Does topping really increase yield?

Jimdamick

Jimdamick

Well-Known Member
I have never topped a plant because I considered it really not needed as long as you have the vertical height for your plants to get tall. I just let them grow and have been content, until now. I'm thinking of experimenting with it, but if the yields are about the same, I won't bother. But if the yields are much better with a topped plant, then I will do it in my next grow. One last question. Can any plant be topped, or should you stay away from certain strains or plant. I remember reading once that Bluberries love being topped, but stay away from Widows for example. Any input is appreciated. Peace
 
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churchhaze

Well-Known Member
It's all just a way to control the way the canopy grows. If you have 1 giant plant, it makes sense to top to get all the branches to grow into an even canopy. This takes more veg time as the side branches have to reach the top and fill in the canopy.

If you have lots of small plants, it makes more sense to cut off all the bottom branches and pack all the lollipopped plants close together for lots of single cola plants. This allows for less veg time to fill in the same canopy area.
 
sonar

sonar

Well-Known Member
I feel like it does in most cases. I've never done any controlled experiments, just anecdotal evidence from previous experience. There are some strains that people say don't like being topped, so I try to do a little research beforehand.
 
tip top toker

tip top toker

Well-Known Member
Depending on your lighting and the strain, it can increase yields, but more often than not, as stated by churchhaze, it's more to control the canopy (which is important depending on your light) and to create a handful of larger more appealing and easier to trim colas/buds, than having the same bud spread all around the plant.
 
mycomaster

mycomaster

Well-Known Member
I really think topping can help your yield quite a bit, but too an extent. If you have a little more time to veg and get your canopy even then yes it can greatly increase your yields. If you're in a hurry and just want to get some flowers it can slow down your grow significantly. A good amount of how you're gonna do depends on how fast the strain is to begin with and the yield it will deliver. Sometimes when you top you can cut back on your yield with making the terminal cola smaller. If a strain is single cola dominant you might just want to leave her alone and get what you get, unless you have more time to veg her and get her back to the point in size wher she would have been before you topped. Wow that's all over the place, I just smoked HA HA, hope that helps. Peace out.
 
topfuel29

topfuel29

Well-Known Member
Nope it doesn't.
You have a full glass of water you dump half the water in another glass. Do you have twice as much water? No.
You take advantage of how the plant grows. The most vigorouse growth is at the top of the plant. by proper pruning of the lower sucker branches where the pop-corn buds grow, you free up wasted plant resources. the plant puts this energy into making bigger denser buds in the cola and upper flower clusters. The plant only has so much energy to put into flower production. By topping your just spreading that energy out.
Don't get me wrong. I top now and then, but more for plant height, and bud control. Your top buds are usually the prime buds of the plant. so it makes sense to increase the top canopy of the plant by topping, and pruning lower sucker branches.
 
tip top toker

tip top toker

Well-Known Member
topfuel29 said:
Nope it doesn't.
You have a full glass of water you dump half the water in another glass. Do you have twice as much water? No.
You take advantage of how the plant grows. The most vigorouse growth is at the top of the plant. by proper pruning of the lower sucker branches where the pop-corn buds grow, you free up wasted plant resources. the plant puts this energy into making bigger denser buds in the cola and upper flower clusters. The plant only has so much energy to put into flower production. By topping your just spreading that energy out.
Don't get me wrong. I top now and then, but more for plant height, and bud control. Your top buds are usually the prime buds of the plant. so it makes sense to increase the top canopy of the plant by topping, and pruning lower sucker branches.
Click to expand...
This is how i generally look at it. The glass analogy is a good one.

However some strains react better to topping, and as i previously stated, topping could greatly effect your yield depending on your light.
 
Bigby

Bigby

Well-Known Member
You will probably yield more, but then you will also probably have to veg for 2 weeks more to let the plant recover for that to happen.

The previous post where someone said it's pretty much just to control canopy is spot on. More for that than yield imo.
 
sonar

sonar

Well-Known Member
topfuel29 said:
Nope it doesn't.
You have a full glass of water you dump half the water in another glass. Do you have twice as much water? No.
You take advantage of how the plant grows. The most vigorouse growth is at the top of the plant. by proper pruning of the lower sucker branches where the pop-corn buds grow, you free up wasted plant resources. the plant puts this energy into making bigger denser buds in the cola and upper flower clusters. The plant only has so much energy to put into flower production. By topping your just spreading that energy out.
Don't get me wrong. I top now and then, but more for plant height, and bud control. Your top buds are usually the prime buds of the plant. so it makes sense to increase the top canopy of the plant by topping, and pruning lower sucker branches.
Click to expand...
I agree, but I feel like in a lot of strains there is a net gain. Instead of having 100% in a single cola, let's say you top and get 4 colas. I think rather than 25% to each bud, you get maybe 30%. I could be wrong though and like what others have said I am just getting better coverage which is causing the extra yield.
 
Alexander Supertramp

Alexander Supertramp

Well-Known Member
As many have stated topping often involves more veg time...so are really increasing yield? The old 'grams per watt' is a very inaccurate means of judging a grow. Grams per watt hour on the other hand is how I measure a grow.
 
brotherjericho

brotherjericho

Well-Known Member
I top because my lighting is LED and PLL in flower. It allows me to get 4 tops minimum at about the same height, instead of one. In this case, with my lighting, I probably do get better yield than if I had let the plant grow on its own.
 
WeedFreak78

WeedFreak78

Well-Known Member
from what I understand, the commonly held belief is that if a plant has one main cola@100%, topping it will give you two "main" colas@60% of the one main cola,each, giving a 20% yield increase....these numbers are just for illustration. I'd be willing to bet there is something on this board, or on another, where someone has done the experiments and posted results. This is a question that gets asked over, and over, and over
 
3

3waygreatness

Well-Known Member
If you dont like the idea of cutting your ladies, then I would try to lst. Ive done both and lst did much better. Just support the plant very well and it will be a beast! Very easy as well!
 
sonar

sonar

Well-Known Member
Who said anything about increased veg time? The 3 days it takes to recover? Even if you top and immediately switch to 12/12 you are no worse off than if you didn't top. Those 2 shoots automatically become the "top".
 
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yardy

Well-Known Member
i dont think topping increases yield - it makes for smaller buds - think aboiut it your losing 3 DAYS of veg - if you have to top because penetration is low and the plant is too bushy then by all means - i grow outdoors and the only reason i would top is if it rained a lot top prevent mold and rot being an issues
 
Daveindiego

Daveindiego

Well-Known Member
Jimdamick said:
I have never topped a plant because I considered it really not needed as long as you have the vertical height for your plants to get tall. I just let them grow and have been content, until now. I'm thinking of experimenting with it, but if the yields are about the same, I won't bother. But if the yields are much better with a topped plant, then I will do it in my next grow. One last question. Can any plant be topped, or should you stay away from certain strains or plant. I remember reading once that Bluberries love being topped, but stay away from Widows for example. Any input is appreciated. Peace
Click to expand...
Yes, it helps.

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K

KryptoBud

Well-Known Member
In many plants the growing shoot apex inhibits the outgrowth of axillary buds, a phenomenon termed ‘apical dominance’. Removal of the shoot apex leads to the release of dormant axillary buds below it to form branches. Apical dominance allows plants to focus resources into the main axis of growth, while activation of dormant buds allows for recovery after damage or loss of the main shoot.

Here's the rest of the article.
https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC3091808/
 
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