Professional - Please - Opinions On Pruning?

[randomuser]

Broke my wrist this year and had some setbacks as far as timing to when I would normally prune my girls. These are outdoor girls.

I've been doing an insane amount of reading over the past week, and I really want to know from EXPERIENCED GROWERS ONLY, the following:

1. Will pruning right before flowering shock the girls, and how badly? Do it or don't?
2. Will pruning during flowering (any stage) shock the girls, and how badly?
3. Is this whole 'prune during flower on days 21 and 45' something you also believe in?

Basically what is going on is none of my ladies have been pruned AT ALL yet due to the fact that I couldn't because of my wrist. They need it badly. Some are 1.5-2 weeks in already (preflowered due to heat), some are just about to flip, and there's a few that will flip next week sometime.

WHEN would you prune EXACTLY so that they are not shocked and or stunted due to the fact that they're in go mode now? (The pruning I'm talking about here is all the under foliage that will turn into larf and air later. Not defoliation of leaves to unshade buds and such.)

PLEASE, experienced growers only. So many threads in here get way too many opinions tossed around. I'm looking for serious answers from awesome peeps to start a grand discussion on the matter. The sooner the better as well as it's time I get to work!

Thanks.

RandomUser

 

[Mtn Dew]

Here is one more thread you should consider reading. Increasing yield with defoliation indoors - What's it mean? How to do it?. Good luck. I let the plant tell to me when and where to prune. Hard to give advice on this subject.

 

[Weaselcracker]

Geez I'm not sure if I'm qualified enough to answer this, given the strict screening process to be allowed to help you. Ok, I'll waive the 2c fee but don't tell anyone.

1 -I don't know if 'shock is the right word but it does slow the plant down. It depends on the pruning. A light pruning - not noticeable. In the case of the most extreme defol sessions I did- they seemed to stand still for a week or even ten days. I usually give them a week of non- molestation before flowering- but if I didn't - debatable that I could ever tell the difference later on.

2- oops I guess I lumped this in with 1. I once did a major defol removing all fans except the smallest, and wove the branches into a scrog without mercy- until what was left looked pathetic. It took a couple weeks before budsites started sprouting everywhere. In the end it yielded better than the twin plant which I didn't defol. But there were some other problems popped up in the grow so it wasn't a perfect test.

3 Yes - with most strains these are naturally good times to defol. The times land in between growth stages. Of course it depends on the strain but I find it a surprisingly good system.

 

[randomuser]

Geez I'm not sure if I'm qualified enough to answer this, given the strict screening process to be allowed to help you. Ok, I'll waive the 2c fee but don't tell anyone.

1 -I don't know if 'shock is the right word but it does slow the plant down. It depends on the pruning. A light pruning - not noticeable. In the case of the most extreme defol sessions I did- they seemed to stand still for a week or even ten days. I usually give them a week of non- molestation before flowering- but if I didn't - debatable that I could ever tell the difference later on.

2- oops I guess I lumped this in with 1. I once did a major defol removing all fans except the smallest, and wove the branches into a scrog without mercy- until what was left looked pathetic. It took a couple weeks before budsites started sprouting everywhere. In the end it yielded better than the twin plant which I didn't defol. But there were some other problems popped up in the grow so it wasn't a perfect test.

3 Yes - with most strains these are naturally good times to defol. The times land in between growth stages. Of course it depends on the strain but I find it a surprisingly good system.

Awesome. Thank you very much. Exactly what I was looking for. Appreciate it!

 

[Weaselcracker]

You're most welcome I thought I might have pissed you off with my snide remark. Glad I didn't. It's just that I haven't noticed many time wasting posters on 420 myself- (maybe you're jaded from other forums(?) or just have higher standards than me) I'm always happy when people answer my threads and continually amazed by the depth of the knowledge that's in here. Check out the link Mtn Dew posted, and in that thread you'll come across AK Greenlover who does that extreme defol in his journal, and probably links to the other one or two defol threads that I see around the most.

 

[randomuser]

You're most welcome I thought I might have pissed you off with my snide remark. Glad I didn't. It's just that I haven't noticed many time wasting posters on 420 myself- (maybe you're jaded from other forums(?) or just have higher standards than me) I'm always happy when people answer my threads and continually amazed by the depth of the knowledge that's in here. Check out the link Mtn Dew posted, and in that thread you'll come across AK Greenlover who does that extreme defol in his journal, and probably links to the other one or two defol threads that I see around the most.

Nope, snide remarks on boards don't phase me one bit. I've been on boards on the Net since the early 90s and know the in's and out's of this nonsense way too well. I wanted to come off a bit hard as to attempt to get someone on a somewhat professional level to answer, though maybe a bit too hard as no one else did! I was hoping for a good discussion.

Regardless, what I find on these boards is, of course, too many opinions. Which is what they're here for, but the answers to questions get drowned out so easily. I've been doing what I've been doing now for 10+ years and every year I have these same questions and like to bounce my idea of what should be done off of others who also seem to know what they're doing...if that makes sense .

Thanks again! And please, if anyone else wants to chime in, do!