Defoliation During Bloom
- Thread starter pete2
- Start date
AKgramma
Well-Known Member
Hi, Pete2!
I have carefully defoliated dying leaves from my ladies in bloom, to avoid mold and disease, and to remove some large fan leaves that were shading lower buds. My logic is that if she is going to drop them anyway, might as well keep her looking neat and healthy. Removal of dying leaves should not affect yield.
Others may disagree and let their ladies prune themselves.
I have carefully defoliated dying leaves from my ladies in bloom, to avoid mold and disease, and to remove some large fan leaves that were shading lower buds. My logic is that if she is going to drop them anyway, might as well keep her looking neat and healthy. Removal of dying leaves should not affect yield.
Others may disagree and let their ladies prune themselves.
Thebreeder
New Member
Defoliation does work. Works best on indica strains. Best done in 3 to 4 weeks in bloom. You will loose some flavor.
- Thread starter
- #4
Thanks for the reply. I like your logic, It's just what I was doing 20 years ago,but I didn't know it was called defoliation.
I use to do trimming during veg also.
Do u think that is a bad ideal, with all these new strains and methods I'm not sure. Thanks
- Thread starter
- #5
Thanks for the reply. I know that it works. It's just what I was doing 20 years ago. But I always trimmed during veg also. Do u think I shouldn't do the trimming during veg and only during blooming? Let me know what u think. Thanks again for the reply
AKgramma
Well-Known Member
Pete2: My experience comes from 40 years of growing both indoor and outdoor plants, from shrubs and ornamentals to vegetable gardens. I would think that the same methods work for a hardy species as Cannibus.
Remember Mr. Miyagi teaching Daniel how to trim a bonsai (Karate Kid, for those too young to remember)? He said to close your eyes and see "tree". The point is that it is up to you, what you envision as your finished plant. Do you want her bushy and wide or tall and slender? (taking into account the strain's natural phenotype)
You know all this, of course, but for those who don't: While they are in veg, they have time to recover from whatever stresses and methods you use to shape them. Once in flower, however, almost all the effort goes into producing flowers, and any defoliation should be done sparingly and only if necessary. They aren't going to grow many more leaves, if any.
There are pros and cons with if and when you defoliate: pros - open the plant up for air and light, prevent mold and fungi. Cons: delayed maturity, later harvest, maybe even less yield if too much is done in flower.
My instinct tells me that the earlier you shape and trim your vegging ladies, the better they will recover.
One more factor I have read on these forums is that some strains do not take well to a lot of topping and/or defoliation. I only have experience with OG Kush - Sativa heritage, and there is a balance I am still learning. Thank Mother Nature that this strain is pretty forgiving!
Remember Mr. Miyagi teaching Daniel how to trim a bonsai (Karate Kid, for those too young to remember)? He said to close your eyes and see "tree". The point is that it is up to you, what you envision as your finished plant. Do you want her bushy and wide or tall and slender? (taking into account the strain's natural phenotype)
You know all this, of course, but for those who don't: While they are in veg, they have time to recover from whatever stresses and methods you use to shape them. Once in flower, however, almost all the effort goes into producing flowers, and any defoliation should be done sparingly and only if necessary. They aren't going to grow many more leaves, if any.
There are pros and cons with if and when you defoliate: pros - open the plant up for air and light, prevent mold and fungi. Cons: delayed maturity, later harvest, maybe even less yield if too much is done in flower.
My instinct tells me that the earlier you shape and trim your vegging ladies, the better they will recover.
One more factor I have read on these forums is that some strains do not take well to a lot of topping and/or defoliation. I only have experience with OG Kush - Sativa heritage, and there is a balance I am still learning. Thank Mother Nature that this strain is pretty forgiving!
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