Topping And Even Canopy Photo Period

[Timhomegrow]

Had some issues germinating seeds and one plant has about an 8-10 day head start. All photoperiods in soil.

Will topping after the 5th node on the early riser big plant and after the 6th node on the rest help to even out the canopy and get the girls to be roughly the same size?

Also, should I top after 5th (and 6th) nodes or will topping after the 6th (and 7th) nodes be better for yield?

I topped my last grow, autos, after the 5th node in a 5' tent and had just the right amount of headroom for the light. The new tent is 6.5' tall so I feel like I can grow them larger...just not sure how large as it's my first photoperiod grow.

I don't want to outgrow the space and have a somewhat even canopy.

Thanks!

 

[Lime]

I top at 5th node then lst. The smaller ones will catch up if you veg longer. As you train you keep em at same level , so little ones will be smaller in comparison but will all be same level once you train them.

 

[bobrown14]

Topping should only be used as a last resort and even then I recommend against it.

So that said, I ask 2 questions:

Why are we topping?

Have you grown out this cultivar before so you know fer sure its going to outgrow your grow space?

There's no reason to keep your canopy all the same height. Unless you're growing a scrog or something and even then topping not required.

For folks that wanna top I always recommend growing plants out naturally and see how they grow. Learn how plants grow then you may think a bit differently about it.

Topping does not improve yields.

 

[MochaBud]

Hey Tim ...yes I would top at the 5th node and wait on the others to catch up and then top them at the 5th node also...if done right, it WILL increase yield

I do it any which way I can but I do get a better yield off of a scrog that's been topped several times, so it has about 20 tops per plant

Biggest yield off of a 2 plant scrog so far (for me); 32 ounces and some bottom fluff for oil

2 plant Scrog

• MochaBud
• Feb 24, 2020

Ghost OG

 

[Bill284]

Hey Tim ...yes I would top at the 5th node and wait on the others to catch up and then top them at the 5th node also...if done right, it WILL increase yield

I do it any which way I can but I do get a better yield off of a scrog that's been topped several times, so it has about 20 tops per plant

Biggest yield off of a 2 plant scrog so far (for me); 32 ounces and some bottom fluff for oil

2 plant Scrog

• MochaBud
• Feb 24, 2020

Ghost OG

Topping should only be used as a last resort and even then I recommend against it.

So that said, I ask 2 questions:

Why are we topping?

Have you grown out this cultivar before so you know fer sure its going to outgrow your grow space?

There's no reason to keep your canopy all the same height. Unless you're growing a scrog or something and even then topping not required.

For folks that wanna top I always recommend growing plants out naturally and see how they grow. Learn how plants grow then you may think a bit differently about it.

Topping does not improve yields.

Topping turns your Christmas tree into Santa’s sack full of bud sights.

 

[Bill284]

Topping turns your Christmas tree into Santa’s sack full of bud sights.

Not Scrog,ust topped many times. Its not as nice as mochabuds but its an easy effective method to spread out your girls to use the space in a room. If you have empty space in your room your not using its just a waste of light energy $$$$.

 

[AdaminCO]

In the 3 or 4 top vs. not topping if ran, I've found topping will increase your yields, that said, with LST, you dont have to top, and you can achieve the same results. Do me a favor a read @InTheShed write up in my signature regarding Suppercropping, and the one below on LST, and topping.

I typically do both topping and LST... I don't think I could have achieved this big of a yield without doing either.

 

[Bill284]

In the 3 or 4 top vs. not topping if ran, I've found topping will increase your yields, that said, with LST, you dont have to top, and you can achieve the same results. Do me a favor a read @InTheShed write up in my signature regarding LST.

I typically do both topping and LST... I don't think I could have achieved this big of a yield without doing either.

I let them go in that room for a month.Then I move them to bigger room and LST them. Spread out all those bud sites and pound the light to them. Topping and lst are two simple easy methods that go together great to turn your 2 zip girl into 1 pound powerhouse.

 

[Southerncough]

I don't know if topping affects yield, there are a lot of opinions on each side. I would hypothesize that the she would send the most growth hormones to the tallest part of the plant. Therefore if the tallest part of the plant has multiple tops there should be multiple large colas. If you're not comfortable topping you can just bend and then bend some more. For example the big plant pictured was topped once and then then LSTd until the canopy was filled out. Then the smaller plant pictured has never been topped, only bending and tying

 

[InTheShed]

Amazing training SC!

Leaving plants untopped sends most of the auxins to the single main cola, where as training a plant flat will evenly distribute the growth hormones and make for larger tops.

Pretty easy to see which of these were tops and which weren't:

 

[Southerncough]

Amazing training SC!

Leaving plants untopped sends most of the auxins to the single main cola, where as training a plant flat will evenly distribute the growth hormones and make for larger tops.

Pretty easy to see which of these were tops and which weren't:

Thanks! She's getting flipped to 12/12 tomorrow so I'm really excited to see what she'll do in bloom. I wasn't going to let her stretch for a week but decided to give her a running start to develop some vertical colas because she's (supposedly) a 6 week strain and may not stretch much.