Pinching to incease yields...

[stonedwoodsman]

High Fellow Gardeners,

I feel like a 'Human-Cement-Mixer-Bot', after mixing & blending my 'sifted & rich, garden-soil' with potting soil, peat moss and many amendments, for the last four days.
I have a nice homogonous mix going on though, that I'm happy with. (I'm trying some on corn flakes tonight)!
I made about a pickup truck load! (Great upper body workout, gardening, don't ya think)? :hubba:
'Been transplanting 33 day old young, strong beauties, some 1 foot tall already. Sooo, I've been thinking...
I've been reading about different views on pinching/topping plants, at every 4th leaf internode, to increase branching out, & to keep plants Low.
A plant can grow 4,5,6 top Colas by flowering time, in Sept or Oct[Outdoors].
I've got 4 & 5 leaf internodes now, sooo...

-Should I pinch or not?

BTW-is pinching/topping 'different for different strains' ?
I mean for some strains you should pinch and some strains you shouldn't?

Ahh, "To Pinch or Not to Pinch, that is the Question",

Thankx,

StonedWoodsman :icon_smile:

 

[4u2sm0ke]

I started pinching jy outdoor ladies a couple weeks ago...looking for wide bushes this year ..rather than the 16 foot trees


:48:

 

[grass hopper]

High Fellow Gardeners,

I feel like a 'Human-Cement-Mixer-Bot', after mixing & blending my 'sifted & rich, garden-soil' with potting soil, peat moss and many amendments, for the last four days.
I have a nice homogonous mix going on though, that I'm happy with. (I'm trying some on corn flakes tonight)!
I made about a pickup truck load! (Great upper body workout, gardening, don't ya think)? :hubba:
'Been transplanting 33 day old young, strong beauties, some 1 foot tall already. Sooo, I've been thinking...
I've been reading about different views on pinching/topping plants, at every 4th leaf internode, to increase branching out, & to keep plants Low.
A plant can grow 4,5,6 top Colas by flowering time, in Sept or Oct[Outdoors].
I've got 4 & 5 leaf internodes now, sooo...

As you may have read, I love pinching. Outdoors I start when transplanted out and going strong, usually between 12-20 inches tall. W/every punch I average 3 new tops. Sometimes 2, sometimes 4 but usually 3..
Start w/ 4 tops for example. Than 12 , 36, 108 etc. It's time consuming but so rewarding.
Your plants will be wider than tall and trimming takes forever. A lot more than 5 or 6 colas... GOODLUCK

 

[FarmToTable]

I have similar questions..I've got 14 plants I started from FEM seeds 6 weeks ago. I've put a few out and have a few to go out. I've topped all of them a few times but they are just getting tall. I want to basically hack em down before I put them out.

How aggressive can you trim/ prune these things without hurting them? Can I cut anywhere there is a crotch with 2 new growths on either side?

 

[grass hopper]

I have similar questions..I've got 14 plants I started from FEM seeds 6 weeks ago. I've put a few out and have a few to go out. I've topped all of them a few times but they are just getting tall. I want to basically hack em down before I put them out.

How aggressive can you trim/ prune these things without hurting them? Can I cut anywhere there is a crotch with 2 new growths on either side?

Don't know.. Though pinching will slow vertical growth and make them much W I D E R , fuller.Gently grasp new green/yellow leaf sites between thumb and pointer finger. It will FEEL like a 1/8-1/4 inch ball of leaves. Gently cut this BALL at halfway point with your fingernail.You will slow down vertical growth for a few days. Next,3 new tops (2-4) will replace your single top. Let grow 6-10 inches, whatever, and pinch again. Now you will have 9 new tops (bud sites). The more you pinch,the wider and shorter your plant will finish.This was the way i was taught. jmo Considered autos??

WHY?? Are you concerned about visibility??

 

[The Hemp Goddess]

If you want to keep them shorter, I would top or fim.

 

[crazdad777]

fim its the only way 2 go..makes them very bushy and u will get more bud.

 

[grass hopper]

fim its the only way 2 go..makes them very bushy and u will get more bud.

I avg. a pound a plant w/ pinching but is somewhat time consuming. I had 2 plants last year that may have gotten 2 lbs. Ea. But the winds/rain got over half of them. It's so hard to stake real monster bushy plants. If I was better, more consistent w/ pinching I probably could do better. Too many plants. I hear about people getting 3 lbs. A plant. Could you detail how you fim and what you avg. per plant in an outdoor grow ???
Do people fim on indoor grows??? Thanks as always ! :icon_smile: