Plant size in beginning of flower

How big (height, number of leaf pairs, number of main branches, whatever measure you can think of) are your plant when you switch from veg to flowering?

You will find it varies from grower to grower. Some people have the space and prefer to grow big ass trees. Some people, like myself prefer to keep short plants. In my personal grow I top after the fourth set of true leaves, and flower out another two weeks to recover from topping and fill out more. Then I flower, it's only about 8" to 1' out of the medium when I flower, but it's nice and bushy. During the stretch I implement some super cropping on the two main stalks that want to get tall, I fold them over 90degrees so the next branches catch up. This gives a nice menorah look to the plant with a flat canopy that is stout, allowing for space maximizing. Also this way you get mostly all fat nugs. Let the plant get to big and all the lower shit is super larfy most of the time. Small plants are completely full nugs, no weak little budlets.

PeyoteReligion said:

You will find it varies from grower to grower. Some people have the space and prefer to grow big ass trees. Some people, like myself prefer to keep short plants. In my personal grow I top after the fourth set of true leaves, and flower out another two weeks to recover from topping and fill out more. Then I flower, it's only about 8" to 1' out of the medium when I flower, but it's nice and bushy. During the stretch I implement some super cropping on the two main stalks that want to get tall, I fold them over 90degrees so the next branches catch up. This gives a nice menorah look to the plant with a flat canopy that is stout, allowing for space maximizing. Also this way you get mostly all fat nugs. Let the plant get to big and all the lower shit is super larfy most of the time. Small plants are completely full nugs, no weak little budlets.

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I do something very similar.

I top my plants at their 3-4th node.

My plants are around 8"-12" tall before inducing flowering.

I trim under growth slightly during stretch.

I use bamboo canes in my pots to LST my leaders to which allows any secondary growth to catch up during the stretch.

This gives me around 10-15 top colas after stretch has completed and plants finish under 2ft tall with hard dense nugs.

I completely agree that smaller more compact plants have less fluffy bud on them.





J

PeyoteReligion said:

super cropping on the two main stalks that want to get tall

Click to expand...

You don't FIM then?

JustCurious79 said:

You don't FIM then?

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No, I find FIM to be imprecise. It's not as reliable of a method, for me at least. It also depends on the strain. But for the most part I've found that topping once and then super cropping is ideal.

I use clones,I top them so Ill have 5 main branches. Let them fill out a bit and transfer to 5 gal pot with 42" tomato cages. I tie the branches to the rings of the cage so it opens up the inside a bit and each cola has its own space. Doing that causes the branches to grow at the same pace,nice and even.The plants are probably 12"-16" above ground when I switch to 12/12 and they max out around 4 feet.

I use to veg longer and grow bigger plants but I ended up bottom trimming a lot more shaded stuff away. Looking at the canopy I eventually though "screw it, if all the action is in this 2 foot zone below the light, whats the point of having the extra space of nothingness between the soil level and the canopy..it just adds veg time/power usage"

As long as you have a filled out canopy it doesnt really matter how high it is,the yield is pretty much the same

And if I wouldn't top at all... what would I see?

Kinda depends on the strain. An untopped indica would usually make a christmas tree shape with a mega main cola and decent side ones around it. Untopped sativa dominant plant would get really tall and open with a lot of emtpy space if left untrained,not a very efficient use of light if grown indoors.

You are smart to realize that pot size/shape goes a long way towards predicting what a finishing plant will look like. To do a proper job
of matching pot size to your growing space you need to work ass-backwards.

I have a 1000W bulb flowering my ladies and have determined that efficiency demands that my plants finish at 40-48 inches in height. As
my indicas grow fast I veg them until they are in the 18-24 inch range. I figure they will close to double in size due to stretching during
flowering. So, clones from the domes go into the veg room at 20/4 until they reach the desired 2-foot size. This works for me as I know my strains well and can accurately predict
what a finishing plant will look like. Makes it easier to accurately use my space.

BigSteve.