Thinning:
This really only applies to outdoor
growers, but some indoor set-ups such as ScrOG,
SOG and BOG may need to be thinned.
Growers like to grow their plants in a
uniform condition. That is - growers like all
their plants to be the same height. That way we
perfectly arrange our light so that it is too
far away or close to the tops. If one plant is
racy then we would have to adjust the light to
suite that plant. This means that we may end up
with light gaps like the following.
-Distance from Plant A to light is 1 meter.
-Distance from Plant B to light is 0.5 meters.
-Distance from plant C to light is 8 inches.
In this case you could imagine the plants
in a slope shape in there grow environment.
Obviously we are going to be wasting light, not
to mention space on this set-up so we need to
prevent this slope from happening. That is
where thinning comes into play.
The reason for the slope or curve is because
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some plants might tend to be a bit racy. Some
of the plants will try to grow quicker than
others to try and receive more light. If this
happens the racy plant will cause the smaller
ones beside it to receive less light. To
control racy plants we use a process called
thinning.
If you discover a few racy plants then just
cut them down to the same level as the others
(called pruning) or remove them all together.
Once you have done this you will see all your
plants growing nicely along at the same level.
Now, do not throw away the cuttings from
the thinning before you read the next line. You
can clone these cuttings into new plants!
By the time you have finished your thinning
you will have an even grow area with some
clones that you can use to grow more bud.
Now the other thing to remember is that
some people may tend to thin the other way
round. That is - leaving the taller ones and
remove the smaller ones. Again in Cannabis
growing the taller plants are generally male
and the smaller ones are female if you have
started from seed. Do you want a garden full of
possible males?
During the thinning process you may want to
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tackle some dead leaves or leaves that have
some mould build up on them. Mould looks like a
rust or fluff on the leaves and will most of
the time spread to other parts of the plant. So
why not cut these away too while you thin your
grow area.
Thinning your grow makes it look nicer and
tidier and helps to improve your overall yield.