it did not hesitate to spring back to life.

has anyone ever done this before? and also they tend to not get so bushy if you are limited on space and grow more verticle

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K

kings**t

Member
not sure if that is what it is called (super topping) but this is what i am doing i top till there is an even canopy! works well for me. btw i would top the two longer tops and let it all go even!
 
DTray

DTray

Member
i might give that a shot, i am trying to keep them as skinny as possible. i have four square feet and fit four plants in 5 gallon pots in there perfect, im trying to get four main colas and not let the bushy-ness take over as it drowns out the light quick in that little area.
 
Shwagbag

Shwagbag

Well-Known Member
DTray said:
Not sure what to call it, not sure if someone has done it before. I stumbled upon it on accident, i let a few clones get massive in some 16oz party cups got about 14 inches tall straight up verticle, light was kinda far awawy. well the side branches wernt much so i decided to cut the top 6 inches off and re clone the few like that i was not going to flower

well instead of throwing out the newly topped plants i left only the bottom four - six branches and tie them down and the plant started to grow awesome. here is a few pics of a Shrom plant still in veg and nodes GALORE. i also have another shrom and blue haze in flower that is the same ill get pics later when the lights turn on.

the shrom and blue haze in flower have bud galore, looks way more than the untopped shrom

I topped way more than a 3rd off this plant and it did not hesitate to spring back to life.

has anyone ever done this before? and also they tend to not get so bushy if you are limited on space and grow more verticle

View attachment 1471744View attachment 1471745View attachment 1471746View attachment 1471747
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IMO one bushy plant is better than 2 vertical plants, even if you have to shorten your veg. An even canopy with multiple tips will produce a better quality yield. You could easily get 15 smaller tips from a plant of the same approximate square footage as opposed to those two monsters. Short and bushy is my preference with lots of tips. The more vertical you grow, the lower the light intensity to the lower nodes is delivered, which is going to result in less quality yield compared to the upper canopy. This is all assuming that you are using a horizontal bulb fixture, vertical would be a different story :D

That plant looks healthy! You're going to have a couple monsters on your hands there, or as like to call them, kOng3rz.
 
DTray

DTray

Member
Shwagbag said:
IMO one bushy plant is better than 2 vertical plants, even if you have to shorten your veg. An even canopy with multiple tips will produce a better quality yield. You could easily get 15 smaller tips from a plant of the same approximate square footage as opposed to those two monsters. Short and bushy is my preference with lots of tips. The more vertical you grow, the lower the light intensity to the lower nodes is delivered, which is going to result in less quality yield compared to the upper canopy. This is all assuming that you are using a horizontal bulb fixture, vertical would be a different story :D

That plant looks healthy! You're going to have a couple monsters on your hands there, or as like to call them, kOng3rz.
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ill take your word on that, since it does make sense and you have been growing longer than i have. so ill start to do that. thanks
 
Shwagbag

Shwagbag

Well-Known Member
No right or wrong we all speak dank :D Give it a shot and see what works best for you. Sub'd and watching for those kOng3rz to get smoked! Looking good DTray.
 
greenberg138

greenberg138

Member
this is what I do every time. If one has the time to veg for a month or two. the strain I have right now I veg for about 45 days. the first 3 weeks I let it grow and then I chop about in half leaving 5 or 6 branches from the bottom. this way the lower part is thick and healthy supplying nutrition to the branches on the bottom. I use to be hesitate to cut that much off but it dosent hurt and you ALLWAYS top down in veg, and prune up during flowering. most strains love to be topped down. bongsmilie
 
G

GreenBuds

Well-Known Member
jtrplantweb.jpg
I believed I top once or twice and listed this Jack the Ripper a few years ago and got over 6 oz's of her. It's a great way to increase your yield but your veg time becomes longer. If you're growing a indica dom it could take you more than 2 months before it had some height. Sativa dom strains in my opinion like to be topped better than indica/hybrid strains. Some strains don't like to be topped at all.
 
Shwagbag

Shwagbag

Well-Known Member
I'm confused where this thread started and where its going. Super cropping and topping are completely different techniques. That said, they do work well together to control height and increase light penetration with indoor growing. They're also very useful outdoors to promote quality yields and provide an even canopy. Check out the super cropping and canopy control link in my signature if you're interested in super cropping. There are some members that have shared some very good results to date within the thread.

Keep it green!
 
JonnyAppleSeed420

JonnyAppleSeed420

New Member
The key to any of these techniques is control not how many tops you have, its the position the tops are in before going into flower. Genetics of the plant will kick in, so basically your yield is restricted no matter what you do to the girls or how well you grow. Genetics is about 90% of your finished product. I wouldn't worry about how many times you top but make sure you have an even canopy and are in the grow zone of the bulb you are using. Stress can be a good thing on some strains.
 
Shwagbag

Shwagbag

Well-Known Member
JonnyAppleSeed420 said:
The key to any of these techniques is control not how many tops you have, its the position the tops are in before going into flower. Genetics of the plant will kick in, so basically your yield is restricted no matter what you do to the girls or how well you grow. Genetics is about 90% of your finished product. I wouldn't worry about how many times you top but make sure you have an even canopy and are in the grow zone of the bulb you are using. Stress can be a good thing on some strains.
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Genetics are very important, I agree. But cropping and topping can definitely help to maximize quality and yields "in the grow zone of the bulb you are using" with the specific strain the grower has selected, like you said. The grow zone for a bulb is not very large for maximum efficiency, i.e. inside of 15" for a 600, which is why these methods are so useful for indoor growers. Controlling how many tops the plant produces can reduce stretch on dominant branches when desired. By topping dominant branches and utilizing plant training techniques, yield, quality, stretching and trimming times can be improved. Its not just "yield" most dedicated indoor growers are looking to improve, rather yield of quality top flowers as opposed to less potent and dense flowers which are produced outside of the bulb's grow zone. Obviously the bulb's grow zone is determined by the growers dedication to providing an optimal environment for plant growth with ducting, cooling and air movement.

AK47 Supercropped and topped to promote several dominant colas with equal light penetration and production.

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JonnyAppleSeed420

JonnyAppleSeed420

New Member
Shwagbag said:
Its not just "yield" most dedicated indoor growers are looking to improve, rather yield of quality top flowers as opposed to less potent and dense flowers which are produced outside of the bulb's grow zone. Obviously the bulb's grow zone is determined by the growers dedication to providing an optimal environment for plant growth with ducting, cooling and air movement.
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I agree with most of your statement but you need to check your 600's under a light meter, 15 inches for a 600...no. Plants lowest flowers are being 30" below the light will still get high intensity. Can you explain how "less potent and dense flower" comes from lower intense light?



Shwagbag said:
AK47 Supercropped and topped to promote several dominant colas with equal light penetration and production.
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Nice girl! What was the dry weight? Looking at her though I wonder what AK is supposed to yield, I would think she still has a ways to go for her full potential.
 
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