Broken branch & recovery period?

[Bush Doctor 77]

I'm doing my first quadline ever with 4 plants. While bending one 1/8 inch branch, it broke almost completely off, and was barely hanging by a thin strand. That was 16 hours ago. I taped it back together with masking tape, and it has not died or wilted. How long do I need to keep the tape on, and before I can start bending it down again?

 

[Woblaaaah]

Id leave it alone for at least 3 weeks

 

[Barney86]

Yeah couple weeks mate. They usually recover though. If it's not started to droop by bed time you should be sound

 

[Bush Doctor 77]

Been 36 hours. It wilted a bit, but it perked back up and looks fine this morning. I've been growing for 50+ years now, and 3 months ago before coming on this forum, I knew nothing about quadlining, and would have never attempted to repair a 90%+ broken stem. Neat knowledge base we have here. This one plant out of 4 strains(it seems to really have F1 vigor) wants to grow vertically big time. It's a Royal Queen Seeds Royal Cookies from Seedsman.

 

[Greenlizard]

It's amazing how they can heal a severed branch isn't it. As previously mentioned I would not trust the break for at least 2 weeks but 3 would be a full repair if all goes well.
I like to squeeze the stems a bit before I bend them down. Makes them a little more pliable.

 

[AdaminCO]

I use medical tape. You can spray it everyday with water and it will absorbe it, keeping the area moist. It acts like Neosporin does and heals up within a week. When the plant has outgrown it, it peals off with ease. I also take a straw, cut up the side in a spiral and put it around the tape for support. I’ve used this method many times without losing a limb.
There’s a link in my sig to an article Shed wrote on suppercropping if you’re interested.

 

[Bush Doctor 77]

It's amazing how they can heal a severed branch isn't it. As previously mentioned I would not trust the break for at least 2 weeks but 3 would be a full repair if all goes well.
I like to squeeze the stems a bit before I bend them down. Makes them a little more pliable.

I wish I would have known that last fall. I had a Bruce Banner cross in my greenhouse that looked like a Xmas tree. One night it collapsed completely. It fell over, and all the main branches broke but were hanging on by threads. It was about 10 days before harvest, and I just cut it down. If it happens again, duct tape to the rescue.

 

[AdaminCO]

I wish I would have known that last fall. I had a Bruce Banner cross in my greenhouse that looked like a Xmas tree. One night it collapsed completely. It fell over, and all the main branches broke but were hanging on by threads. It was about 10 days before harvest, and I just cut it down. If it happens again, duct tape to the rescue.

Medical tape. Lol!
Can’t breathe through duct tape.

 

[Bush Doctor 77]

Medical tape. Lol!
Can’t breathe through duct tape.

These were 1 inch branches that broke right at the main stem. The branches weighed pounds as the plant was in late flower with huge buds. Is medical tape strong enough?

 

[AdaminCO]

Good old’ zip tie works too. LMAO!
Hey... it worked.

 

[AdaminCO]

These were 1 inch branches that broke right at the main stem. The branches weighed pounds as the plant was in late flower with huge buds. Is medical tape strong enough?

Oh yeah, I’d think so. In your case I would have wrapped it twice then found something to zip tie around it for core support. Tape is more to hold the moisture than support. That’s the point to helping it heal quickly. Constant moisture. Think of a scab or a break in your skin. If it dries out, it cracks again and starts bleeding, takes forever to heal. If you have a bandaid with Neosporin, there’s no discomfort and it heals a lot faster. That was my thought process at least.

 

[AdaminCO]

This is her today. You can zoom in and see where it was.

I ended pulling my SCROG week 5 or VEG so I had to deal with a bunch of broken mains. Never again!

 

[AdaminCO]

Took some more pics.

I’m staring to see some places I didnt realize had even split no that the SCROG is off.

 

[Bush Doctor 77]

Mine is actively growing.