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When you top your cannabis plant, you’re essentially creating two new colas (or main stems) instead of one. Topping encourages your plant to grow wider, instead of taller, which can be beneficial if you’re trying to maximize your yield. But when is the best time to top your plant?
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Introduction
Topping your cannabis plant is a technique that can be used to encourage it to grow in a certain way. By carefully removing the growing tip of the plant, you can encourage it to produce more lateral (side) growth, rather than vertical (upward) growth. This can be useful if you want to control the shape of your plant, or if you want to increase its yield (the amount of bud it produces).
Before you start topping your plant, it’s important to understand how it will respond. Cannabis plants are typically fast-growing and vigorous, so they will often recover quickly from topping. However, topping does put stress on the plant, so it’s important not to do it too frequently. In general, you should only top your plant once every 3-4 weeks.
If you do choose to top your cannabis plant, here are some tips to help you get the best results:
– Make sure that your plant is healthy and vigorous before you start. Topping a weak or sickly plant can undo all of your hard work.
– Use sharp, clean scissors or pruning shears to make clean cuts. This will help reduce the risk of infection or disease.
– Be careful not to damage the leaves or stem when you’re cutting. Avoid making jagged cuts, as this can make it harder for the plant to recover.
– Cut off just the very tip of the main stem. You don’t need to remove much material – just enough to remove the growing tip.
– After you’ve made your cut, give your plant some time to recover before topping it again. Remember that less is more when it comes to topping!
The Different Stages of Plant Growth
Topping your cannabis plant is a great way to get more buds and produce a higher yield. But when is the best time to top your plant? It depends on the stage of growth your plant is in. Let’s take a look at the different stages of plant growth and when you should top your plant for the best results.
The vegetative stage
The vegetative stage of a cannabis plant’s life cycle is when it is growing and storing energy in its leaves. This stage begins when the plant is first germinated and lasts until it is time to flowering. During the vegetative stage, the plant will double or triple in size. The length of time a plant spends in the vegetative stage depends on the variety of cannabis and the environment it is growing in.
Indoor growers can control the length of the vegetative stage by changing the number of hours of light per day that the plants receive. Most cannabis varieties will start to flower when they receive 12 hours of darkness per day. So, indoor growers who want their plants to stay in the vegetative stage can keep them on a 18-hour light cycle (18 hours of light per day and 6 hours of darkness).
Environmental factors such as temperature, humidity, and amount of light also play a role in how quickly a plant will enter the flowering stage. Different cannabis varieties have different ideal growing conditions, so be sure to do your research before you begin growing.
The flowering stage
The flowering stage is when your cannabis plant starts to produce flowers (or “buds”). This is the most important stage of the plant’s life cycle, because it’s when the plant produces the THC (tetrahydrocannabinol) that gets you high.
Topping your plant during the flowering stage will cause it to produce more flowers, and therefore more THC. The best time to top your plant is when it’s between 6 and 8 weeks old, and you should only top it once.
When to Top Your Plant
Topping your cannabis plant is a great way to encourage growth and produce more buds. It is a simple process that involves cutting off the main stem of the plant just above a node. This will cause the plant to grow two new stems from that node. Topping your plant will also help to increase yield, as more buds will be produced.
The vegetative stage
After your plants have germinated and are growing in their containers, they will enter the vegetative stage. This is when they focus on growing strong roots and foliage. For most cannabis strains, the vegetative stage lasts between 4 and 8 weeks, although some grow for longer.
Topping your plant during the vegetative stage will encourage it to grow wider, rather than taller. This is because when you cut off the main stem, the plant will try to compensate by growing new shoots from the side branches. As a result, your plant will become bushier, with more foliage and a shorter overall height.
Topping also increases the number of main colas (the buds that form at the top of the plant), which can be beneficial if you’re growing for quantity rather than quality. However, it’s worth noting that topping too early or too late in the vegetative stage can result in weaker growth or stunted plants.
Ideally, you should wait until your plant has 4-6 nodes (sets of leaves) before topping it. Topping any earlier than this may interfere with root development, while topping any later may cause your plant to focus its energy on flowering rather than growing new shoots.
The flowering stage
Cannabis plants go through two different life cycles, vegetative and flowering. The vegetative stage is when your plant is growing and gaining size. The flowering stage is when your plant produces buds and starts to mature.
You can force your plant to start flowering sooner by changing the light cycle from 18 hours of light and 6 hours of darkness to 12 hours of light and 12 hours of darkness. This process is called “lighting down” or “forcing flowering”. Most cannabis plants will start flowering on their own in late summer or early fall when the days start getting shorter (12 hours of light and 12 hours of darkness).
When should you top your plant? It depends on what kind of results you are looking for. If you want a taller plant with bigger buds, then you should top your plant early in the vegetative stage. If you want a shorter plant with smaller buds, then you should top your plant later in the vegetative stage.
There is no right or wrong time to top your plant, it all depends on your personal preference. Just remember that the sooner you top your plant, the taller it will grow and the later you top your plant, the shorter it will grow.
Conclusion
As a general rule, Topping your cannabis plant will give you the best results if you do it when the plant is young – around 4-6 weeks old. This is because the plant hasn’t had time to fully develop its roots yet, so it can recover quickly from being cut back.
If you top a mature plant, it will take longer for it to recover and may never reach its full potential. So if you’re undecided on whether or not to top your cannabis plant, err on the side of caution and don’t do it!
