Rusty's Bonsai Downsizing...

[Rusty Trichome]

good shit rusty....I am going to be bonsai-ing all my moms now...they are vegging now...few more days Ill start shaping em...thanks for posting your results!!!!
whiskeytango:thumbsup:

Thanks SnS. Good luck and please, let me know how you're progressing. Any questions, just holler.
4 out of 6 plants in my flower room right now, are bonsai. The other two are clones from a previous bonsai.
Altho I love this technique, I feel kinda bad throwing all my extra smoke in the compost heap.

I've got some Inca Spirit (indica) x Pokerface (indica dom) I'm trying this on next. When I get some camera batteries I'll post the story here. I'm just about to bury them up to their cotelydons, so it will be a while.

[SnSstealth]

oooooh, keep me posted!! very curious about pokerface:jointsmile:
whiskeytango

[NaughtyDreadz]

yo man!!!! u da man! I was wonder on how I'm doing this.. I got this one leda-uno phenotype thats flowering and it smells like dirty bathrooms, all the others smell like pineapple hard candy. you've basically showed me wot to do, and for that I am greatful sir!

[greenatik]

heya rusty,

great thread w/ pics of how to bonsai.. just a few questions.. my next grow I plan on doing 6-7 plants in a very cramped space (30" tall, 14" wide) . Going to start from clone, and bonsai'ing them has crossed my mind. How long after you start seeing new growth can you flip to flower? Once bonsai'd do they tend to not get very tall? For efficiency, my space really encourages single cola plants. What would happen If i just bonsai'd the secondary shoots and left the top alone?

any suggestions are definitely appreciated!

[Rusty Trichome]

heya rusty, great thread w/ pics of how to bonsai..

Appreciate it, thanks. You too, ND.

...How long after you start seeing new growth can you flip to flower?

I give 'em a month or so. Generally takes a week to start showing the new growth.

Once bonsai'd do they tend to not get very tall?

Correct. They still stretch, but not as much as from seed or clone. With my indica's I'll give 'em an extra week or two in re-veg. Seems to cut the PMS (Pre Motherhood Stretch...the stretch that happens when you switch from veg schedule to flower schedule) about in half for both sativa and indica hybrids.

What would happen If i just bonsai'd the secondary shoots and left the top alone?

I've never left the cola, but from the experience of leaving some of the lesser (insignificant) buds, the flowering hormones that remain in the main cola would freak-out the lady early in the re-veg process. Stressing her out big time, causing slowed growth or plant death. The mature trichomes gurantee your room will stink for the next few weeks tho. Another good reason to remove all of the buds before re-veg.
Regardless, the main cola you were trying to save will make way for new growth by withering up and dying off. No ground gained there, but I like the way you think...nice try. :jointsmile:

You can easily train and trim the new growth to fit the growth habit you require.

Good luck. It's a surprisingly easier process than it looks, tho. :jointsmile:

[greenatik]

thanks for the reply rusty!

when i said leave the main cola I meant starting fresh from a clone, and letting it grow about a foot in veg and then bonsai the secondary shoots, leaving just the main, primary shoot.

sorry for the confusion! :stoned:

[Rusty Trichome]

thanks for the reply rusty!

when i said leave the main cola I meant starting fresh from a clone, and letting it grow about a foot in veg and then bonsai the secondary shoots, leaving just the main, primary shoot.

sorry for the confusion! :stoned:

This is a thread about bonsai techniques...not cloning. They are two separate techniques having virtually nothing to do with each other.
For cloning help, click this: http://boards.cannabis.com/basic-gro...ml#post1577859
and scroll down to post #10. If help is still needed beyond that...please start your own thread.

[greenatik]

I never said I needed help cloning... Your thread says bonsai downsizing.. I want to downsize my plants by bonsai'ing the secondary shoots and leaving the main stem alone. do you think I could create a single cola plant by bonsai'ing all the shoots coming off the main stem

i am starting fresh with clones, vegging for about a month, then wanting to shape my plants by bonsai'ing all the secondary nodes

[Rusty Trichome]

Are you growing for an ornamental purpose, or to smoke?
No, IMHO, not a good idea. You'll likely want to remove as much of the bud as possible to convince her it's spring and so she doesn't fight this sudden and dramatic change (and root tampering) with residual fall (flowering) hormones. As I don't do it that way on purpose, you're welcome to try tho, lol. :thumbsup:
The quantity of new shoots on a re-veg varies, but saying you'll get a shitload is fair. Those are cloneable.

As far as bonsai training for the growing shoots, the more you trim, the shorter they tend to grow and the more compact the results. With a sativa dom, you may get away with it. But on a squat indica it may restrict secondary growth a bit much.

[Opie Yutts]

Thanks for sharing Rusty. Your thread and the one titled "mums" has made me very interested in cutting back many of my moms.