Plants too tall before flower

Callz

Well-Known Member
Can I top and lolipop clones a day before flower with out causing hermi plants?

Ive been busy with work and building a new grow room so my plants vegged for too long. One week I was watering and noticed they were almost hitting the light. My grow tent light cant go any higher before I move them and go into flower in the same height tent. I normally use a trellis net before flower to flatten the canopy but I doubt that will help enough with how this strain tends to double in height during the stretch phase.

Is there a possibility that this wont cause too much stress? this is my last resort to reduce height pre flower otherwise ill have to clone them and wait another month or 2
 
Ya just LST or Supercrop them if you need to.
Thats the plan but this time it wont be enough for this sativa. I've grown it once before and thought the height wasnt gonna be enough but they over doubled in height into the light forcing me to use 2 nets to lst them. these are the clones of the pheno hunt and I chose the one with the most resin, root growth, and accidently the tallest. So if topping and threading them through the net one day before flower wont hurt them ill have to go with that to avoid light stress due to height restrictions
 
The net will solve your problem if done right.
Thats normally true but Im looking more for an answer to if the stress is too much to top them again. Yes the netting will solve most of my problems but im running a system much like yours in a 4x4 for this run but with a spyder farmer SE5000 and my plants are already near or hitting the light after weeks of neglecting the pruning to keep them small enough for the height and width of the tent . Imagine if your plants were in the light after doing netting multiple times and are too wide to do it again ya know? Is heavy pruning and lolioping for more clones too much is the real question if all else has been done to avoid height issues?
 
supercropping and bending branches isn't really a stress you need to worry about...it just slows the plant down...it doesn't trigger hermi if that's your concern.
 
supercropping and bending branches isn't really a stress you need to worry about...it just slows the plant down...it doesn't trigger hermi if that's your concern.
I'm not concerned with LST and super cropping as much as I'm worried about lolipoping, transplanting and topping heavily right before flower due to bad timing. Some people say to wait a week after topping so my biggest worry is giving them alot of stress after being over grown with not enough light to the bottom of the plant along with taking cuttings and topping multiple spots the same day i start to flower. Prolly a stupid worry but I'm doing alot very rapidly and I'm hoping to not cause the plant to prematurely reproduce from the excessive stress.

The pheno didnt show any nanners after 75 days of flower on a strain that said to flower 56-63 days. I hope to do the exact same thing, except included stress of transplanting, supercropping, LST, Topping, and lolipoping for clones but with out the plant throwing out nanners due to the early stress a day before flower.

Yes I realize this is a weird situation that im wondering about but I'm getting everything into a new room with old gear and its a pain not being able to get a taller area as planned. Just want to prevent issues further down the road if hermis are a possibility from that added stress
 
transplanting is a huge stress and one even i'm fearful of. It's the only one actually that i'm afraid of getting a hermi from. all the other stuff you mention is a not a concern, transplanting though, don't mess that one up, lol. everything needs to be exactly the same during that time. transplant, wait 2 days to make sure there is zero shock, then proceed with your other stuff. that's my suggestion.
 
I'm not concerned with LST and super cropping as much as I'm worried about lolipoping, transplanting and topping heavily right before flower due to bad timing. Some people say to wait a week after topping so my biggest worry is giving them alot of stress after being over grown with not enough light to the bottom of the plant along with taking cuttings and topping multiple spots the same day i start to flower. Prolly a stupid worry but I'm doing alot very rapidly and I'm hoping to not cause the plant to prematurely reproduce from the excessive stress.

The pheno didnt show any nanners after 75 days of flower on a strain that said to flower 56-63 days. I hope to do the exact same thing, except included stress of transplanting, supercropping, LST, Topping, and lolipoping for clones but with out the plant throwing out nanners due to the early stress a day before flower.

Yes I realize this is a weird situation that im wondering about but I'm getting everything into a new room with old gear and its a pain not being able to get a taller area as planned. Just want to prevent issues further down the road if hermis are a possibility from that added stress
I'd just do anything stressful now, and then give them a week if you have time.

Topping, lollipopping, and supercroppping is mildly stressful. Same with transplanting, but if transplanting is done right they won't really be shocked at all. But doing them all at the same time is more stressful.

LST isn't really stressful at all for them.

I try to do any of that stuff before, of at least only durning the first 3 weeks of flower. Except LST anytime.
 
I
Thats normally true but Im looking more for an answer to if the stress is too much to top them again. Yes the netting will solve most of my problems but im running a system much like yours in a 4x4 for this run but with a spyder farmer SE5000 and my plants are already near or hitting the light after weeks of neglecting the pruning to keep them small enough for the height and width of the tent . Imagine if your plants were in the light after doing netting multiple times and are too wide to do it again ya know? Is heavy pruning and lolioping for more clones too much is the real question if all else has been done to avoid height issues?
I would take 2ft clones off of every top. Flip after a week of healing. Problem solved.
Never mind the concern for stressing them. If the genetics are decent.. you will have no problems and up a good handful of nice clones.
 
It's all genetic dependent man. Some plants can be beat to hell start to finish some will get a cold night and throw nanners (herm). I personally strip all auxiliary nodes to the tip of each main branch the day of flip and average 19 ounces per/plant in 10 gallon pots under 1000w DE HPS running a basic Cyco Platinum lineup.
 
It's all genetic dependent man. Some plants can be beat to hell start to finish some will get a cold night and throw nanners (herm). I personally strip all auxiliary nodes to the tip of each main branch the day of flip and average 19 ounces per/plant in 10 gallon pots under 1000w DE HPS running a basic Cyco Platinum lineup.

Do you have photos of this method? I've done similar with varying results.
 
I agree with hydro kid I’d just cut them top limbs off do some clones and keep up the lst I’d wait at least a week to flip to 12/12 after that.
 
Thats normally true but Im looking more for an answer to if the stress is too much to top them again. Yes the netting will solve most of my problems but im running a system much like yours in a 4x4 for this run but with a spyder farmer SE5000 and my plants are already near or hitting the light after weeks of neglecting the pruning to keep them small enough for the height and width of the tent . Imagine if your plants were in the light after doing netting multiple times and are too wide to do it again ya know? Is heavy pruning and lolioping for more clones too much is the real question if all else has been done to avoid height issues?
Probably not. I can be counted upon to drop a light on a plant etc...... I am stressing my plants to the max. I've even cut off a main color during flower (no not PM or budrot). Anyway it depends on your genetic's propensity to hermaphrodism and any light leaks. Consistent light leaks tended to drive herms in my experience, other than that trim 'em if you got 'em.
 
Do you have photos of this method? I've done similar with varying results.

I start plants from 2 branches by topping the heads off and cleaning all but the most 2 symmetrical branches I can find.
Plants are never staked or tied, I top branches based on natural dominance, heads that are outgrowing others get plucked first until I get a desired growth. I will then clean up the branches to the tips leaving only 2-3 node sets at the tips until flower.
1659410201912.png
1659410324553.png
Give plants 3 weeks to stretch and weave every few days through a netting to avoid having to stake things.. Try keeping branches growing as straight as possible, without using stakes throughout veg this gets harder without proper netting support. I think I am changing to 3 layers instead of 2 and going to just cut the net and put new every time..
1659410414903.png
1659410463803.png

p.s was pretty impressed with the Luxx 645w LED my first run with it I pulled ~1.4 gpw around 2 pounds of dry bud. This run I used no microbes, teas or anything special, just cyco base nutes in coco/perlite.
 
Last edited:
Back
Top