Issues with topping vs not topping

W8ing4Buds · Aug 16, 2022

Aqua Man gave you answer that you can take to the bank and invest in 100% crypto.

You will not get better than that.

All that i can say is that you should know what you are doing.
If you are topping you also need to lolipop to get desired efect. If you lolipot you need to defoliate and scrog or tie down some colas....

There is a lot of shit that you can do
If you just want yield and dont want anything else then just let her be as she is.
If you want colas that look the same and get the same sun/light you can top 4-5 times and lolipop the shit out of her.

It depends what you want

growsince79 · Aug 16, 2022

In this age of cheap or free buds, I'm surprised anyone still cares about yield.

dean1963 · Aug 16, 2022

growsince79 said:
In this age of cheap or free buds, I'm surprised anyone still cares about yi

growsince79 said:
In this age of cheap or free buds, I'm surprised anyone still cares about yield.

all depends where you live i guess, the only thing free or cheap here is pure garbage

growsince79 · Aug 16, 2022

dean1963 said:
all depends where you live i guess, the only thing free or cheap here is pure garbage

Good reason to grow then. But why worry about yield? I'm more concerned with quality.

MIGrampaUSA · Aug 16, 2022

Great thread!

I never top, but I make big time use of LST techniques. Why? Because for every cut you make, you need to give the plant time to heal and then grow new greenery. Outside in my greenhouse I've been super-cropping like crazy. Why? - I'm in Michigan ... land of the undesirable fall weather. If all the branches are basically growing vertically, the buds will follow and form huge colas sometimes 2 ft or more long. That's way too dense to survive without damage to the crop once you hit the first or second week of October. If you spread all the branches out somewhat horizontally, all your buds still grow vertically. They have air all around them ... and this goes a long way towards having a successful crop in Michigan.

There's many things you can do. And yes, it does all depend. No 2 plants are identical and after you've grown for a while it becomes second nature in how you respond to what the plant is doing.

P.S. I even do a bit of lollipopping on my outside grows ... and remove small twig size branches starting in late veg through early on during stretch before the plant spends a lot of resources developing the bud sites. I do this for both inside and outside grows.

I'm not interested in yield. It comes pretty much all by itself. I grow 100% for quality. I can buy mediocre bud at the dispensary that probably costs me less than I spend growing it. It really is all about the quality for me ...

TSD · Aug 16, 2022

Last year I topped a few and left a few to become natural trees... the big colas do not fare well in my climate and I almost always need to chop early, my big tops last year could have gone another week more, but it wasn't worth risking mold spreading so they came down early.
This year I didn't top at all. My garden ladies are under a scrog with a relatively even canopy and mostly lollipoped below the scrog. I'm hoping this decreases my chances of bud rot, by increasing airflow and my ability to properly tend to them, as last year I needed a ladder to tend to my plants and they got out of control. This year I'm being much more aggressive with training and pruning. You just have to find the perfect formula for your favorite strains in your climate with the amount of effort you're willing to invest, which will take a few years of trial and error... like @Aqua Man said... it depends.

MIGrampaUSA · Aug 16, 2022

TSD said:
Last year I topped a few and left a few to become natural trees... the big colas do not fare well in my climate and I almost always need to chop early, my big tops last year could have gone another week more, but it wasn't worth risking mold spreading so they came down early.
This year I didn't top at all. My garden ladies are under a scrog with a relatively even canopy and mostly lollipoped below the scrog. I'm hoping this decreases my chances of bud rot, by increasing airflow and my ability to properly tend to them, as last year I needed a ladder to tend to my plants and they got out of control. This year I'm being much more aggressive with training and pruning. You just have to find the perfect formula for your favorite strains in your climate with the amount of effort you're willing to invest, which will take a few years of trial and error... like @Aqua Man said... it depends.

If your branches are basically horizontal along the net as much as possible, your buds will still grow vertically. You'll have many many smaller more uniform sized buds, but each one should fare much better in a New England fall. They get much more airflow and actually ... better lighting too.

Big colas as impressive as they are ... don't mean much if they have to be pitched to due mold and rot issues.

tobh · Aug 17, 2022

Aqua Man said:
We have to stop this all or none thought process, definitive answers for one variable and start thinking in terms of multiple variables.

When you have an equation that requires 50 inputs to give answer and you have 1 input dont have a chance of getting the right answer.
.
.
.
This is not directed at anyone but rather everyone to stop and think about how complex these plants are.

There is very few if an easy answers when growing these plants.

THIS. 100%. That's why we have a thread with a template for "help me" threads, that almost no new member uses. Members that make it to a sizeable post count know what's needed -- either first post provide all the details, or expect 50 different answers.

this shit isn't easy. it's also not hard. there is a shit ton of implicit knowledge, and like when building software, so many variables that come into play that without seeing a holistic picture, implementing one technique doesn't lead to a simple binary result.

Indoors? I top everything. The headroom isn't available to just let a Christmas tree grow. I look to maximize the footprint my lighting provides and yield uniform buds. outdoors if I had the space, i'd leave em be. let them trees do tree things. that's high subjective though and every strain, every phenotype is going to be different, and there are too many other variables at play to say "topping yielded less" as I've even seen clones from the same mother act different. too much shit to control or try and influence to justifiably point at one thing.

i'm reiterating the same shit AMan did. I'm done. done. *steps off soap box*

Madmax · Aug 17, 2022

growsince79 said:
In this age of cheap or free buds, I'm surprised anyone still cares about yield.

Come to the land down under and you will see why brother .

growsince79 · Aug 17, 2022

Madmax said:
Come to the land down under and you will see why brother .

How much longer until they legalize?

Madmax · Aug 17, 2022

You can get cbd on prescription but thats as far as its come so far.i really hope it doesnt..everythings fine how it is except if your growing big time .still some big busts happening here.couple weeks back a dude got pulled over and had 200kgs on him haha.was worth millions..

growsince79 · Aug 17, 2022

Madmax said:
You can get cbd on prescription but thats as far as its come so far.i really hope it doesnt..everythings fine how it is except if your growing big time .still some big busts happening here.couple weeks back a dude got pulled over and had 200kgs on him haha.was worth millions..

Here in my state we went from life in prison and forfeit all assets for growing, to legal for med grows overnight. Quarter of the adult population now is legal to grow.

sambapati · Aug 17, 2022

MIGrampaUSA said:
Great thread! I never top, but I make big time use of LST techniques. Why? Because for every cut you make, you need to give the plant time to heal and then grow new greenery. Outside in my greenhouse I've been super-cropping like crazy. Why? - I'm in Michigan ... land of the undesirable fall weather. If all the branches are basically growing vertically, the buds will follow and form huge colas sometimes 2 ft or more long. That's way too dense to survive without damage to the crop once you hit the first or second week of October. If you spread all the branches out somewhat horizontally, all your buds still grow vertically. They have air all around them ... and this goes a long way towards having a successful crop in Michigan. There's many things you can do. And yes, it does all depend. No 2 plants are identical and after you've grown for a while it becomes second nature in how you respond to what the plant is doing. P.S. I even do a bit of lollipopping on my outside grows ... and remove small twig size branches starting in late veg through early on during stretch before the plant spends a lot of resources developing the bud sites. I do this for both inside and outside grows. I'm not interested in yield. It comes pretty much all by itself. I grow 100% for quality. I can buy mediocre bud at the dispensary that probably costs me less than I spend growing it. It really is all about the quality for me ...

Madmax said:
Come to the land down under and you will see why brother .

U

Madmax said:
Come to the land down under and you will see why brother .

During the last few months my electric bill has shot up and is slated to be 18% higher next month. When I take into account that -- my comprehensive cost -- is pretty darn high. In the future for fixed income farmers it may be outside is the only available option because of $$$ not preference. In the future our environment will make also make some decisions for us.

Madmax · Aug 17, 2022

Yeh powers getting ridiculous..luckily i get my own wood which saves heaps not runnng the heat pump..you go buy wood and guys are charging 200-250 for a ute load and wouldnt even b half a ton there..people getting ripped bad...

GomerPyle · Aug 17, 2022

1st post ever. Been lurking here since the first of the year. Thanks to the community for the advice and support. Got rousted for an attic grow in '93 that ended a whole lot cleaner that I could have ever dreamed. Managing to escape any real legal damage that time, I've longed for the opportunity to grow again. Counter to my own predictions, we're legal now! Just about to chop for the 2nd time. LED and MH/HPS differences were evident in the first crop, but I still got some nice Bubba Kush. I've found that my choice of hydro seems to work well for me. I'm a mostly analog guy, so total precision is not an emphasis for me. Even so, I seem to be able to handle aquaculture with a certain ease. 2.5'x5' tent with 4" 195cfm charcoal blower. 6" variable speed fresh air does a good job of keeping the interior fresh, and I almost never have any issues with "earthiness" as mom describes it, even at the height of bloom. 2nd cut of buds is looking quite nice, as I subscribe to the old school idea there's no such thing as too much light. This round the plants are quite compact, as I had a hard finish date in mind and chose medium height strains. The fact is, I'm having a blast, and getting blasted. Best part is not fearing the dreaded gestapo knock. Looking forward to my Super Skunk and Platinum Bubba Kush in a few weeks! Thanks again everyone. If y'all don't have the exact answer, I'm usually easily led to the resources required for any specific situation. It is such a joy to be able to finally be able to grow this wonderful and beautiful plant without threat to my freedom. Happy harvest y'all!

sambapati · Aug 17, 2022

GomerPyle said:
1st post ever. Been lurking here since the first of the year. Thanks to the community for the advice and support. Got rousted for an attic grow in '93 that ended a whole lot cleaner that I could have ever dreamed. Managing to escape any real legal damage that time, I've longed for the opportunity to grow again. Counter to my own predictions, we're legal now! Just about to chop for the 2nd time. LED and MH/HPS differences were evident in the first crop, but I still got some nice Bubba Kush. I've found that my choice of hydro seems to work well for me. I'm a mostly analog guy, so total precision is not an emphasis for me. Even so, I seem to be able to handle aquaculture with a certain ease. 2.5'x5' tent with 4" 195cfm charcoal blower. 6" variable speed fresh air does a good job of keeping the interior fresh, and I almost never have any issues with "earthiness" as mom describes it, even at the height of bloom. 2nd cut of buds is looking quite nice, as I subscribe to the old school idea there's no such thing as too much light. This round the plants are quite compact, as I had a hard finish date in mind and chose medium height strains. The fact is, I'm having a blast, and getting blasted. Best part is not fearing the dreaded gestapo knock. Looking forward to my Super Skunk and Platinum Bubba Kush in a few weeks! Thanks again everyone. If y'all don't have the exact answer, I'm usually easily led to the resources required for any specific situation. It is such a joy to be able to finally be able to grow this wonderful and beautiful plant without threat to my freedom. Happy harvest y'all!

Free at Last Free @ Last

PipeCarver · Aug 17, 2022

MIGrampaUSA said:
If your branches are basically horizontal along the net as much as possible, your buds will still grow vertically. You'll have many many smaller more uniform sized buds, but each one should fare much better in a New England fall. They get much more airflow and actually ... better lighting too.

Big colas as impressive as they are ... don't mean much if they have to be pitched to due mold and rot issues.

My big cola's are only impressive while growing and taking pics of, once dried I tend to bust them down to smaller buds for curing any ways.

Aqua Man · Aug 17, 2022

Welcome to the farm @GomerPyle

Madmax · Aug 17, 2022

Aqua Man said:
Welcome to the farm @GomerPyle

PipeCarver said:
My big cola's are only impressive while growing and taking pics of, once dried I tend to bust them down to smaller buds for curing any ways.

Yeah ...I cant wait for them to dry as im always nervous there is mold in them so i cut them up .my buds are nearly as big as a main cola even from topping day 3 of flower.it worked perfectly for the stain i ran...slowed height growth which was the reason i topped and to see if i got less mold..still got it but less of it..setting up a few hepa filter on intake .that should stop it dead..

Buzzzz · Aug 17, 2022

Ilike2grow said:
For the past 2 grows I’ve done a experiment. Both grows I topped 2 and left 2 to grow normally. Each grow the un topped plants had a lot bigger harvests. I thought topping increases yield but it didn’t for me. I’m topping them correctly and they are coming out good. But why are my un topped plants giving me a bigger harvest? Shouldn’t it be the other way around?

I think the reasoning is light penetration and more buds yet small but ends up a higher yield,it is also somewhat strain dependent

Issues with topping vs not topping

Issues with topping vs not topping

W8ing4Buds

growsince79

dean1963

growsince79

MIGrampaUSA

TSD

MIGrampaUSA

tobh

Madmax

growsince79

Madmax

growsince79

sambapati

Madmax

GomerPyle

sambapati

PipeCarver

Aqua Man

Madmax

Buzzzz

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