Advice on trimming/training Sativas in closet grow..

30 days since germ'd seeds broke ground. I did a basic topping two weeks ago and trimmed the oldest set lower leaves that got nute burned. I plan to veg for at least 2-3 more weeks, need suggestions. I need these things to grow tall and not bush out. From the looks of it I have four main stems reaching up and a lot of knarly undergrowth prolly due to topping. 80% sativa in a 3 x 2.5 x 8 closet.

What should I do with all the little leaves popping up on the bottom, trim em? Should I be thinking about any training? Like I mentioned I need them to go tall from here not bushy. A few pics this morning..

Pretty sure if you just leave it they will just grow upwards mate, shouldn't have topped them though if you didn't want them to bush out, training them would be another way to get them to stretch outwards though so you should really just leave them and maybe later when you begin flower you could lollipop them if you want to trim out the undergrowth but theres not much point in doing it now if you're still vegging because it might just grow back again

you can do either i would just strip them off and clean up the bottom..if you properly remove the node and leafe they won't ever grow back. not sure why that was said but its not true if you take it off properly it won't grow back....
give them time they will start to spread up you did other stuff to them besides topping that i can see one is you squeezed and broke the stems... i can see the bubble on them. so your doing stuff to slow the growth. just leave them alone and let them go.

cleaning up the undersides PROPERLY will redirect the growth from those areas to the active growth areas and speed things up a bit so cleaning up the lower stuff will have benefits in the long run after they heal. if you do it cleanly with a good razor they can heal quick and redirect the hormones faster than if you just rip them off.

Thanks for the info fellas. I did top early, read it would cause bushing I didn't know what to expect. I slowed them at least three times with noob mistakes, I'm relaxing and they're starting to climb now. Noted on topping vs. training, I'm learning will be more prepared next time.

Curious when I topped I used a pair of sharp trimmers, perhaps blades weren't small enough that caused bubbling? They were sterile, meant for bud trimming though. So razor or very small sizzors for trimming or topping?

phil k said:

you can do either i would just strip them off and clean up the bottom..if you properly remove the node and leafe they won't ever grow back. not sure why that was said but its not true if you take it off properly it won't grow back....
give them time they will start to spread up you did other stuff to them besides topping that i can see one is you squeezed and broke the stems... i can see the bubble on them. so your doing stuff to slow the growth. just leave them alone and let them go.

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Just to clarify I didn't mean it would grow back from the same place but I trimmed all the bottom leaves on one of my plants and I started getting new growth around the bottom of the plant - not in the exact same spots as before but still leaves and stuff around the bottom. I thought the point was to clear out all the lower leaves and so if hes still vegging then he might as well save himself the effort and just do it right before flower.

Six9 said:

Thanks for the info fellas. I did top early, read it would cause bushing I didn't know what to expect. I slowed them at least three times with noob mistakes, I'm relaxing and they're starting to climb now. Noted on topping vs. training, I'm learning will be more prepared next time.

Curious when I topped I used a pair of sharp trimmers, perhaps blades weren't small enough that caused bubbling? They were sterile, meant for bud trimming though. So razor or very small sizzors for trimming or topping?

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no thats not a issue generally pinching it is fine ..i mean ideally you want as little stress as possible but its not a issue the way you did it. i generally top all my strains except a few that don't respond well to topping but yours seem fine.

Great thanks for the advice!

Read several articles today supporting removal of unproductive undergrowth, thanks Phil K for the tip. Think I'll trim em up in the morning, and again before flower. These things are pretty, love the purple stems

Careful there purple stems can be a sign of deficiencies, I've heard that some strains just have it in their genes but it could also be a sign of either nitrogen, potassium, phosphorus, or magnesium deficiency although again it doesnt necessarily mean anything is wrong just maybe be on the lookout for anything else out of the ordinary.

Sounds good thanks. I'm hoping strain as they sprouted with purple stems, plus I've been feeding pretty good, I'll watch them though.

If you want upward growth dont top, you can bend back and forth to slow growth and bush out a bit more, you shouldnt need too. Even of untrained they will still take on a somewhat xmas tree shape. When topping i normally ise my fingers and just nick the next set of leaves coming up
However you do it doesnt matter.
Sprouting purple doesnt mean anything, prolly mag issues. Most sativas are mag and k hungry..looked, yes mag..

Take off all lower crappy scragglers, some will continue to pop up diring veg and flower, continue to remove, they wont priduce anything useable

The bubble is normal, itswhat happens when a larger stem is diverted into smaller..the two smaller tops must flow alot more than before..

Its gonna bush alot, you really shouldnt jave topped, dont do any other trainin

Good luck..thats all o saw to respond too

qwizoking said:

If you want upward growth dont top, you can bend back and forth to slow growth and bush out a bit more, you shouldnt need too. Even of untrained they will still take on a somewhat xmas tree shape. When topping i normally ise my fingers and just nick the next set of leaves coming up
However you do it doesnt matter.
Sprouting purple doesnt mean anything, prolly mag issues. Most sativas are mag and k hungry..looked, yes mag..

Take off all lower crappy scragglers, some will continue to pop up diring veg and flower, continue to remove, they wont priduce anything useable

The bubble is normal, itswhat happens when a larger stem is diverted into smaller..the two smaller tops must flow alot more than before..

Its gonna bush alot, you really shouldnt jave topped, dont do any other trainin

Good luck..thats all o saw to respond too

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Thanks Qwizoking great info, I'll know next time on topping /training, at least I know wtf they do when top so young. On purple, I've been using 3ml per gal Cal Mag along w/FF nutes, should I bump? 180 x 5w LED in use. so knarly stuff okay to remove even through flower? I cleaned em up just now they look nice

rnint said:

Careful there purple stems can be a sign of deficiencies, I've heard that some strains just have it in their genes but it could also be a sign of either nitrogen, potassium, phosphorus, or magnesium deficiency although again it doesnt necessarily mean anything is wrong just maybe be on the lookout for anything else out of the ordinary.

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NO ITS NOT!!!!!!! I SWEAR IM SO SICK OF HEARING THIS STOP SPREADING BAD INFORMATION!!!!!

Six9 said:

Sounds good thanks. I'm hoping strain as they sprouted with purple stems, plus I've been feeding pretty good, I'll watch them though.

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don't listen to the new guy that says purple stems are bad he doesnt know what he's talking about the purple stem thing isn't what everyone makes it out to be.. 90% of hybrid strains have purple lines or young seeds generally start with a purple stem sometimes it means nothing about the health of the plant unless your having some really serious issues .. and if thats the case your plant would show many other issues ALONG WITH purple as hell stems.. purple lines purple hues in stems mean absolutely nothing

thanks much Phil I'm learning to research before changing nutes, I wasn't sure about purple being a defiency, very healthy looking at the moment. I trimmed them, looking nice appreciate..

That sometimes is a sign of phosphorus deficiency but most likely not in your case...purple stems are common in seedlings and some new growth .

skunkwreck said:

That sometimes is a sign of phosphorus deficiency but most likely not in your case...purple stems are common in seedlings and some new growth .

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right but thats the point.. what else goes with phosphorus deficiency? leafe issues.. and growth issues.. so when your plant has no other signs of issues and shows purple stems it means nothing.. your going to know if your having phosphorus issues and its not going to come from the stem its just something that can occur in those situations. and his plant sizes with proper feeding would never have a phosphorus issue especialy at this point..

its just the people that come on here and spread that crap don't know what they are talking about..they are always newer members on all the boards.. and when someone gazes over the boards and sees "purple stems are phosphorus issues" they freak out over the B.S. advice... and the cycle keeps going around and around and everyone who doesnt know any better thinks they are having issues when they aren't. it just gets really irritating.

stems can even hue due to root & environment temps.. but again its a more "extreme" thing for them to purple due to health issues and your going to see many other issues that go along with cold root zones like growth and leaf issues

Six9 said:

thanks much Phil I'm learning to research before changing nutes, I wasn't sure about purple being a defiency, very healthy looking at the moment. I trimmed them, looking nice appreciate..

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yep your plants look fine