Topping plants outdoors...?

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Originally Posted by m.g.

i top mine...all of them, always have and always will.

only pinched once and only early when they're seedlings. i take the top off when they're at the the 4th node (iow, 4th node comes off leaving the 3rd as the top) so the split is low and easier to train the almost 2 separate bushes ya get from it. colas are still as they would have been if left alone because recovery time is nearly as long as their vegging time. .

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This is exactly what I do, but I'm strictly indoors and just do it to keep the crowns wide and low.

i once toped a plant 30 times or more. it was under a low scrog screan, and a 150 hps aove. 5gallons of dirt and fish emoltion/peters=a half pound.. do the math thats 1.49 grams per watt. amazing.... o it took 4.5 months total tho. 2 months vedge

as the split trunks begin growing, i separate them carefully so they'll grow opposite each other. many times this will split the trunk so be sure to keep duct tape handy. once they get 2' or so i begin tying them down using bailing wire tied to a brick (be sure wire is thick enough to not cut through the plant...wire hangers also work well when taken apart and straightened out a bit) so they grow appx a foot or two off the ground horizontally, turning nearly every branch into a top by the time flowering is underway and greatly increasing yield as the entire limb gets exposed to direct sunlight...it takes tying down and adjusting nearly every other day but the rewards are well worth the little extra time put into it.

I haven't touched her since I topped her main branches. I don't think it hurt it too bad. It was early enough I think and it looks like shes doing alright anyway...I have a thread on her over on the Outdoor Section....

ive got a pretty big plant outdoors at the moment an i topped it on multiple occasions. it maximises yield and means you can make monster bushes

topping is usually an indoor technique due to space. It helps u get a bushyer plant which will yield more in small space. But in outdoor if u can u want your plants to grow as big and as tall as they can get. the bigger the plant the bigger the yield. if security is a problem do what was mentioned already LST(Low Stress Train) this actually will improove your yield because light penetrates the canopy better.

hope this helps....