To Prune or not to prune! Newb Question...

Hey all here's the sitch... Started from bag seed my two lil girls born Aug. 20th and 23rd. Planted in potting soil, 1 transplant to their 5 and 3 gallon homes. I'm using a local 3 part nute mix which seems to be doing well. Running CFL's : 3 - 42W, 6500K. 3 - 23W, 2500K. 2 - 13W, 5000K.

As you can see in the last pic the fan leaves are nearly as big as my hand and I'm concerned it may be blocking light from the lower growth. the plants are roughly 8 inches tall and extreamly bushy, I have lights on the sides as well as above.

Just wondering how you all think they look and should I leave em alone? Prune em? LST somehow? Do you think that I have the lights too close and that's why its not all that tall? Is 8 - 10 inches average for just over 4 weeks old?
Thanks,
Puffin.

August 31st:
... Disregard the dead clones lol ...

Sept 20th:


Note : I know that tinfoil isn't the best choice for reflective material. I'm building a tent as we speak.

So check this out... You have an extremely Indica dominant strain there that's going to produce some monster fan leaves. Bubba Kush (not saying this is what you have) is famous for throwing huge fan leaves that need to be plucked to get good light penetration. I have more than a couple of strains that are like this, mainly all Bubba varieties. I wouldn't pluck anything this early on unless it'd dead. What I would do is take short screws or hooks and screw them every couple of inches all the way around the top of the bucket but facing outward and not upwards. Get what I am saying? Then you can tie short leashes to the branches and pull them down towards the edge of the bucket and tie the leashes to the screws. This will open them up more than a Jenna Jameson! You will have to adjust your leashes every day or two because your plant will find the strength to grow regardless if she's tied down. Hope this helps ya man! Ohh yeah and quit calling your ladies guys or they're gonna throw nanners everywhere and show you guy... lol!

W.C.C.

far cheaper than foil and so so so much better is a safety blanket available at any chain store, if you're on a budget I'd go that way vs the foil anyday. Obviously there are much better choices than foil or safety blanket.

My general rule of thumb is that the less you prune the better, it's always better to tuck out of the way rather than remove; but some plants and strains just have to be pruned and require more maintenance than others. If you prune just don't get carried away, leaves are critical to healthy plant development.

Yes dont prune, as stated above, tuck them away if you need to or buy another light, that is what I did, and hang it around the plant. The Girl has her system together, dont cut the leaves until you get into flower and the lowers turn yellow, this is normal. When you cut cut the leaf right at the end of the stem, let the stem dry up on its own and fall off dont be cutting down by the stalk or tearing it off.

Next time, or if you repot, putting them a little higher in the bucket will give more room for light to get in at the bottom from the sides.
But, I wouldn't cut anything unless I absolutely had to......... Already tried that experiment.

I would leave the plant alone, keep the stress at a minimum. pz!