On my outdoor plants like the one below, should I have been pruning the large fan leaves that aren’t connected to any buds? I’ve seen videos on YouTube and read that the large fan leaves not connected to buds are energy suckers once you are into flower and they should be pruned to direct that energy to the buds. Also that the large fan leaves should also be pruned if they shade any buds.
Pruning large fan leaves that aren't connected to buds?
- Thread starter jokerlola
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zigzagman1960
Well-Known Member
Energy suckers huh?
Sounds like the 70s. Don’t forget to dip your roots in boiling water after you pull your plant to get all the thc to the buds.
Leaves store energy(nutrients). They get their energy from the roots that are in the medium that you feed. The leaves feed the flowers.
The lower leaves are early indicators of some Nutrient deficiencies.
Stop watching YouTube for gardening instructions.
The leaves covering the buds should be left alone.
When your about a week or less away from harvest you can start cutting em all off to make it easier.
Sounds like the 70s. Don’t forget to dip your roots in boiling water after you pull your plant to get all the thc to the buds.
Leaves store energy(nutrients). They get their energy from the roots that are in the medium that you feed. The leaves feed the flowers.
The lower leaves are early indicators of some Nutrient deficiencies.
Stop watching YouTube for gardening instructions.
The leaves covering the buds should be left alone.
When your about a week or less away from harvest you can start cutting em all off to make it easier.
Zephyrs
Well-Known Member
No and No you should never pull off perfectly healthy green Large fan leaves.... Never. That is what is the nutrients storage, For the Growing Buds... please don't believe those Shwazzing fools you see on YouTube!!On my outdoor plants like the one below, should I have been pruning the large fan leaves that aren’t connected to any buds? I’ve seen videos on YouTube and read that the large fan leaves not connected to buds are energy suckers once you are into flower and they should be pruned to direct that energy to the buds. Also that the large fan leaves should also be pruned if they shade any buds.
If the leaves are blocking light from bud sites, “tuck, don’t pluck!’
- Thread starter
- #5
This is what I have always thought. I’ve never liked the idea of defoliating of stripping leaves but it seems to be very popular advice even before the whole “ShwazzIng” thing became popular. I was watching a video from a huge outdoor grow operation where they had crews pruning the big fan leaves during flowering. I just needed to check if it is indeed bullshit to do this.No and No you should never pull off perfectly healthy green Large fan leaves.... Never. That is what is the nutrients storage, For the Growing Buds... please don't believe those Shwazzing fools you see on YouTube!!
Is the any real science to needing the buds to be exposed to the sun or light? That is one of the other justifications to doing this is that the big fan leaves shade the flowers from the sun/light and will cause small buds.
Zephyrs
Well-Known Member
There is a reason why those big Fan leaves seem to always cover the lower budsite... No, direct sunlight on small New buds is Not good for it. That's why the plant subconsciously covers them with Fan, or Shade leaves as some peeps call em. Also they are storage units for Readily Available Nutrients to the Growing flowers. JM2C
Delps8
Well-Known Member
I've read as much research as I can find and nothing gets to anything that granular. Everything I can find is at a higher level - varying light levels and light color, varying nutrients, etc. I have found one paper that discusses defoliation/pruning but there's no mention of moving fan leaves to expose bud sites.
To my "history- major" way of thinking, plants generate flowers to continue the species and if growing a leaf above a bud site would impair the plants ability to develop a viable flower, then cannabis would have evolved to not grow flowers in a position where it could block the light since that would tend to inhibit the continuation of the species.
Really good question.
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- #8
But do the buds need direct light or sunlight to ripen and grow big or do they get energy from the leaves? So do we even need to tuck?
Sueet
Well-Known Member
I personally think it isn't the buds that need the light, but the leaves attached to said buds, which is why bottoms are larfy when not trimmed off, they don't get much (if any) light.
My take on defol is to ONLY do it when needed, ie. high humidity, etc. where you need extra air flow.
My take on defol is to ONLY do it when needed, ie. high humidity, etc. where you need extra air flow.
Delps8
Well-Known Member
So much for my theory…
I did a quick google search and a couple of good sources state that the primary reason for large is that those buds are not getting enough light.
My practice has been to get rid of a lot of the stuff in the undercarriage. I forget who it was, but he said that, in his commercial grow, they remove the larf and remove any branch that’s thinner than a pencil.
I did a quick google search and a couple of good sources state that the primary reason for large is that those buds are not getting enough light.
My practice has been to get rid of a lot of the stuff in the undercarriage. I forget who it was, but he said that, in his commercial grow, they remove the larf and remove any branch that’s thinner than a pencil.
Fredwak
Well-Known Member
Hi all, I did my own experimenting and when I leave the leaves alone, the plant grows faster, bigger and bigger flowers as well. I'll try ZZ man's suggestion with my outdoor plants and start cutting the lower leaves a week or so before harvest. They get to be too much sometimes. 
Stay stoneder
Stay stoneder
Jaz
Well-Known Member
They also absorb a lot of light, so they may just be energy suckers?
You're correct though, they are the power houses that the plant relies on for energy.
j
All those leaves, whether large fan leaves or small 'sugar' leaves are where the photosynthesis takes place. The leaves are where the plant gets all the energy that the plants stores until needed.
The way I see it when too many leaves are cut off the plant is forced to redirect all that stored energy in the roots, etc back to making more leaves instead of more, or larger, flowers.
The way I see it when too many leaves are cut off the plant is forced to redirect all that stored energy in the roots, etc back to making more leaves instead of more, or larger, flowers.
I’m not sure how this relates to the above topic, it may not even be relevant and is just an observation from my garden but
One of my most advanced colas is flopped over on a 45deg angle parallel with the ground, furthest away from the sun, which is now quite low in the sky at this time of year, on the backside of the plant.
The fan leaves are and look drooped but are also in the same position as those on vertical colas in order to meet the sun as well as shading far more surface area of the flowers than those that are standing upright
One of my most advanced colas is flopped over on a 45deg angle parallel with the ground, furthest away from the sun, which is now quite low in the sky at this time of year, on the backside of the plant.
The fan leaves are and look drooped but are also in the same position as those on vertical colas in order to meet the sun as well as shading far more surface area of the flowers than those that are standing upright
Probably a heavy and dense cola. Heavier than the stem can handle. Sometimes I look at it as a good sign for the harvest.