What's new
  • Happy Birthday ICMag! Been 20 years since Gypsy Nirvana created the forum! We are celebrating with a 4/20 Giveaway and by launching a new Patreon tier called "420club". You can read more here.
  • Important notice: ICMag's T.O.U. has been updated. Please review it here. For your convenience, it is also available in the main forum menu, under 'Quick Links"!

Why are people against pruning?

NeWcS

Active member
I see a lot of people advising others to not prune off large, light blocking fan leafs. Just wondering why it is not advised?

Thank you!
 

habeeb

follow your heart
ICMag Donor
Veteran
well depends on how your using the sentence, and why

obvious is that the fan leaf is the energy producer, like a solar panel.

some like to cut for airflow

some like to cut for style ( lollipop ) / defoliation style

some cut for as you say blocks lower sites

some think fan leaves are not that important, and cutting few won't hurt

some think never to cut, and tuck
 

ReelBusy1

Breeder
ICMag Donor
I see a lot of people advising others to not prune off large, light blocking fan leafs. Just wondering why it is not advised?

Thank you!

If you had a solar battery would it be more or less powerful if you took panels off of it?
 

NeWcS

Active member
If you had a solar battery would it be more or less powerful if you took panels off of it?

I see what you're driving at bro but we're not talking about a solar battery. I seem to get a better yield when I start removing large fan leafs early in flowering.
 

Yes4Prop215

Active member
Veteran
i generally leave all upper fan leaves on....but anything that is under 2 feet of the canopy should be pruned...if its facing upwards soaking in light keep it...if its under the dark canopy limping like a underwatered plant prune it...
 

avant gardener

Member
Veteran
i have tried lollipopping with disastrous results.
the one fellow i knew who actually took the time to do a side by side found no appreciable difference in yield or quality between the two techniques.
actually the defoliated batch yielded slightly less, but that could be due to other variables.
but then again, i know a lot of guys who swear by it and they consistently have nice flowers.

i don't think there's really a definitive answer on the question. my experience turned me off to the practice, but that's just me. if you're deadly curious about it (like i was), give it a shot. be sure to let us know what you find.
 

budelight

Discovery Requires Experimentation
Veteran
i generally leave all upper fan leaves on....but anything that is under 2 feet of the canopy should be pruned...if its facing upwards soaking in light keep it...if its under the dark canopy limping like a underwatered plant prune it...

Funny enough, i do the complete opposite!

Thought path is that if you remove the leaves from the top, the lower budsites that are reaching up for more light are able to receive lumens, then when starting to bud, they have more "responsibility" to provide light energy to the rest of the plant that the plant will send more nutrients to this site, therefor developing larger buds!!

You can read more at This Thread
 
imo even if you dont gain weight from lollipoping if it even breaks even in side by side its still worth it because i dislike popcorn so if you had to choose between a cpl oz of pop corn or bigger nugs which would you pick. dont get me wrong some people over do it id say not to ever take more than 20 to 30 percent off from the bottom. as far as taking leaves off at random if its blocking a bud site from getting light i say it gets plucked.
 

Marick23

Member
I admit I was curious about which way was better. Specifically for moms. I have 3 critical mass. 1 I topped using FIM on I bent over LST and another I left el natural. Unfortunately my interest is in the best technique for mothers. I can take some pics of the 3 if you want?


They are all 3 big beautiful and bushy! I can't pick my favorite, though the lst seems to be winning out so far. As far as to which method works best for making a mother from this strain.
 
my thoughts are that the leaves are more efficient at photosynthesis than the bud sites themselves so taking the leaves off actually reduces the plants ability to eat.
 

loyalty7

Member
imo even if you dont gain weight from lollipoping if it even breaks even in side by side its still worth it because i dislike popcorn so if you had to choose between a cpl oz of pop corn or bigger nugs which would you pick. dont get me wrong some people over do it id say not to ever take more than 20 to 30 percent off from the bottom. as far as taking leaves off at random if its blocking a bud site from getting light i say it gets plucked.

100% agree...
 
G

grassott

If you had a solar battery would it be more or less powerful if you took panels off of it?

Panels don't grow back. Leaves do.
picture.php


I did this last Sunday. It is now Wednesday and I can honestly say that my girls will need another defoliation in a few days time.

Defoliation aids with air flow through the canopy, light hitting inner and lower budsites.
 

SuperConductor

Active member
Veteran
Lollipopping isn't the same as defoliation. Lollipopping is removing lower budsites that would only become popcorn to redirect energy to top buds hence branches that look like lollipops. Defoliation is pruning fan leaves.

I prune a little just before and after the stretch only leaves that are growing into the middle of the plant. Pruning stunts growth slightly but this can be used to keep a plant shorter during the stretch which can be handy for some. Removing all fan leaves is mental imo I'd never remove more than 10% in one go.
 

WelderDan

Well-known member
Veteran
Photosynthesis occurs in the leaves. Photosynthesis is the engine that drives your plant. Would you remove the engine in your car to have more power, or go faster?

The plant evolved its leaves for a specific reason.

Defoliation just deprives a plant of its ability to photosynthesize.

I don't see any difference in bud size on the shaded side of the plant than on the side that gets direct light.
 

Marlo

Seedsweeper
ICMag Donor
Veteran
There is no right or wrong answer.
Removing fan leaves can be beneficial in one grow, and counterproductive in another. Many variables come into play....ie, plant size, lighting used, strain, and grow style. Do what is best for you.

Please don't assume something does or doesn't work. Comparing grows can be like apples and oranges many times.



:tiphat:
 

greenwithenvy

Active member
Veteran
There is no right or wrong answer.
Removing fan leaves can be beneficial in one grow, and counterproductive in another. Many variables come into play....ie, plant size, lighting used, strain, and grow style. Do what is best for you.

Please don't assume something does or doesn't work. Comparing grows can be like apples and oranges many times.



:tiphat:


I Agree with this 100%

I defoliate alot in veg and 1 or 2 times in flower.
 

vangaurd

Member
I like Marlo grow vertical and it is almost a necessary evil but it has to be done in grow. The reason being is because I have 12 plants in a 40"x40" grow space. If i left all the fan leaves one they would choke the air circulation so it really depends on the grow.
 

noreason

Natural born Grower
ICMag Donor
Veteran
I think in my mind that sometimes it's better to think at light power....I mean I have one 400w lamp, the important thing is that the 400w of electric energy reach as much as they can the green.All the light that reach something different of plant's green is lost or partially lost.
After this I observe my plants and decide where is necessary to cut or bends some branches or leaves to increase airflow, or where it's necessary to cut the small flower formation that receive very few light.
I don't like to do it, first because every cut is a possible way to infect the entire plant, and this is why I don't like crops anymore, and then because all the green a plant has, can capture light energy, and more energy a plant can receive, more the metabolism become faster, absorbing more nutrients, developing more energy for flower production and their quality, that is what we're looking for.

I don't see any difference in bud size on the shaded side of the plant than on the side that gets direct light.

I see the complete opposite on plant I grew.Where the light reaches the flowers,they are more and fatter and in the shaded spot, the flowers are usually littler.



:wave:
 

Marlo

Seedsweeper
ICMag Donor
Veteran
I agree...sometimes it is a necessary evil. Sometimes not

When I grew with screens, the plant would create a bush, several inches deep. My 400w light only make dense nugs a few inches into a canopy. So severe pruning was necessary, and helped ALOT. Grows with agressive pruning produced more dense quality buds.

Now that I no longer use screens, my plants are alot bigger, but much thinner and spread out...which means a thinner canopy. Damn near every branch is right up front. My pruning has been reduced by 60 or 70%.


Same room, same grower, same genetics. 2 different techniques and both had great outcomes.


Just my opinion tho...

:tiphat:
 

Latest posts

Latest posts

Top