Quote Originally Posted by emilya
You are probably right Bigsby. I have no idea how much this screen will fill, but when I have 6-8 clones sitting here I will no doubt be looking at using a few more to get a full screen. I like the idea of not having to veg out for 3 months before going to flower.
Your estimate of 3 months veg to fill a 30" x 50" screen with 2 plants is probably/possibly (likly) pretty accurate. Consider that you could do 6 plants @ 4 - 6 weeks veg + 2 months flower. That's a savings of 6 to 8 weeks! So in one year you could manage 4 harvests with the smaller plants vs. 2.4 harvests with the bigger plants. Yes, your yield per plant will be lower but overall yield will be similar. Essentially you double your potential yield per year. I have no idea about motives. I grow strictly for personal use within my house. No one else. Not friends, not family. It isn't worth the risks. So 3 harvests @ 4 - 6 plants is plenty in my case.

Considering the screen for a moment, there are a number of factors in play. Strain has a good deal to do with it. Some stavias will more than triple in size after flipping to flower. In such a scenario the screen will fill up pretty fast, even with a small plant. Some indicas might not even double in size. The rule of thumb is to fill the screen 40 - 60 percent before flip (strain dependent). Also keep in mind that FIMming will slow down your plant as does SCroG training. +1 week for each minimum. And don't get hung up on achieving a 9" stem... here comes a joke... no seriously - every plant will be different so you will have varying sizes. Go look at the grow logs by user bigtopsfinn. I learned a good deal about SCroG there.

Quote Originally Posted by emilya
I was then advised that after the FIM there wouldn't be a lot of vertical growth, so I figured that I had to get to at least 10-11 inches before doing it since that is the height of the screen.
That's not really accurate. You no longer have a main stem (or cola for that matter) so it is certainly easier to train flat after FIMming but the plant still wants to, and will grow vertically.

Quote Originally Posted by emilya
I need clarification on 2 terms you used above... "real node" how does a real node compare to a "not real node?" Also, what do you mean by forced branching? Are you referring to the increase in growth from the lower branches after the FIM?
The first real node is the set of leaves after the cotyledon leaves - I'm sure you know this... FIMming is a technique that forces or at least encourages branch growth when done properly. I definitely recommend FIMming with a SCroG.