Proper pruning?

The bottom of my plant isn't doing so good. I know that the plant is doing good overall, because it is fairly bushy, stands upright (no wilting), is very green, and has strong growth. Everyday, it gains about 1 to 3 inches in height. It also gets stinkier day by day.

However, the bottom leaves aren't doing well. First, they develop little yellow spots, which then turn into brown spots, which then wither away. I could take pics if it helps.

This happened to the baby leaves originally (the first two really small leaves when it first sprouts) and both these baby leaves ended up dying entirely.

I suspect this is all due to lack of sunlight because the other leaves cover the bottom leaves. The bottom leaves are probably going to die eventually, unless they spread out far enough to get enough light.

Question: Should I prune the bottom leaves, which are dying anyway? Or should I just wait?

If the problem is overall on the bottom branches, you can take the whole branch off at the stalk . . . up to 1/3 of the entire plant is what I've read here on RIU. Some do this anyway, so the growth can be concentrated on the main cola and upper canopy.
It doesn't sound like you lights are going to be enough to make these lower buds worth the bother.
Or you can simply pluck the dying leaves off as they rot. This I do.
It's somewhat normal for these lower leaves to die, usually after some budding time.

MrFishy said:

If the problem is overall on the bottom branches, you can take the whole branch off at the stalk . . . up to 1/3 of the entire plant is what I've read here on RIU. Some do this anyway, so the growth can be concentrated on the main cola and upper canopy.
It doesn't sound like you lights are going to be enough to make these lower buds worth the bother.
Or you can simply pluck the dying leaves off as they rot. This I do.
It's somewhat normal for these lower leaves to die, usually after some budding time.

Click to expand...

What is RIU, the cola, and the canopy? I assume the canopy are the leaves on the top?

I forgot to mention: The plant is outdoors. It's about 16 inches high and it's not flowering yet (I'm letting it grow as high as possible before flowering it).

Roll It Up = RIU ie: the forum we're on.
Cola = bud.
Canopy = All the top growth


Pic of 42 day in flower / 32" canopy / many "colas"