When To Trim Cannabis Plant?

When To Trim Cannabis Plant
During blooming, cannabis plants can be trimmed without harming production or quality, however it is not required. During flowering, pruning can promote air circulation and light penetration to the lowest portions of the plant, hence enhancing bud growth.

By removing dead leaves and branches, it can also assist to avoid mold and mildew.
To increase the yield of cannabis plants, they must be trimmed appropriately.
Some strains are known to generate massive fan leaves, but others may produce only a few.
A cannabis plant that has been trimmed appropriately will be healthier.

If trimmed appropriately, the plant will be healthier. Understanding when to trim your cannabis plants is crucial. It is extremely encouraged that cannabis farmers refrain from pruning plants prior to and throughout the flowering stage. According to Kyle Kushman, there is no better method to trim a cannabis plant than using selective leaf pruners.

When should fan leaves be removed?

The Schwazzing Method Described – The schwazzing method, commonly known as “schwazze,” is an aggressive method for cutting fan leaves during the flowering phase. Since the days of overgrow.com in the late 1990s, variations of extreme defoliation have been discussed on online growing communities, but this process and its distinctive name were devised by Joshua Haupt, a Colorado-based horticulture specialist who introduced schwazzing in his 2015 book, Three A Light.

The title of the book is derived from Haupt’s assertion that farmers who use the techniques indicated in its pages, including schwazzing, may harvest three pounds each light.
Schwazzing entails removing all fan leaves beneath the top two or three nodes at two crucial times: once at the beginning of the bloom phase and again at the start of the third week of bloom.

As with other methods of intensive defoliation, the goal of schwazzing is to boost production by maximizing light penetration, minimizing or removing shadow patches, and channeling the plant’s energy to the top budding sites. This form of defoliation has other advantages, including: Helping to combat pests by removing their hiding places.

Reducing microclimates conducive to mold and mildew growth. Slowing stretch in some benign pools might allow for the formation of lower canopies, which is advantageous for many crops. Clearly, Haupt’s schwazzing technique has been successful, as he and his crew have exceeded four pounds per light in the years after the publication of his book.

But what does the science say about the schwazze or any other type of heavy pruning? Let’s dive a little deeper.

When is cannabis pruned? – Cannabis pruning is performed nearly solely during the vegetative development stage, before the plant is grown and ready to blossom. Before trimming, the plant should be well-established in the vegetative phase, standing roughly 12 inches (30 cm) tall with many sets of leaves.

Minimize trimming if you want to cultivate shrubby, short-stemmed plants.
Pruning in the beginning of the vegetative development phase will have little effect on flowering.
It is not advisable to prune established plants that are reaching the blooming period.
At this stage, severe trimming might either delay the commencement of flowering or prevent it entirely.

In certain instances, though, growers may choose to postpone flowering on purpose, making strategic pruning a beneficial technique. During flowering, pruning should be minimal and gentle. The removal of fan leaves that are obscuring healthy bud sites is an example of good pruning.

How can I get my buds to swell?

Feeding – If you want your plant to produce enormous buds, you must feed it properly. Phosphorus is the nutrient most closely related with blooming plants, whereas nitrogen is most closely associated with vegetative development. Providing a plant with nitrogen throughout its vegetative stage produces a healthy, vigorous plant at a young age that will develop fast, resulting in enhanced yields.

Reduce nitrogen levels and raise phosphorus levels after your plant begins flowering so that the buds may grow fully and become thick. If grown in soil, during moving from vegetative to blooming development, top-dress the soil with bat guano or worm castings to enhance phosphorus levels, while liquid feeding the plant with other nutrients.

Regularly feeding compost tea to your soils is another method for cultivating larger buds. Compost teat aids in the formation of healthy mycorrhizal interactions between soil and mycelium. The greater the amount of mycelium in the soil, the more nutrients the plant will absorb, resulting in larger buds.

Defoliation is the process of eliminating leaves that are not actively catching light, occupying space, and using energy that your plant might be transferring to its buds. The fewer places requiring energy, the more energy can be transferred to the flowers — we want to maximize energy and nutrients to our final product, and defoliation aids in this endeavor.

Let’s examine how to defoliate during the Flowering stage.
Eep marijuana mind that each strain has its unique structure, and some variations do not require defoliation if you are already cultivating a thin plant.
Flowering defoliation is often a bit more dramatic than Vegetative defoliation, however in order to defoliate appropriately during Flowering, we must first remove any growth tips, tiny leaves, or sections of the plant that aren’t receiving light just before entering Flowering.

If you want the greatest results, you may “lollipop” your plants, which means to remove all the leaves below the point where the light reaches – the term “lollipop” originates from the fact that your buds will resemble candies on a stick once you’re done pruning.

You may also trim away leaves higher up on the plant to focus the plant’s growth only on the buds.
This approach is a bit more difficult since you may eliminate some bud sites along the way; thus, you must be careful not to harm the bud sites.
Examine the area where you intend to prune and search for evidence of bud sites; then, cut the stems just above this point.

You may squeeze or snip off lesser growths, whichever you find most comfortable. Therefore, we propose defoliating at three distinct periods throughout Flower: Immediately prior to switching to 12/12 Once between the onset of Blossom and the 3-week mark The final time you should defoliate is three weeks after the beginning of flower.

What blooming week do buds smell?

As a cannabis plant grows its blossoms, the odor becomes increasingly potent. After around two weeks of blossoming, the plants emit a scent that will strengthen as the buds develop. Trichomes can be discovered growing on and around bud sites as part of the blooming process.

As a plant reaches its optimum flowering stage and more of them develop, the blooms will be at their most pungent. As the trichomes begin to mature, the makeup of the terpenes changes. Towards the end of the flowering phase, cannabis plants typically emit a pungent odour that is earthy or flowery. After the trichomes reach their maximum THC content and begin to disintegrate, the odor might become much more weedy or piney.

Do not mix the strength of a cannabis plant’s odor with its potency. After curing, a strain can have practically little odor while being quite strong. At the end of the flowering cycle, flushing your plants will eliminate any nutrient buildup, making them scent even better.

Two weeks of flushing prior to harvest will provide the cleanest buds. You will notice that the odor gets fresher and cleaner. Invest in a quality carbon filter if you are concerned about the fragrance of your cannabis plants spreading to undesirable areas. Carbon filters really eliminate smells from the air, making them the most efficient solution to regulate the odor of your garden when it begins to smell badly.

Ensure that your carbon filter can accommodate the size of your fan and grow space.

What should my buds look like at 5 weeks?

Week 1: Transition of Plants from Vegetative to Flowering – The first week of the flowering cycle will find the female plants in a transitional phase. Instead of receiving 18+ hours of light every day, as they do during the vegetative cycle, the time under lights is substantially decreased.

The fact that the vegetative cycle resembles summer indicates that plants have ample time to flourish.
Since a result of the reduced quantity of light the plants receive, the blooming period is accelerated, as the plants are misled into believing that winter is approaching.
The plants must spend their energy on rapidly growing buds in order to be pollinated by a male plant before they perish during the winter.

Even though the plant has officially reached the ‘flowering period,’ it will not require more nutrients. A person should not abruptly switch their plant’s fertilizer regimen from vegetative to blooming the next day. Once flowering begins, it is generally advised to continue providing nutrients for at least another week.

During week 2, the female cannabis plants will produce their first white pistils. These tiny, wispy white hairs grow where the large fan leaves meet the main stem. These white hairs will develop into colas, which are the plant’s buds. If a cannabis plant is male, it will produce pollen sacs rather than white hairs.

Now is the time to “sex” your plants, which means to separate the men and females. It is crucial to sex the plants during this time period because male plants might pollinate the female plants, leading them to produce seeds in their blossoms. This is something a grower would never want, as the quality of the ultimate product would suffer significantly.

Increasing blooming nutrients is often necessary for plants to attain their optimum yield potential around week 2, when they begin to blossom and beginning the first symptoms of bud development.
The cannabis plants will be far larger than they were three weeks ago, with the size of certain strains tripling.

The stretching of the plant will progressively slow down and finally cease, allowing the plant to spend its energy on flower production before “winter” ends their lives. The first three weeks are hence known as the “stretch phase.” While the plants are working hard to acquire bulk and height in preparation for ‘winter,’ they will also produce a large number of new leaves, primarily at the top of the major colas.

Plants do this in order to become more robust and able to support the next large buds.
Where white hairs had existed, there should now be the earliest symptoms of the development of true buds.
Due to a lack of resin glands and trichomes on the plant at this stage, the odor will not be particularly powerful.

This phase, in which female plants begin to devote more energy to flower development, is crucial. It is essential that they receive the proper nutrients and doses. If a plant’s leaves are yellowing or falling off, it may require additional nutrients. If a plant is overfed, resulting in “nutrient burn,” discoloration may appear at the leaf tips.

At this point in the blooming phase, the cannabis plant has likely ceased growing. The plants are currently devoting all of their energy to bud development, expecting to be pollinated by a male in order to produce seeds that will germinate in the spring. If you have properly sexed your plants, the bud sites will continue to increase in size.

Even though there are still white hairs protruding from the buds, the buds get larger with each passing day, and as the buds expand, the plants manufacture more trichomes. This makes the odor far more pungent. After the rise in bud size, the plants may require structural support, as they may begin to lean or topple owing to the added weight.

All of the plant’s buds have gotten denser.
There may be new buds in new locations, such as near the cola.
Cannabis plants continue to gain weight daily.
This is a positive indicator that the plant is in full bloom.
At this stage, the odor will be quite strong.
Some of the plant’s white pistil hairs may become amber or brownish in hue.

Meanwhile, the plant’s trichomes may also be growing opaque. Dark hairs and milky-white trichomes are positive indicators that the plants are nearing harvest. Different cannabis plants exist. Some plants take longer time to bloom than others. Although several types are ready for harvest in these last three weeks, the majority are not ripe until week 8.

Flushing is vital to a successful crop.
Flushing is the process of applying pH-balanced, pH-neutral water to the soil to eliminate any remaining nutrients after a plant has stopped receiving food.
When nutrients are taken from the soil, the plant is forced to consume the remaining nutrients inside itself.

Similar to how people store fat for energy during times of food scarcity, the plant will utilize its stores. Ultimately, a cultivator wishes for the plant to have no remaining nutrients, or “fat,” when it is harvested. Having no nutrients is essential, since they might contaminate the buds after harvest and provide a foul, chemical flavor when smoked.

To determine when a plant is ready to be harvested, its trichomes are examined using a microscope or jeweler’s loupes.
If the trichomes go from transparent to milky white, it may be ready to harvest.
If several trichomes are still visible, it is too early to harvest.
When the THC concentration of the buds has reached its peak, the trichomes will be opaque and amber in color.

The cultivation process fascinates us at Green Tree Medicinals! What about you? Flowering Phases of Cannabis Plants