Advice please. Trying SCROG

[Sixx]

So my 2nd grow ever is under way... Thanks to THG for inspiring me to try a SCROG grow. Heres a current pic. I am growing 2 different strains this time (3 of each). The big ones in back are regi bag seed, and the 3 in front were given to me by a friend...supposedly some super phunky super sticky stuff.
Anyway...I hope Im left with 4 girls to work with, and I should know fairly soon as they are 5 weeks old give or take a few days.

My screen is 16" above the lids. Should I top these a time or 2 ? Would that force more top colas, and promote more side growth to catch up to the canopy... Seems like all that would just benefit a scrog. Or am I missing something ??

When should the light be switched to 12/12 ?? After the screen is full from Veg growth ?? Or can I switch to 12/12 as soon as they mature and show sex, and finish filling the screen as they flower ?

Ive read about scrogs on MP here... but if anyone has links or info to more detailed guides I would appreciate your feedback. The info Im looking for is the "How to do it properly" guide. (If that makes sense). Like how to properly fill your screen, when to go 12/12, when to prune, trim the stalk under the screen. ect ect....
Again this is my 2nd grow....1st Scrog...But I would like to do as much right as possible... So throw it at me...comments, questions, links... Go Go Go

 

[OGKushman]

Pardon me as I do not use this method; but, doesnt that screen block a significant amount of light? Do you, or anyone that that used this type of mesh screen, know what the lux-loss is under that screen?? I own a digital light meter so it'd be an easy test

 

[akhockey]

You should not he running unsexed plants in a scrog. Males will be a nightmare to remove. You should run this grow without the screen and take cuttings from your best female. Then run the cuttings in a scrog next go around. As far as when to flip 12/12 dont wait until the screen is completely full. After flip keep tucking them as they stretch. Id say a little over half full then flip IMO.

 

[bi0phreak420]

Scrog Allows All The Light To Go To The Buds Once They Get To A Point You Dont Need Light Underneath

Yeah he knows that he just took pick with screen in there .he gonna wait til they sex just like i am doing

 

[OGKushman]

I understand the point of a even and dense coverage of tops. Just think that screen is overkill.

 

[bi0phreak420]

Look in the grow journals you will be surprised

 

[Sixx]

You should not he running unsexed plants in a scrog. Males will be a nightmare to remove. You should run this grow without the screen and take cuttings from your best female. Then run the cuttings in a scrog next go around. As far as when to flip 12/12 dont wait until the screen is completely full. After flip keep tucking them as they stretch. Id say a little over half full then flip IMO.

They should show sex in a week or so. The plan is to put the screen in a couple inches above the canopy once the males are removed...Maybe veg another week or so after that, then switch to 12/12 finish filling the screen and placing bud sites to holes. I understand SCROG will benefit limited space and lower than par light conditions...I meet both these conditions which is why I decided to SCROG this time. Or am I misinformed ? IM using 8 26W CFLs (6500K) currently. Will switch to 2700K to flower. I know Im underlit...But I already know my light will produce quality bud.

 

[marcnh]

shouldnt you have two inch holes in that screen?

wait till they have some strong side branches then top them. you can also pre-sex them, real easy.

 

[akhockey]

They should show sex in a week or so. The plan is to put the screen in a couple inches above the canopy once the males are removed...Maybe veg another week or so after that, then switch to 12/12 finish filling the screen and placing bud sites to holes. I understand SCROG will benefit limited space and lower than par light conditions...I meet both these conditions which is why I decided to SCROG this time. Or am I misinformed ? IM using 8 26W CFLs (6500K) currently. Will switch to 2700K to flower. I know Im underlit...But I already know my light will produce quality bud.

You are correct that scrog is great for smaller spaces and you are underlit but rather than whip a dead horse know that with less intense light, your plants will stretch more and you will be filling in alot of screen after flipping. I made the mistake of filling too much of my screen and was growing a strain that stretched much more than i had anticipated and ran out of holes to fill. I ended up having to top everything 3 weeks into 12/12 which im sure trashed my yield. Play around with it. It will be a learning curve

 

[akhockey]

I understand the point of a even and dense coverage of tops. Just think that screen is overkill.

Yeah but with a screen you can run fewer plants with a longer veg time and get the same amount of tops as a SOG. If you have plant count concerns.

 

[woodydude]

I asked some similar questions about a SCROG a while back and the answers were, only fill the screen 75% before flipping. Do NOT top the plants, creating the screen removes the need to top.
Sex them before putting the screen near then.
I would suggest, as ahockey did, that you grow out these plants but take cuttings and use the ones from your best fem for a SCROG. By doing this, you have an idea how big it will grow and how it will grow. Also, you can start to fill your screen sooner, remember the idea is that the whole plant is basically canopy and a bit of stem.
Good luck & green mojo on its way

 

[fruity86]

like woody said get that screen right down on top of them, clone or seed start training soon as they root/shell pops off, il see if i have a couple pics of my first vert scrog so you can see the growth once flipped i filled about 1/4 of the then flipped i didnt even get half the screen filled

EDIT sorry i dont have the pics any more

 

[Sixx]

shouldnt you have two inch holes in that screen?

wait till they have some strong side branches then top them. you can also pre-sex them, real easy.

Pre-sex them, real easy ??? Id love a little more info on that subject as well.
How to pre-sex ?

 

[fruity86]

take a cutting and put in on 12/12 ive never done it but i think you dont need to root it first hopefully some 1 will give better info

 

[frankcos]

The cutting isn't going to show sex unless the plant you took it from was sexually mature. It will just continue to grow in 12-12 until it reaches maturity itself. Usually when the nodes start to alternate is when the plant is mature in my experience.