Topping question/advice

Hey guys, these 2 babies of mine are almost 3 weeks in soil and I would like to practice topping or lollipopping!(to focus cola growth on the top leaves?) I'm relatively new to growing marijuana so I would like to know if these can be lollipopped or topped already this early. These plants are actually growing horizontally more than vertically (4.5 in height, 9 in width.) -- Is the plant too short? Any advice for vertical growth?

Setup:
1x 85w CFL
1x 600w

Medium:
Biobizz Light Mix soil with the full line of Biobizz Nutrients maintained at a temperature range from 24-29c (I live in a tropical country.) pH is 5.5 but I water them with pH 7 nutes. Lights are 1 ft. away from the plants.
Help would be greatly appreciated!

firstly, lolipopping and topping are two very different techniques.. lolipopping is removing about the bottom 1/3rd or so of all growth from the main stem.. some people feel that these parts of the plant don't get much light, therefore they don't produce much bud, and strip them..
topping on the other hand, is when you pinch, or cut, the main meristem of the plant, which will make two, or more, depending on where the top was made, new growing "tops"..

i'd personally wait a bit longer for them to grow a bit more before i did either.. i'd say once they reach about a foot or so, you can top them..
my $.02

agreed. wait a bit more. you are definitley on the right track. pruning back is the way to go for better yields

FRANMACHINE said:

Hey guys, these 2 babies of mine are almost 3 weeks in soil and I would like to practice topping or lollipopping!(to focus cola growth on the top leaves?) I'm relatively new to growing marijuana so I would like to know if these can be lollipopped or topped already this early. These plants are actually growing horizontally more than vertically (4.5 in height, 9 in width.) -- Is the plant too short? Any advice for vertical growth?

Setup:
1x 85w CFL
1x 600w

Medium:
Biobizz Light Mix soil with the full line of Biobizz Nutrients maintained at a temperature range from 24-29c (I live in a tropical country.) pH is 5.5 but I water them with pH 7 nutes. Lights are 1 ft. away from the plants.
View attachment 3319378 View attachment 3319380 View attachment 3319381 View attachment 3319382 Help would be greatly appreciated!

Click to expand...

Looking good friend .
I lollipop. But I usually wait till the flowering stretch to do that .
From the looks of it you have already topped one in your last picture .
Ether way . The best way to figure out what's best . Is to go out on a limb and try it .
I mean ask .. But when you feel it's right it probably is .... Or isn't ether way you'll figure it out

"Is the plant too short?" As a general rule short and bushy are better than any tall plant if height under your flowering light may be a factor now or in the future. Reason is that the bushiness is a factor of having many side branches. Each side branch has at least one. and mostly many more, growing points. Growing points are bud sites. Many is good. Just make sure to do a mental walk-through of what your flowering room will look like. Figure on height doubling while flowering. Guesstimate is that you'll need about 4 square feet of floor space to flower each plant. Just rough numbers, eh?

Must be an interesting story about the last pic. Looks like she had a near-fatal bend over and you were able to keep her going. Notice what the main stem looks like in that bottom pic. See how the main stem suddenly sprouts 2 colas? That is exactly what a proper topping job should look like. Every small branch end you remove will grow back 2 in it's place. So, if you want bushy plants trim the side branches to make the plant grow out. Topping or FIMing the main cola will produce 2-4 main stems. When you top the main stem try to make as straight a line you can parallel to the floor. The straighter that cut the more uniform in height your 2-4 colas will be. Remember topping and FIMing is an art. One of my proudest days was a bit ago when I managed a topping at 3 weeks and then FIMmed both main colas 10 days later. Harvested a bush with 8 perfect main colas all the same height. It's hard to type while patting myself on the back, eh?

Note re: last pic -- Might be a good idea to consider topping both main colas on that plant. When you got 2 main colas that separated real early like that plant they tend to fall over in opposite directions. So I'd top them both at the same height or get some pipecleaners to pull the main colas together. Will save some headaches later. The other plants are prime for topping imo.

Good luck, BigSteve.

Some great advice on here. Me personally, I would top at bout that size bc I like to only use the bottom 4 branches (sometimes I'll remove the first set and use the second or third) as what will ultimately become my four main tops; but usually I'll wind up topping at least 2 of those branches to keep the growth uniform. My plants are about 4 weeks, but don't feel bad howbsmall yours are, i had similar resukts my first few weeks in. You will figure out little things to help speed up your growth like when/how much to water, leaving them alone in general, etc..


In my opinion, those are some decent examples of some multi - topped plants that got topped early on. Like others said, you're on the right track-- your yield is going to GREATLY depend on the training they get, which literally (with time) shapes the plant. Just remember, you mostly train in veg, and very little in early flower. Definitely wait til flower to lollipop them, unless along the way you notice lower branches that are much smaller than branches that are higher up above them, and aren't getting much light. They are generally a lightee greenish/yellow than the parts higher up. Those are safe to remove earlier on. And if you wind up developing a grow style where you go for longer veg times (like me) then you can remove basically all of the bottom branches (not the original branches that become tops, but the branches that grow off of these tops) as soon as they start sprouting. Because with a longer veg time and bigger plants, those lower branches won't get much light anyways and will stretch toward the canopy, often times still unable to reach the light, which only costs the plant resources that could've have been used higher up.

Your plants would be a good candidate for Uncle Ben's topping technique where you let it grow to 5 nodes and then top it above the second TRUE node to grow four main colas. This topping or mainlining will give you the best yield of all topping techniques.

Keep in mind that this type of topping will add about 2 weeks to your veg time.

lilroach said:

Your plants would be a good candidate for Uncle Ben's topping technique where you let it grow to 5 nodes and then top it above the second TRUE node to grow four main colas. This topping or mainlining will give you the best yield of all topping techniques.

Keep in mind that this type of topping will add about 2 weeks to your veg time.

Click to expand...

Agreed, that's exactly what I was talking about. I forgot to mention, but I'm sure uncle Bens technique is still posted around here somewhere. It never let me down! You can also kind of mix that style with main lining for insane cola production.

racerboy71 said:

firstly, lolipopping and topping are two very different techniques.. lolipopping is removing about the bottom 1/3rd or so of all growth from the main stem.. some people feel that these parts of the plant don't get much light, therefore they don't produce much bud, and strip them..
topping on the other hand, is when you pinch, or cut, the main meristem of the plant, which will make two, or more, depending on where the top was made, new growing "tops"..

i'd personally wait a bit longer for them to grow a bit more before i did either.. i'd say once they reach about a foot or so, you can top them..
my $.02

Click to expand...

ohhhh thanks for correcting me!

Diabolical666 said:

agreed. wait a bit more. you are definitley on the right track. pruning back is the way to go for better yields

Click to expand...

Will do! Gonna wait for them to be 1ft tall!

mofucka said:

Looking good friend .
I lollipop. But I usually wait till the flowering stretch to do that .
From the looks of it you have already topped one in your last picture .
Ether way . The best way to figure out what's best . Is to go out on a limb and try it .
I mean ask .. But when you feel it's right it probably is .... Or isn't ether way you'll figure it out

Click to expand...

I actually didn't top it on purpose! It just grew that way! It was probably when she got bent while I was transplanting!

bigsteve said:

"Is the plant too short?" As a general rule short and bushy are better than any tall plant if height under your flowering light may be a factor now or in the future. Reason is that the bushiness is a factor of having many side branches. Each side branch has at least one. and mostly many more, growing points. Growing points are bud sites. Many is good. Just make sure to do a mental walk-through of what your flowering room will look like. Figure on height doubling while flowering. Guesstimate is that you'll need about 4 square feet of floor space to flower each plant. Just rough numbers, eh?

Must be an interesting story about the last pic. Looks like she had a near-fatal bend over and you were able to keep her going. Notice what the main stem looks like in that bottom pic. See how the main stem suddenly sprouts 2 colas? That is exactly what a proper topping job should look like. Every small branch end you remove will grow back 2 in it's place. So, if you want bushy plants trim the side branches to make the plant grow out. Topping or FIMing the main cola will produce 2-4 main stems. When you top the main stem try to make as straight a line you can parallel to the floor. The straighter that cut the more uniform in height your 2-4 colas will be. Remember topping and FIMing is an art. One of my proudest days was a bit ago when I managed a topping at 3 weeks and then FIMmed both main colas 10 days later. Harvested a bush with 8 perfect main colas all the same height. It's hard to type while patting myself on the back, eh?

Note re: last pic -- Might be a good idea to consider topping both main colas on that plant. When you got 2 main colas that separated real early like that plant they tend to fall over in opposite directions. So I'd top them both at the same height or get some pipecleaners to pull the main colas together. Will save some headaches later. The other plants are prime for topping imo.

Good luck, BigSteve.

Click to expand...

There actually is a story behind it! They got bent very young when I was transplanting them to the ultra-oxy pot now. I just packed the soil around the stem to support the fracture! Blessing in disguise actually. Now I know what an actual topped plant looks like!

How many times do you top your plant? Can you combine all the techniques? Also on the side note, when you cut the bottom branches, how do you prevent them from sprouting new leaves to focus on the growth of the main stem?

Very helpful advice! Thanks!

growing_thunder said:

Some great advice on here. Me personally, I would top at bout that size bc I like to only use the bottom 4 branches (sometimes I'll remove the first set and use the second or third) as what will ultimately become my four main tops; but usually I'll wind up topping at least 2 of those branches to keep the growth uniform. My plants are about 4 weeks, but don't feel bad howbsmall yours are, i had similar resukts my first few weeks in. You will figure out little things to help speed up your growth like when/how much to water, leaving them alone in general, etc..
View attachment 3319671 View attachment 3319672

In my opinion, those are some decent examples of some multi - topped plants that got topped early on. Like others said, you're on the right track-- your yield is going to GREATLY depend on the training they get, which literally (with time) shapes the plant. Just remember, you mostly train in veg, and very little in early flower. Definitely wait til flower to lollipop them, unless along the way you notice lower branches that are much smaller than branches that are higher up above them, and aren't getting much light. They are generally a lightee greenish/yellow than the parts higher up. Those are safe to remove earlier on. And if you wind up developing a grow style where you go for longer veg times (like me) then you can remove basically all of the bottom branches (not the original branches that become tops, but the branches that grow off of these tops) as soon as they start sprouting. Because with a longer veg time and bigger plants, those lower branches won't get much light anyways and will stretch toward the canopy, often times still unable to reach the light, which only costs the plant resources that could've have been used higher up.

Click to expand...

Thank you! I didn't top these plants on purpose! But I'm glad my mistake worked to my advantage! What are the disadvantages with longer vegetation times though?

lilroach said:

Your plants would be a good candidate for Uncle Ben's topping technique where you let it grow to 5 nodes and then top it above the second TRUE node to grow four main colas. This topping or mainlining will give you the best yield of all topping techniques.

Keep in mind that this type of topping will add about 2 weeks to your veg time.

Click to expand...

I'll look for a tutorial about this! Thanks!

FRANMACHINE said:

Hey guys, these 2 babies of mine are almost 3 weeks in soil and I would like to practice topping or lollipopping!(to focus cola growth on the top leaves?) I'm relatively new to growing marijuana so I would like to know if these can be lollipopped or topped already this early. These plants are actually growing horizontally more than vertically (4.5 in height, 9 in width.) -- Is the plant too short? Any advice for vertical growth?

Setup:
1x 85w CFL
1x 600w

Medium:
Biobizz Light Mix soil with the full line of Biobizz Nutrients maintained at a temperature range from 24-29c (I live in a tropical country.) pH is 5.5 but I water them with pH 7 nutes. Lights are 1 ft. away from the plants.
View attachment 3319378 View attachment 3319380 View attachment 3319381 View attachment 3319382 Help would be greatly appreciated!

Click to expand...

see each tip of the plant well the top new growth u wanna pinch that and pull the center clean out u wanna do that each time u see new growth make sure u let it grow out tho i think i do it once every week and 3 days really depends on lights and stuff tho so dont follow what i do but each time u see new growth tip it out.u can do it all the way up till about 2 -3 weeks into flower but i would stop after that . if u have hard time understanding what i mean inbox me and ill send u a few photos of what i mean

The only disadvantage to a longer veg time is.....it takes longer to finally get to smoke your primo nug . It's all about finding a good balance between vegging too little with not enough tops, or vegging too long with too many tops. Which definitely CAN happen. I showed my cousin how to top, and he just kept topping and topping and topping his tops and branches, and wound up with hundreds of little skinny stems all over the plant, none of which were big and strong enough to build big huge colas.

You can top for two tops, then top those two and get 4, then top those and get 8, etc. What I usually do, is top the ones that are shooting up the fastest, so that all of my tops wind up nice and even (go back to my pictures from my first post).

But yes, I DEFINITELY recommend combining training techniques. Topping, LST, Scrog, mainlining-- look them all up and see what you want to try out. Something to keep in mind if you are going to top more than once-- each time you cut it, the growth is going to "pause" until the plant recovers, so the more times you top it starts really slowing down veg time. I recommend topping once for 2 tops, and then letting each top get about 4 inches tall a piece, and start tying them down horizontally. The branches will growth straight up from along the two ties down tops and receive hormones that turn them into colas (top buds). It's basically a way to get multiple tops (easily 8-15 depending on how long you veg for, and how well you keep them tied down) without losing all the recovery time for multiple cuts. About 2 weeks before putting them in flower, put a Scrog screen over top of them and BAM!

There are many different ways and techniques, and in time you will find the system that you like best. As long as you have plenty of space, I personally recommend vegging for 2 months from seed your first time or 2, if you can hang in there you will be glad that you held out a little longer for a bigger yield. Maybe later on down the road you could try a bunch of small plants with single tops and little or no veg time. Follow your heart, research your ass off on here, and don't be afraid to ask questions. And remember, less is more with these plants. You don't need to start out trying to pound them with heavy doses of nutrients or anything-- you'll notice that the more you leave them alone, the better they do (as long as your environment is dialed in). The most common newbie mistakes are overwatering, and over feeding. May the force be with you brother.

i wouldnt top if the strains naturally bushy, also if you want more branches you can always train, topping causes some stunting and stress. i also suggest training regardless of topping or not, its better when you can manipulate how fast a branch grow, this way you can harvest the whole plant in one day and all the buds will be more evenly matured.

but while some strains take topping better than others i think it can become a problem if theres so much foliage to the point you end up sacrificing airflow and exposure to light(but keep in mind, they have to be pretty big before this happens), this can lead to mold, a ton of popcorn nugs, overlooked infestations, etc.

Topping does not cause stress. Defoliating (lollipopping) do fer sure.

There's uncle ben! Thank you, sir, for many a profitable harvest lol.

Uncle Ben said:

Topping does not cause stress. Defoliating (lollipopping) do fer sure.

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Not to question your logic . Cuz you pro ub. I use your tech a lot . But I knowtice more stress from topping than lollipop

Lollipopping and topping are both tools used by the professional and novice alike to shape the canopy and improve yields. Lollipopping has never slowed growth in my experience......it only increases growth to the top shoots. Topping can slow growth if you don't have a good half inch or so of nodal growth before you snip.

"How many times do you top your plant?" Depends on how tall you want your plants to finish at. For that you have to work backwards.

Hold your hand under your flowering bulb and move your hand up until it gets warm from the light. That is the closest you want your plants to get to the light, so notice how many inches above the floor your maximum height is. If your maximum height is 60 inches above the floor you want your plants to finish close to 60 inches tall. Counting the pot. If the pot is 12 inches high your plant should be at 48 inches at harvest. Figure the plant will double in height after it gets set to flower at 12/12. So, pull them from veg to flower around 24 inches. Now you have a goal -- veg short bushy plants until they reach 24 inches, then flower them.

I try to have all the topping and trimming done during the veg cycle. It is also a good idea to give them a week to recuperate after any trimming before they go to flower. As you monitor the height during veg you may have to re-top the 2 main colas you got from the original topping. Shouldn't have to trim any top more than twice.

Good luck, BigSteve.

mofucka said:

Not to question your logic . Cuz you pro ub. I use your tech a lot . But I knowtice more stress from topping than lollipop

Click to expand...

Define stress. I top almost all my plants to get 4 main colas. They don't miss a beat.

Uncle Ben said:

Define stress. I top almost all my plants to get 4 main colas. They don't miss a beat.

Click to expand...

To me I knotice growth will slow down for maybe a day or two when I top . While the plant trys to gain it's berrings . When I do some lollipop or thinning out . It seems like with in the next couple of days every thing I remeve just grew up to the top