# Latest time you can trim undergrowth?



## primitive (Oct 20, 2009)

This question is for anyone who does scrog, lollipopping, any method involving removing the lower level branches to redistribute the popcorn bud weight up top.  

I'm doing 4x4 scrog so anything under the screen/canopy has to be removed due to it recieving no light, i.e. wasted energy, that much I get just fine.

*The question is, how late in its' life can I trim the lower growing tips before the stress of it decreases my yeild?  In addition, what would be the ideal time to do so?*

I'm experimenting with new strains and I'm no expert to begin with, so with the different growth patterns of the strains it's hard to tell by the first week of flower if it's going to reach the canopy or not.  I''ve slowly been  cutting the  all the shoots and leaves beneath the canopy at 18-22 day into flower when it's obvious which won't reach.  But I worry I am stressing them out to late.  SO, please, any and many answers would be appreciated


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## dirtyolsouth (Oct 21, 2009)

HI Primitive,

It would be a good idea to stop any more pruning at this point...   And imho about 15-20 days is the latest into flowering I like to give my girls the last 'sucker' pruning...   Ideally I like to stop by the time flowering becomes prolific and the stretch slows down so you're probably right there...  some don't like to prune this late but if you're trying to force all the flowering energy up at the screen it sounds like you did well...  I've done a few SCROG but I'm not too crazy about it...  I hate cutting my buds out of the rabbit wire... lol..  I almost always, top, lollipop and often some LST to tie down the 4 main stems and spread open the canopy...  I'll then thin out the bud sites and sucker shoots but I'll also let some develop for buds and with the canopy spread open they good ample light...   Good luck...  I hope all goes well...

Happy Growing!


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## dr pyro (Oct 21, 2009)

:yeahthat:


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## JBonez (Oct 21, 2009)

essentially, pruning does stress the plants, but imo & experience, the stress caused wouldnt be a factor in hermaphroditic capability.

usually light leaks are the culprit, or the plants chromosomes carry the dominant genes for hermaphroditic behavior.

I would stop right now, only because i prune the first week and the third week, after that, any induced stress would simply affect yields as the plant would divert its energy to repair rather than pistillate formation.

jmo.


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## 4u2sm0ke (Oct 21, 2009)

I  agree  with  *jbones*...i  dont  do  anything  after  2nd  week  in  flower cycle...as  the  plant  focuses  more  on the healling  then the  THC  production...as  for  stressing  a  plant...some  strains  are  better  then others..Hope  this  helps..take  care and be safe:bolt::bong:


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## docfishwrinkle (Oct 21, 2009)

primitive i do all heavy pruning up to 2 wks b4 flower. let her recoupe 4 1-2 wks then flip to 12/12. then throughout the rest of her life i just run fingers down stem to knock off any new growth tips


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## chris1974 (Oct 21, 2009)

4u2sm0ke said:
			
		

> I agree with *jbones*...i dont do anything after 2nd week in flower cycle...as the plant focuses more on the healling then the THC production...as for stressing a plant...some strains are better then others..Hope this helps..take care and be safe:bolt::bong:


 
I will 3rd the motion fellas, nothin after the 2nd week of flowering in my book !  Good luck


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## primitive (Oct 21, 2009)

chris1974 said:
			
		

> I will 3rd the motion fellas, nothin after the 2nd week of flowering in my book ! Good luck


 
I'm going to use this as my starting rule of thumb then, no real pruning after 2nd week of flower.

Thanks to all who responded


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## primitive (Oct 21, 2009)

docfishwrinkle said:
			
		

> primitive i do all heavy pruning up to 2 wks b4 flower. let her recoupe 4 1-2 wks then flip to 12/12. then throughout the rest of her life *i just run fingers down stem to knock off any new growth tips*


 
Thank you, the part of your quote I put in bold brings up another question I've been meaning to ask, and that's what is considered genuine(i.e.,fairly stressful) pruning?  

Like, when we talk about danger pruning past a certain stage, does that really only apply to cutting off solid shoots that require trimmers, and is it fairly harmless to pinch off tiny growth buds and 2'' thin shoots near the base later into flower?


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## docfishwrinkle (Oct 21, 2009)

ive done it on just about all my plants & cant say ive seen ill effects. this is JMO though


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## primitive (Oct 25, 2009)

Thanks, I  thought so.

So, I have a small consensus here that trimming undergrowth should be finished by the second week.  Let me get a little more specific now. On one of my tables, I didn't get at the undergrowth much at all, just laziness and activities got in the way, they are now 28 day in and I've barely trimmed the undergrowth on a few of the outer plants, in a 16 plant, 4x4 setup.

So, I'm going to trim under the canopy now, just for the airflow and lower risk of mold.  The question is how much.

Does anyone have any idea if pruning the lower growth this late will cause enough stress to actually decrease yeild at the top?


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## docfishwrinkle (Oct 25, 2009)

major trimming i wouldnt a month in flower. minor trimming yes. im saying primary branches off main stem NO, but shoots off primary banch yes. ive done when things got outta control & no light on plants just left to grow. my scrog was trimmed @ that point (lesson learned). cant say if really depleated yield. def helped w/ air movement. id rather have less bud then poor moldy condtions in the grow room.


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## fleshstain (Oct 25, 2009)

i would say only trim what you absolutely have to.... at the most you'll probably just add another week or 2 to the flowering time.... depending on how much you trim of course....

another option would be to double harvest it.... leave it the way it is and let it continue to flower.... when the main colas are done cut them but leave the popcorn and immature buds another week or 2 to finish up....


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## primitive (Oct 26, 2009)

fleshstain said:
			
		

> i would say only trim what you absolutely have to.... at the most you'll probably just add another week or 2 to the flowering time.... depending on how much you trim of course....
> 
> another option would be to double harvest it.... leave it the way it is and let it continue to flower.... when the main colas are done cut them but leave the popcorn and immature buds another week or 2 to finish up....


 
I can't add that much time to flower, also would the stress actually delay when the triches turn amber/cloudy?  I've never heard that.

Double harvest isn;t an option either i'm afraid.


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## primitive (Oct 26, 2009)

docfishwrinkle said:
			
		

> major trimming i wouldnt a month in flower. minor trimming yes. im saying primary branches off main stem NO, but shoots off primary banch yes. ive done when things got outta control & no light on plants just left to grow. my scrog was trimmed @ that point (lesson learned). cant say if really depleated yield. def helped w/ air movement. id rather have less bud then poor moldy condtions in the grow room.


 
I think what Iill do is just cut all the leaves that won't get light and leaveb the buds as scaggly popcorn for bubblehash.


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## omnigr33n (Oct 26, 2009)

I never trim anything from my plant.


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## fleshstain (Oct 26, 2009)

primitive said:
			
		

> I think what Iill do is just cut all the leaves that won't get light and leaveb the buds as scaggly popcorn for bubblehash.



i wouldn't cut the leaves unless they're dying or damaged.... 

i've got 1 experience with pruning late into flowering.... i've been growing the same strain from clone for almost 2 years now.... the flowering time is consistently 8-9 weeks.... i keep a pretty tight ship as far as my regimen goes when i know how a strain grows well.... i had put 10 in at the same time.... all were same height, had almost the same amount of growth, and equal as far as root mass when i transplanted.... about 5 weeks in i had to pull a couple lower branches of 1 to have some form of smoke.... the other 9 finished in 60-62 days.... the 1 i pulled the branches from finished in 73.... i account the extra time to the stress from being pruned that late into flowering....

keep in mind this is just my 1 experience with this issue....


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## docfishwrinkle (Oct 26, 2009)

fleshstain everything you say is true for a natural growing plant, but primitive is growing in a scrog. primitive im guessing you dont have access to a camera?


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## fleshstain (Oct 26, 2009)

i don't have any scrog experience so i just assumed it would still stress the plant in some way non-beneficial....


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## Parcero (Oct 27, 2009)

I just trimmed all lower budsites that did not have any cristal formed yet. It was day 31 flowering and I cut over 90 branches from 15 plants.

Let's see...


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## primitive (Oct 28, 2009)

docfishwrinkle said:
			
		

> fleshstain everything you say is true for a natural growing plant, but primitive is growing in a scrog. primitive im guessing you dont have access to a camera?


 
I'm going to try to get hold of one today.


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