The Main-Lining Thread

[H.A.F.]

HAF,
I actually don't see what I'd gain by manifolding that plant. Are you saying that it's actually the healed knuckle that increases nutrient flow? I feel I'm missing something important here.
JD

No worries - I'm lighting up another one as I type so let me know if I miss something or get distracted
Knuckles:

When you top a plant and leave it only 2 directions to go, it bulks up and creates a knuckle. Don't know the science, but it has big insides and divides the nutes equally above that point. It also kills the center-dominance of the plant - the main fat veins running to the top that everything else branches off of. It means you did a manifold right LOL.

You will start to see one forming where you did top it, but it won't be as drastic just because of the limbs below there.
That is why I think repeated toppings, instead of several cola off two main limbs stays more with that "even distribution" plan. So from now on even if I do an 8-top (or more) it will start like this 4-top.

 

[H.A.F.]

That grafting wax over the toppings eventually just grows into the knuckle.

Oh, and if you leave the stem long enough it actually starts to look obscene as the butt-cheeks fatten

 

[H.A.F.]

HAF,
I actually don't see what I'd gain by manifolding that plant. Are you saying that it's actually the healed knuckle that increases nutrient flow? I feel I'm missing something important here.
JD

Specific to your question - like I said, I wouldn't - unless you just have to have a manifold...

It would be a great one to experiment with now. It looks perfect for a scrog, or you could try pruning and topping each limbs different to see what works for you.

 

[JohnDee]

Specific to your question - like I said, I wouldn't - unless you just have to have a manifold...

It would be a great one to experiment with now. It looks perfect for a scrog, or you could try pruning and topping each limbs different to see what works for you.

OK HAF...not sure if that one will get further training. But you've given me ideas. Thanks much for your help. I'll be having my first manifold traained plants finished by July. I'll post a few pictures if theres anything interesting.
Cheers,
JD

 

[H.A.F.]

OK HAF...not sure if that one will get further training. But you've given me ideas. Thanks much for your help. I'll be having my first manifold traained plants finished by July. I'll post a few pictures if theres anything interesting.
Cheers,
JD

Trust me, I don't know much - that was about the extent of it for the manifolds. But I think that once you get the theory behind why you do stuff you can make the plants do what you want, or try weird stuff just to see what happens. If I was just doing a scrog or pretty much any other grow I think it would start with that manifold and go from there. Go back and read the text the he wrote about coming up with the technique. You can see in his pics that he did a lot of different ways.
https://www.growweedeasy.com/mainlining-nugbuckets
I'm just refining his experiments to my needs.

 

[H.A.F.]

I've never been one to believe something just because everyone says it's true.

Even stuff like pruning away flowers to get bigger tops. That was one of the first things I experimented with just to see for myself. When I found the mainlining thread I found Nebula's first but read nugbuckets because he invented it (or figured it out or whatever). When I read it, it was like a light-bulb and both confirmed what I just learned, but took it to the nth level. I was hooked.

 

[pthobson]

Seems like it would add so much time to vegging and so much cutting. So fascinating though

 

[H.A.F.]

Seems like it would add so much time to vegging and so much cutting. So fascinating though

Not really. I mean, yes on the pruning part, but it really doesn't add much more time.

If you follow a standard feed schedule with 4 weeks veg before flip, and you factor in that you will probably be ready to top and start training before you give the first feed, You can still flip within that 4-week plus (closer to two months total) timeframe.

 

[supressed]

Me again dudes. As I said a few days ago, I busted 1 of my nodes on my first mainline attempt...I have it fixed, but now it's 1/3 the size of it's opposing node. How much stress should I put on the opposing node to allow for the busted one to catch up? Should I literally (or nearly) snap it, or is that ridiculous? Or is having 1 quite a bit bigger not the biggest deal really? I'm also worried that I'm going to re-break the knuckle when I re-tie the branches down....to avoid that, should I just wait a week before tying it back down? Thanks again for the help and sorry about my no photos....no camera

 

[unfiltered]

I apologize for double posting as I didn't know about the existence of this thread before I created a thread (in "General Marijuana Growing") with questions I have about a plant that I mainlined and about to be flipped. So, I will copy and paste that here. Unless the mod could please move that thread here.

---paste---

I have a main-lined plant that's been vegging for over 3 months as an experiment. Now, it's ready to be flipped. My goal is to harvest 8 nice long and big colas from the 8 main branches from the result of mainlining.

However, at every single node, there are new shoots coming out that's becoming mini branches. I was wondering whether I should cut these little shoots/branches before flipping to 12/12. The reason for my concern is once the plant is in flowering, all of the little shoots will stretch and thus have flowers too but since these small branches won't grow long, the buds/flowers on them won't be as big or good. Additionally, the smaller flowers from these small branches would probably take away resources from the 8 big colas. I am referring to the small shoots/branches from the top of the canopy down to the lower third of the plant. Please see attached photo with the red circle. Should I remove all of these? Obviously, I won't be removing any bud sites which will be calyxes.

BTW, I will be cutting all of the lower branches at the bottom of the main-line off for clones before I flip.

Thanks!

Update: Add more info. I am vegging/flowering under hybrid lighting and environment of outdoor and indoor. I will bring the plant out to bask in the sun on good days and put it in the tent for supplemental lighting or on cloudy/rainy day. But I am thinking that in late flowering, I will most likely keep her indoor more for more control. So, I need to control the canopy somewhat. If this is a 100% outdoor, I would probably put her in a bigger container and let her branch out like mad and grow bigger. The plant is currently about 1.5 foot tall from the top of the soil.

 

[JohnDee]

Me again dudes. As I said a few days ago, I busted 1 of my nodes on my first mainline attempt...I have it fixed, but now it's 1/3 the size of it's opposing node. How much stress should I put on the opposing node to allow for the busted one to catch up? Should I literally (or nearly) snap it, or is that ridiculous? Or is having 1 quite a bit bigger not the biggest deal really? I'm also worried that I'm going to re-break the knuckle when I re-tie the branches down....to avoid that, should I just wait a week before tying it back down? Thanks again for the help and sorry about my no photos....no camera

Hi supressed,
If you spend some time softening up the opposite branch...you should be able to tie it down enough for the broke side to catch up. What I mean is gently pinching and bending so it doesn't break. Now, though, won't the 2 branches at the other end of the manifold be too long?
JD

 

[JohnDee]

However, at every single node, there are new shoots coming out that's becoming mini branches. I was wondering whether I should cut these little shoots/branches before flipping to 12/12.

Hi Unfiltered,
That's a V-8 manifold so I assume you follow Nebulas' thread. I believe he says to cut those branches off. How else are you going to concentrate buds on main colas?
JD

 

[unfiltered]

Hi Unfiltered,
That's a V-8 manifold so I assume you follow Nebulas' thread. I believe he says to cut those branches off. How else are you going to concentrate buds on main colas?
JD

Hey JohnDee,

Good eyes! Yes indeed it is Nebula's mainlining method. He stopped talking about what to do after the structure is completed. So, that's why I'm here asking. Yeh, from what other said and experienced, I will prune all the small shoots off. And you are correct, the whole idea is just to get high quality main colas that stack from top to bottom; and absolutely no larfs or popcorn buds.

 

[JohnDee]

Hey JohnDee,

Good eyes! Yes indeed it is Nebula's mainlining method. He stopped talking about what to do after the structure is completed. So, that's why I'm here asking. Yeh, from what other said and experienced, I will prune all the small shoots off. And you are correct, the whole idea is just to get high quality main colas that stack from top to bottom; and absolutely no larfs or popcorn buds.

UF,
I guess I hadn't read all of Nebs tutorial. He probab;y assumed that most people had already read Nugs tut...which does say clip off stray branches.

Hey, two questions. How many nodes did you have before the first topping...and when you said 1 1/2' tall in 3 months, did that mean from seed to now?
JD

 

[unfiltered]

UF,
I haven't read all of Nebs tutorial. He probab;y assumed that most people had already read Nugs tut...which does say clip off stray branches.

Hey, two questions. How many nodes did you have before the first topping...and when you said 1 1/2' tall in 3 months, did that mean from seed to now?
JD

I kind of skimped through Nug's method and must have missed the part about cutting off shoots.

I let it grow to a well developed fifth node (to prevent stress), then chopped at the third node. I followed Nebula's method to the T.

Yeh, this is 3 months plus from seed. I didn't have space so I let her sit outside in the cold whether for about a month. I also had nute burn even though I was growing in organic soil. Also due to timing, I didn't transplant her soon enough so she was root bound.

So, it's not the optimal grow and that's why it's such a long veg time which was intentional anyway. But I think if you are growing optimally, the mainlining would add about 4 weeks of additional veg time in order to create desirable structure before the flip.

 

[JohnDee]

So, it's not the optimal grow and that's why it's such a long veg time which was intentional anyway.

Thanks Dude,
I just wanted to compare your plants to mine. Not so different. I've mainlined avery plant since around January. Done 6 different strains. Only did one using the V-8 approach...and that was an accident. Did secondary topping at second node.

I think I'm going to continue doing this but only to 4 colas. Doing it that way I think I can chop that delay to 2 weeks...but I haven't confirmed that yet.
Cheers,
JD

 

[Crawlndog]

Hey Everyone! I'm new to the site, new to growing and new to mainlining/manifold... lol I have no real questions yet, I usually get my answers from reading . Just wanted to share my present manifold which is my first time growing.... with 3 autos I just cropped about 2-3 weeks ago.. Will update with new pic in a few days with all the bud sites...

 

[Crawlndog]

Oh man.... I switched at 18 inches hoping it would stop before 40.... 35 inches and getting fat....What a fantastic tutorial to follow....

 

[JohnDee]

Oh man.... I switched at 18 inches hoping it would stop before 40.... 35 inches and getting fat....What a fantastic tutorial to follow.... View attachment 4363422

Excellemt job crawdad...And great use of the tomato cage. Mine are less well behaved.
JD

 

[Crawlndog]

Excellemt job crawdad...And great use of the tomato cage. Mine are less well behaved.
JD

Thanks.... With it being a sativa, didn't know if would stop...haha