Does cutting branches give bigger buds?

L

lilnug420

Well-Known Member
so i've been growing for a few years both indoors and outdoors, mostly outdoors.


outdoors with feminized seeds i've always had good yields, but never big buds.

my plants always have LOTS of branches and lots of bud sites everywhere.

i was wondering if i were to cut all the new branches that grow out, and leave a few big ones? i've had this happen with some auto flowers that just grow short but very thick and the buds were massive.




the way i see it, is if i only leave a few branches, the plant will put all of it's energy into those growing them thick and strong, and this would also result in bigger denser buds since there isn't so many branches that the plant has to feed and support.



now, the biggest question, will it affect yield? in my head it shouldn't since there is gonna be fewer buds but much bigger and heavier as the plant can only focus on those few branches rather lots of thin ones.


are there any downsides to this??? tips??? i already use techniques such as LST and super cropping



another advantage i see to this is that my plants will be shorter ( i have a height issue, can only go so tall) and easier to manage overall. let me know your thoughts growers.



also i see a lot of people cutting fan leaves during flower (especially ones that might not look 100% healthy, i've always avoided doing so as fan leaves contain nutrients that the plant can use during flower. but i'm starting to think it might be the right thing to do because it would allow the sun to shine more on the buds?
 
indoor and outdoor are different. you can use training and defol in both, but it is generally an indoor practice.

with time and proper training you can maximize the potential of your indoor spaces.
 
You need to gauge in the structure of the plant what is going to be an energy sucker and what's gonna be a nice bud, if it starts to wander like making a long stem to go look for light, get rid of it, if it stays close to the branch to make a nice bud leave it.

If you really want to stay low scrog outside, so you get a nice even exposed canopy and then as well everything under the light line you need to keep clear as well. Make like a 4 or 5' frame and wiring above the pot fill that out by topping or guiding.
Or a trellis round it and then pull branches out and keep the inside clear of growth.
 
lilnug420 said:
is 130 grams of dry bud from a 7gal pot good for outdoors?
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I would think that the amount can easily be increased. It would take a decent fertilizing program to feed the plant since the roots are limited to the growing medium in the pot.

Also, some training and pruning while still allowing the plant to grow large in order to pull it off. The most important thing would be having the plant in a good spot where it can get a lot of quality sunlight.
 
lilnug420 said:
is 130 grams of dry bud from a 7gal pot good for outdoors?
Click to expand...

I just pulled 140 grams off of a 3 gallon fabric indoors organically. You should be able to at least double that outdoors in a 7 gallon. That’s where @SmokingWings and @Fenderbender advice will come in handy and help you to push higher
 
SmokingWings said:
I would think that the amount can easily be increased. It would take a decent fertilizing program to feed the plant since the roots are limited to the growing medium in the pot.

Also, some training and pruning while still allowing the plant to grow large in order to pull it off. The most important thing would be having the plant in a good spot where it can get a lot of quality sunlight.
Click to expand...
i can't think of how to increase it, they get plenty of fertilizer, i don't really get nutrient deficency, i do last and topping
 
Keffka said:
I just pulled 140 grams off of a 3 gallon fabric indoors organically. You should be able to at least double that outdoors in a 7 gallon. That’s where @SmokingWings and @Fenderbender advice will come in handy and help you to push higher
Click to expand...
well that's indoors, my autoflowers get 120grams dry with a 100w purple light and a 10 liter fabric pot, outdoors i've never managed to get that much from an autoflower...


i think it's easier to grow indoors, i've had big harvests with little to no effort, where as outdoors it's lots of work.... perhaps i'm limited by the weather... idk, can't think of what else i can improve


i would go indoors but i can't afford it as electricity is hella expensive here so i do mainly outdoors now
 
lilnug420 said:
well that's indoors, my autoflowers get 120grams dry with a 100w purple light and a 10 liter fabric pot, outdoors i've never managed to get that much from an autoflower...


i think it's easier to grow indoors, i've had big harvests with little to no effort, where as outdoors it's lots of work.... perhaps i'm limited by the weather... idk, can't think of what else i can improve


i would go indoors but i can't afford it as electricity is hella expensive here so i do mainly outdoors now
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Ahh my bad, I missed where you said autos.. I grew photos outdoors and they stomped out my indoors grows. The taste, flavor, and strength wasn’t as refined/potent as the indoors runs but the yields were absolutely massive. 5 gallon pots would produce 9-10 ounces fairly regularly. More if we allowed the roots to go into the ground, obviously. The smells were always stronger outside though I’ve found, or perhaps I’m just nose blind indoors.

I have a few auto seeds but haven’t tried them yet. It seems to me it’s probably best to get them going closer to mid summer where the days are long and nights are short so you can get the most sunlight possible. Your weather could definitely effect it since they’re on a timeline and time lost can’t be made up. I would also try some LST to open it up to more light and air if you aren’t already. Maybe a stronger fertilizer program as well.
 
I didn't think that you were talking just auto-flowers and took it as a general question. While I have not deliberately grown auto-flowers I have to go on what those who do have to say and what I see in their photographs. Some of them have pulled some decent weights at harvest.

It would seem that growing outdoors with the intensity of the natural sunlight and the more complete spectrum increases the sizes of the plant and therefore the size and weights of the buds at harvest.

lilnug420 said:
i can't think of how to increase it, they get plenty of fertilizer, i don't really get nutrient deficency, i do last and topping....
Click to expand...
It is not something to do if or when a deficiency shows up. I was thinking along the lines of increasing the amounts a bit more than what the schedules suggest for a normally successful grow.

Some along the line of adding a bit extra Potassium which is the macro nutrient that the plant can use during all stages of growth. Calcium is very commonly found in soil but if the plant is limited to the soil or growing medium in a pot then adding extra as part of the feeding schedule makes sure enough is available when the plant is needing more than it is able to find. And a bit extra Phosphorous being added between the start of flowering and up to about 2 weeks before harvest seems to help promote larger buds.
 
In addition to smokings advice, I would also make sure you’re using myco and getting a really good colony established as well. This can really boost your yields and finished quality. Unless you’re using a liquid nutrient program with high amounts of P then myco won’t really benefit you much.
 
OP said "outdoors with feminized seeds i've always had good yields, but never big buds."

But the 130g was referring to an Auto outside?

Can be good can be bad, Autos outside are still a bit a mystery to me as I've had them going from anywhere between just a bud sticking out of the ground of 15gr to like huge 5' bushes with several hundreds of grams.
Inside 130 ain't bad, but again you have guys pushing autos way beyond that.

Sun exposure is definitely not to be underestimated as it totally shapes the plant as the plant will grow until she hits desired energy levels, which can lead to chaotic plant with loads of small buds.

That's why I feel like a South angled scrog is very nice unless you got total day round exposure then best to go for trellis and round shape.

I'm facing tough outside challenges as well as it gets cold quick here, Sun hours ain't bad but vary a lot like little lots little all in a span of a few months and loads of very overcast days and that can totally show in the plant structure.
A few hours indoors you can see in the plant structure as I recently shifted my plants with 6 hours and the internodal space of that period is different.

And especially if OP wants to stay hidden and low think horizontal either by scrog or if you don't want to do much just bend the plant and keep it horizontal and let the branches rise upwards.

Or look up quadlining by Azimuth.

Either way plant manipulation is the way to go as that can totally change the results and give you lots of control even over how she finishes and you can adjust to the conditions your location has.
 
Keffka said:
Ahh my bad, I missed where you said autos.. I grew photos outdoors and they stomped out my indoors grows. The taste, flavor, and strength wasn’t as refined/potent as the indoors runs but the yields were absolutely massive. 5 gallon pots would produce 9-10 ounces fairly regularly. More if we allowed the roots to go into the ground, obviously. The smells were always stronger outside though I’ve found, or perhaps I’m just nose blind indoors.

I have a few auto seeds but haven’t tried them yet. It seems to me it’s probably best to get them going closer to mid summer where the days are long and nights are short so you can get the most sunlight possible. Your weather could definitely effect it since they’re on a timeline and time lost can’t be made up. I would also try some LST to open it up to more light and air if you aren’t already. Maybe a stronger fertilizer program as well.
Click to expand...
no outdoors i grow fems mostly, i was talking about auto because i've only grown autos indoors and with great results


by stronger fertilizer program you mean upping dosage? i currently use mega crop
 
SmokingWings said:
I didn't think that you were talking just auto-flowers and took it as a general question. While I have not deliberately grown auto-flowers I have to go on what those who do have to say and what I see in their photographs. Some of them have pulled some decent weights at harvest.

It would seem that growing outdoors with the intensity of the natural sunlight and the more complete spectrum increases the sizes of the plant and therefore the size and weights of the buds at harvest.


It is not something to do if or when a deficiency shows up. I was thinking along the lines of increasing the amounts a bit more than what the schedules suggest for a normally successful grow.

Some along the line of adding a bit extra Potassium which is the macro nutrient that the plant can use during all stages of growth. Calcium is very commonly found in soil but if the plant is limited to the soil or growing medium in a pot then adding extra as part of the feeding schedule makes sure enough is available when the plant is needing more than it is able to find. And a bit extra Phosphorous being added between the start of flowering and up to about 2 weeks before harvest seems to help promote larger buds.
Click to expand...
the issue i have with this is that i've tried in the past, but got some yellow leaves or some other deficiency and i couldn't tell if it's too much or too little nutrients as they can look very similar
 
Fenderbender said:
OP said "outdoors with feminized seeds i've always had good yields, but never big buds."

But the 130g was referring to an Auto outside?

Can be good can be bad, Autos outside are still a bit a mystery to me as I've had them going from anywhere between just a bud sticking out of the ground of 15gr to like huge 5' bushes with several hundreds of grams.
Inside 130 ain't bad, but again you have guys pushing autos way beyond that.

Sun exposure is definitely not to be underestimated as it totally shapes the plant as the plant will grow until she hits desired energy levels, which can lead to chaotic plant with loads of small buds.

That's why I feel like a South angled scrog is very nice unless you got total day round exposure then best to go for trellis and round shape.

I'm facing tough outside challenges as well as it gets cold quick here, Sun hours ain't bad but vary a lot like little lots little all in a span of a few months and loads of very overcast days and that can totally show in the plant structure.
A few hours indoors you can see in the plant structure as I recently shifted my plants with 6 hours and the internodal space of that period is different.

And especially if OP wants to stay hidden and low think horizontal either by scrog or if you don't want to do much just bend the plant and keep it horizontal and let the branches rise upwards.

Or look up quadlining by Azimuth.

Either way plant manipulation is the way to go as that can totally change the results and give you lots of control even over how she finishes and you can adjust to the conditions your location has.
Click to expand...
no i was talking about autos indoors, since i've only grown autos indoors, where as outdoors i've never managed to get decent yields with autos that's why i mostly run fems
 
lilnug420 said:
the issue i have with this is that i've tried in the past, but got some yellow leaves or some other deficiency and i couldn't tell if it's too much or too little nutrients as they can look very similar
Click to expand...
Could be overwatering. :Namaste:
How often do you water?
Do you use full strength nutrients?
Do you alternate feed/ water/ feed/ water ?




#VIVOSUN #Love What You Grow
Bill284 😎
 
lilnug420 said:
the issue i have with this is that i've tried in the past, but got some yellow leaves or some other deficiency and i couldn't tell if it's too much or too little nutrients as they can look very similar
Click to expand...
Yes, the "deficiency and excess" pictures on the charts do make them look alike.

The larger the plant the more it needs in the way of water and nutrients to maintain that size. So, I think of a deficiency first. If the plant is entering or already in the flowering stage it demands even more just to maintain where it is already at; so again I think of a deficiency first. Growing in a natural soil makes it hard to believe that the leaves turning yellow or brown is because of an excess if for no other reason than the plant itself and soil organisms are controlling what and how much is available.

If the plant is in a natural soil the first thing the plant does is make use of the water soluble nutrients that are available. When the levels of water soluble nutrients are not enough the plant sends out 'signals' that it is looking for the missing specific nutrients and the amounts. At that point the micro-organisms living in the soil will be eating the "water insoluble" raw materials and processes and then exuding what are now water soluble nutrients. The needs of the plant are taken care of.

The process makes it near impossible to have too much of any of the nutrients become available faster than the plant can handle. The plant cannot take in an excess unless it is already water soluble and it takes the micro-organisms to make the "insoluble" become "soluble" except in rare cases. Feeding with organic input or natural fertilizers makes it harder for any excess to become a problem considering most of it is not available to the plant until the organisms do their part.

This process is not just for Marijuana plants since all plants growing in natural soils go through the steps of interacting with the soil micro-organisms when it comes to the need for nutrients.

Since I am growing in a natural soil mix I tend to look at all grows that way unless the grower says they are not in a natural soil. Those who are growing in a hydroponic or a soil-less grow medium end up having a different process taking place than what I described. Their feeding schedule involves feeding weak doses with the water soluble nutrients already available. Often their fertilizers do not have water insoluble nutrients since what the plant needs has already been dissolved and is ready to go immediately. Even if it is a weak dose, giving the plant a double dose in one feeding can cause signs of an "excess" as we see in the charts.
 
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