Article 4-1 Trimming
Technique
Hello.. Love your
magazine.. I was wondering if you could answer a few questions for me First. Do
you suggest stripping off most of the leaves on the plants after a few weeks
into bloom so that the flowers get the maximum light? People have varied
opinions.. And should leaves with a reddish purple stem by trimmed off? Finally,
do you recommend using Dr. Willards on a daily basis on the leafs?? Thank you in
advance and keep up the good work... Vic.. Coq...
Vic,
Thanks for the compliments. A few factors will determine how and if any leaves
and stems should be removed.
Firstly, the height of the plant and the amount of available light are a major
consideration. For taller plants, greater than 3' with about 50-65watts per
square foot (for example, a 1000W H.I.D. lamp over a 4' X 4' area) about the
bottom 1/3 of the plant can be pruned. If plants are widely spaced, with lots of
room between them, you may not want to do this at all. The lower leaves have
stored energy which the plant will transfer to the final bloom near harvest.
However, if these leaves are receiving little light they will dwindle and die
prematurely, at the expense of better air circulation through the plant canopy
(if not removed) and stealing valuable nutrients and energy from the more active
points in the plant canopy. If growing short day plants (requiring 12 hrs of
darkness to flower), these trimmings can be rooted under 24hrs of light and will
revert to the vegetative stage producing a bushier, highly branched plant for
your next crop.
If growing shorter, single stemmed flowers 1-2.5' in height with lighting as
above, the lower leaves need not be removed because the plant should be
receiving near equal light intensity from top to bottom, producing more uniform
and consistent results. Make sure that there is good air circulation within the
plant canopy with dense plantings. The lower leaves should never remain moist
(often a problem in growing with uncovered peat based mediums in tables).
So far as spraying with catalyst altered water (Willard's) every day, this could
become a problem later in flowering. Sunscald can always be a issue, but mainly
is that water sits on the dense flowers or dense canopy for long enough for
pathogens, such as blights and mildews to enter. Pooled moisture on leaves or
flowers for prolonged periods is a gateway for these pathogens (often observed
with flowers touching walls).
Experiment with different types of pruning on a couple of your plants to best
determine what works for you.
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