Help Pruning Questions???!!!! -- First time grow!!!!!

Hey!
This is my first grow and my plants are just over a week into flowering and i have a regular watering schedule (every morning with nutrients). I have been reading that pruning away fan leaves will allow for bud sites to receive more light and produce a higher yield. Is this true? Also will the plant go into shock? Any help would be great! Thanks!

I wouldn't do it.

Hello Dr Vapenstein....I wouldn't do that....your plants need their fan leaves to collect light to make energy to grow their buds.....if the plants where a lot larger there might be some use in trimming the inner leaves back but,I think yours are fine as they are for the moment

Dr. Vapenstein said:

Hey!
This is my first grow and my plants are just over a week into flowering and i have a regular watering schedule (every morning with nutrients). I have been reading that pruning away fan leaves will allow for bud sites to receive more light and produce a higher yield. Is this true? Also will the plant go into shock? Any help would be great! Thanks!

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You don't water & feed every day for starts. You water when the soil dries out and if you want you feed too if necessary, but I digress.
You never remove fan leaves unless they are turning yellow then get rid of them cut the leaf off mid leaf stalk, don't rip it off the plant. You can tuck the fan leaves out of the way of a bud site though.

Man those babies look fine.

I wouldn't touch them either.

You picked a good size to flower at with your lighting setup, and your plants look happy.

At about 4 weeks into flowering you might clip off any lanky unproductive lower branches to focus flowers at the top where your lights reach well, but leave the fans if you can.

I would like to see the results of your grow.

How old were they when you started flowering?

"You water when the soil dries out and if you want you feed too if necessary, but I digress."

Thanks for the info! How often do you think I should add the nutrients to the water?

They actually started off pretty poorly and it took a good while to grow them up. Id say about 5-6 weeks. That sounds really long though... what is typical?

The plants will tell you when they are hungry if you listen.

If you are starting with a green healthy plant just the very growing tip will be lime green.

As the plant uses the nutes up in the soil this lime green portion will begin to get larger and go further and further down the stems.

When you notice the lime green portion of the growing tip getting more pronounced feed it. You must be really in tune to get it just right.

Each grow is different but if you mix for 1/4 strength avery 2-3 times you water.

Will the green be on the leaf itself or only on the stem? Thanks for your help man i really appreciate it! and i will definitely keep you posted on the crop!

Dr. Vapenstein said:

Thanks for the info! How often do you think I should add the nutrients to the water?

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I do it every time I water but quarter strength. But plants shouldn't be drying out for over 5-7 days or you need to repot. Are you watering to the point of runoff ?

ive been adding 1 teaspoon of nutrients to a gallon of water. and watering every plant when i begin the light cycle in the morning with about 20 ounces of water (about 3/4 of a larger sports top water bottle) or a full 25 ounces (a full bottle) for the larger plants. there usually is not too much run off but i do make sure i get the entire surface area of the soil wet. is this wrong? should i only be watering around the base? thanks for the help!

Dr. Vapenstein said:

there usually is not too much run off but i do make sure i get the entire surface area of the soil wet. is this wrong? should i only be watering around the base? thanks for the help!

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What basis are you using to determine the plant needs watering ? Cannabis needs a dry down period so that oxygen is drawn down into the soil. I use a moisture meter but I can tell when it's getting close to needing it by the weight.
Your pot should feel only slightly heavier than an equal size pot full of dry soil before you water. I'm starting to think that's why your plants are that pale green, over watering.

every morning when i go to water them the soil looks and feels dry. i put a finger in the soil to feel if its damp or not. how much does a moisture meter cost and how do they work? sorry for all the newb questions!

Dr. Vapenstein said:

every morning when i go to water them the soil looks and feels dry. i put a finger in the soil to feel if its damp or not. how much does a moisture meter cost and how do they work? sorry for all the newb questions!

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a cheap ones around $5-10 bucks. I've had mine for over 25 years but that's a $20 one with a light meter and PH probe (useless) too. I can't see how plants as small as yours would need watering so often. Try the weight test if you have an extra pot and soil.

does the light meter work well though? do you think its a good investment (i plan on growing for a while i got my liscence!) and if so where can i get one! thanks for your help!

Dr. Vapenstein said:

does the light meter work well though? do you think its a good investment (i plan on growing for a while i got my liscence!) and if so where can i get one! thanks for your help!

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I don't know, I've nothing to compare it to, I rarely use it really. Good for find light dead zones and if your lights too far away. I see them in big gardening centers if you got those anywhere. I could live without it but not the moisture meter.

Awesome thanks so much for your help!

i didnt see a fan man u should get it if you dont got it........thats verry imortant (AIrFLOW).but dont trim to much youll stress the plant.

Heres a better idea of how my grow room is set up. These pictures are just two days after the first ones posted. The water jug is a mixture of water, yeast, and sugar for CO2 (just put in today). Are there any more suggestions on things i could do? And how are they lookin?

There are also small little yellow-green spots on one of the plants fan leaves. The spots have created small holes in some areas (the circles of white crust are just dried water droplets). Any idea on what these are? I tried to take a picture but my camera resolution on my phone isnt that great. Any input would be great! Thanks so much!

The picture on the top right portion with the metal domes on top left and bottom of the picture is of the two plants (used to be 6 but found out today three are male ) found behind the largest plant in the second picture.

The last picture (with the water jug) is for size comparison!

Look very carefully at the undersides of the leaves on the plant with holes in it (use a magnifying glass.


There is some kind of bug doing that my man. Nute and water problems generally don't make holes in the foliage.

I also agree with frmrboi about the watering issue. Every day seems like a lot, but I see no signs of overwatering in your plants.

I got my soil moisture meter at Wal Mart for $4 and I wouldn't be without it.