Mainline questions, show me your training

HigherTheHigh

HigherTheHigh

Well-Known Member
Hello all.

So iv got 8 seedlings/small plants, starting there 3rd node now with tight node spacing, they will receive a 6 weeks veg from today, maybes a few days longer.

So my question is, how would i train them?

Top them at 1st, 2nd, 3rd, 4th or 5th?

Top at 5th node then top once more giving me 20 colas?

There in 500ml containers at the moment, should i top them and let them recover in there pots for a week now, or should i transplant now into there final 16L pots, wait a week, then top?

So by friday they will probably be starting there 5th node so could i top them then if i do decide to top the 5th or should i wait till a few nodes higher?

Minimum colas i need from these plants are 12, at 1/2oz per cola that will give me a nice 6oz a plant, if i have more cola stems there could be potentially more weight.

So my way i was thinking was, transplant now into there final 16L pots, give them a week to bed in, then top at the 5th node, then recover while training height of other branches for 1 more week then top once more giving me 20 colas, then veg for final 3-4 weeks.

I was also thinking after they have been finally topped and recovered i could induce stretch just for a week or 2 then go back to closer lights to get tighter longer colas, so is that how i could get each branch to be at least 12" sized colas all roughly the same?

I am planning on getting some 3 ring tomato frame/cages to help with the final training of branches so that should be help with supporting the plants.

Thank you!
 
I am using tomato cages for the first time and I love them...very easy to pull out branches as it is growing and the cage naturally spreads them (instead of needing to pull them down connected to the pot). I am in a GH and they are photos so I am going for the bigger grow (3 months veg) so they are big...another reason the cage is awesome because I can tie the tall branches to the uppermost ring and that keeps it from growing 2 meters wide! Since I am going for a bigger plant, I topped between the 6-8th node depending on the height of the plant at that time...I wanted to top them below the highest ring (I've done both high and low and they both work well). I've since topped them 2x and then there is constant top pruning to keep them under 2.5 meters, which is my limit.

DTF.jpg

DTF.jpg

DTF defol-Blew Hiller Summer 2018 GH Grow

stank.jpg

stank.jpg

Stank berry 30-gallon:Blew Hiller Summer GH Grow 2018

ATF.jpg

ATF.jpg

ATF-Blew Hiller GH Summer Grow

Now I am also bending the top branches to keep the height down as well....I used pipe cleaners attached to the top ring of the cage...super convenient...

Carnival.jpg

Carnival.jpg

Carnival training-Blew Hiller Summer 2018 GH Grow
 
Nice training, how tall are those cages? my new cages are 650mm long, so i was thinking by the time i train them i want them to be finished with 10-14" colas on each branch totalling the total rough height of the whole canopy will be around 1m-1.2m height, may get them smaller but time will tell.

Im also thinking of topping at 2 node now too, giving me 4 branches, top 2x more times and iv got 16 main cola stems which will be more than enough, i could basically net them up once i flip them to 12/12 and tie them in place so there in 4 sets of 4 individually spaced nicely, will give me a total of 128 main colas.

Now this is only my math so others will find floors in my methods:

128 Colas roughly the same size throughout, 1200-1800w of HPS light, could give me 1/2oz of bud per cola as long as each cola stacks close and tightly as possible.

They have just been transplanted into there final 15L pots, give it a week and ill top them at 2nd node giving me 8 colas, then top again with another week of recovery then 1 final week of topping giving me my 16 cola stems, so they will basically get another 3-4 weeks of recovery after final topping.
 
higherthehigh said:
Nice training, how tall are those cages? my new cages are 650mm long, so i was thinking by the time i train them i want them to be finished with 10-14" colas on each branch totalling the total rough height of the whole canopy will be around 1m-1.2m height, may get them smaller but time will tell.

Im also thinking of topping at 2 node now too, giving me 4 branches, top 2x more times and iv got 16 main cola stems which will be more than enough, i could basically net them up once i flip them to 12/12 and tie them in place so there in 4 sets of 4 individually spaced nicely, will give me a total of 128 main colas.

Now this is only my math so others will find floors in my methods:

128 Colas roughly the same size throughout, 1200-1800w of HPS light, could give me 1/2oz of bud per cola as long as each cola stacks close and tightly as possible.

They have just been transplanted into there final 15L pots, give it a week and ill top them at 2nd node giving me 8 colas, then top again with another week of recovery then 1 final week of topping giving me my 16 cola stems, so they will basically get another 3-4 weeks of recovery after final topping.
Click to expand...
Your cages are about half the height of mine....mine are 115cm off the dirt (not counting feet).
 
Yeah so my total plant height will be around the size of your cages.

How long did it take you to veg that up for?

The only worry i have got is the remaining veg time left is enough time to help them recover from there pruning plus have enough time to induce a little stretch then re lower the lights for shorter inner node stacking for more consistant thicker colas, anything under the last ring of the cage will have no buds so all the plants energy will be solely on the main colas.

So at 1/2oz per cola sounds pretty reasonable right?
 
Ok, so I just reread your first post. I would repot now and top whenever you want to....I don't notice much shock issue with topping a plant, but you want them to grow quickly so get them in a bigger pot. If you are going for a shorter bushier plants (as it seems) I would top it less than 5 nodes (depending on the actual spacing etc). If you are using the tomato cage, top the plant where it sits half the height of the cage. Then when the 2x new mains grow you can pull them outward and open up the inside for light and growth. From there you can decide to top again or LST them (or both).
 
Yeah im using fabric pots, the reason for the cage is really just for stem support instead of having yo yo's ect.

Good thing about the cage is i can tie each stem to the cage and make sure everything below the top ring will be heavy defoliated.
 
Yeah iv done a few plants like that, iv actually got 2 plants in like that at the moment in flower, was thinking of doing it to my other 2 in flower too as there getting a bit tall.
 
I topped this kritical kush well before I knew she was in fact a she. I believe I topped her at the 3rd, then topped again, and one more time for a total of eight tops, but I also super cropped several times to get all of these little tops and keep the canopy even.

Kritical kush bag seed

Kritical kush bag seed

Topped in coco

The kids

The kids

2x unknown x red point and the one on the right is kritical kush

Kritical kush bag seed

Kritical kush bag seed


Kritical kush

Kritical kush


Took her out for a solo shot

Took her out for a solo shot

I hope it's a her...

Kritical kush bag seed

Kritical kush bag seed

Super cropped and topped a bunch

Granted I don't grow trees, more like shrubs... Probably didn't help you as much as these guys, but it is my training methods, when I am not too lazy to train.. I kinda have a thing for no training at all up until they get too tall. This plant is the other extreme, couldn't keep my hands off of her. Lol
 

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