Best way to keep my girls under control...

I currently have 4 girls, and they are getting to be pretty big for only day 27 IMO. I have a very small basic setup, detailed here:

I have been looking all over, and have not quite found the information I am looking for, and it's not for lack of trying!!! I'm trying to find out the most appropriate method for keeping my girls under control. They are all extremely vigorous, and look to be doing well. I am needing to know when would be the best time, and what would be a good method to use to keep these girls under my lamps. I had some partial success by myself for my first grow. But the plants, and the yield were not the best. So it is time to seek professional advice.

What I would like to know is at about what height/node count I should start trimming to keep them slightly bushy, and have a nice canopy that will get covered by the lighting system I have (T5 HO 4' 4 lamp, 54 watt 6500k, will be changed out to 2 6500k and 2 2700k lamps for bloom). This is all experimental and any advice/help/whatever is greatly appreciated. I have included a link to the grow diary I just started as well.


https://www.rollitup.org/grow-journals/574592-experimental-organic-grow-2-a.html

Are those pics recent? They look healthy, but quite small for four weeks of growth.

For example, mine are nearly the same age and are 6-8" and have between 8 and 12 nodes each.

The best way for you to control height is by using LST supercropping. There are tons of threads employing this technique and many how to instructiionals. The search button and Google are your friends.

Aye. Mine at 4 weeks were almost a foot tall, several branching nodes, using the LST method. Elvin looks decent at 3 weeks, the others look too small. But they don't look stretched or stressed, it could simply be they are taking their time before they explode on you, lol. Good your using hermie seeds, should be all females and a stable grow.

smokinrav said:

Are those pics recent? They look healthy, but quite small for four weeks of growth.

For example, mine are nearly the same age and are 6-8" and have between 8 and 12 nodes each.

The best way for you to control height is by using LST supercropping. There are tons of threads employing this technique and many how to instructiionals. The search button and Google are your friends.

Click to expand...

The pics are as of Oct 18th, I'll be taking new pics on Oct 24th (today), and posting them later tonight.

Mine don't seem to be growing up so much as growing out right now. But it looks like that are about to start a burst upwards as well. I can see at least 5 well defined nodes on each one (except the small one, she may be a donation to a friend here soon, or compost. I can only realistically handle 3 medium plants under my lamps), so I guess it's the best time for some serious reading up on LST then.

Thanks for the advice. I'm still learning so any and every bit of advice helps!!!

Check out the main lining thread in organics forum. Properly topped and trained for a space like you have is the best way to control your canopy and get the most out of the space and plants.

https://www.rollitup.org/subcools-old-school-organics/542308-main-lining-thread.html

beatings do not work.
[video=youtube;MgPpsbLARcw]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=MgPpsbLARcw[/video]



lst,main line, fim, top. scrog. many approaches to this challenge.

I keep mine to 24" then flower. they usual reach near 36" by harvest time.

top/clone at the 2nd node, see https://www.rollitup.org/advanced-marijuana-cultivation/151706-uncle-bens-topping-technique-get.html#post1931449 , then lst and fim and your plants will start to look like shrubs in about 3 weeks.

ipeeinpools said:

Aye. Mine at 4 weeks were almost a foot tall, several branching nodes, using the LST method. Elvin looks decent at 3 weeks, the others look too small. But they don't look stretched or stressed, it could simply be they are taking their time before they explode on you, lol. Good your using hermie seeds, should be all females and a stable grow.

Click to expand...

I'm going to try for one last measuring later today, and post the results around 5ish pm. But just by looking at them, from the soil to the top leaf is about 6 to 7 inches, and about 12" each direction on Elvira, Francine looks pretty close to that as well, Corky is about 5" or 5.5" and 9" across, and poor little Regina, We'll just have to wait and see with her. They are quite compact actually. I will post pics attempting to show the internodes clearly.

The last batch I experimented with were all from the same batch of seed. All four were very different phenotypes, one even turned dark purple wherever light touched the leaves, even the ones on the bud. Wish I had been smart enough to take a few pics of that. But one had to be taken out early as it went hermie on me, and I chopped it down and my partner will be making it into mintajuana (4 types of mint and catnip(yes I know it's a mint!!!)) tea with chamomile, stevia, and a little yarrow in it as well.

I've found some forums on LST, and a few YouTube vids, so I'm off to school yet again. UGH!!! 39 years old and I've got more studying now than I did in high school or college. Seriously though, thank you for the suggestions, and any criticisms are welcome as well...

bowlfullofbliss said:

Check out the main lining thread in organics forum. Properly topped and trained for a space like you have is the best way to control your canopy and get the most out of the space and plants.

https://www.rollitup.org/subcools-old-school-organics/542308-main-lining-thread.html

Click to expand...

I did a read on the main-lining thread, and quite frankly I think that is a bit too much for me to start at this time. But I do want to try that technique at a future date for sure!!! Looks great, but it does seem a bit more involved that I am currently capable of doing properly. I really know very little overall for growing MMJ, but I am experimenting, and main-lining is definitely on a future grow. Thanks for the great info link!!!