Water Leaves - Remove or Leave

Recognizing that the large water leaves can prevent nearly all light from reaching the interior of the plant and that the water leaves are of minimal value -- what would be the result of removing all water leaves early on -- a good thing, a bad thing?

You're better off just trying to train the branches and leaves, you can use string to tie them down if need be. Careful not to break them though.

honestly i do remove them but i dont have a certain time when i do it depends on the strain if i feel that the leaves are slowing is growth then i will remove them because i have had a plant be slow as hell then when i removed the water leaves it took off it amazed me. i remove almost all water leaves now.

what are exactly are water leaves

rollin in grass said:

what are exactly are water leaves

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Better known as "Sun Leaves", they are the large fans that produce MOST of the plant's energy.

If you want to improve yield, you're better off learning to remove the tiny shoots that form under the canopy, and save the large leaves. This forces the energy into the "terminal buds" at the end of each stem.

This makes the big buds bigger without forcing the plant to add leaf area to replace the trimmed leaves.

There are MANY growers that disagree with me, so I'd suggest you do some reading in a grow manual. (Jorge Cervantes is my favorite.)

You'll find that nearly all the authors are against removing sun leaves.

Thanks - sounds like sage advice - I appreciate it.

veggiegardener said:

Better known as "Sun Leaves", they are the large fans that produce MOST of the plant's energy.

If you want to improve yield, you're better off learning to remove the tiny shoots that form under the canopy, and save the large leaves. This forces the energy into the "terminal buds" at the end of each stem.

This makes the big buds bigger without forcing the plant to add leaf area to replace the trimmed leaves.

There are MANY growers that disagree with me, so I'd suggest you do some reading in a grow manual. (Jorge Cervantes is my favorite.)

You'll find that nearly all the authors are against removing sun leaves.

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...good advice veggiegardener, not that you needed reassurance.

...I lollipop my garden, removing approx. the lower 1/3 of each plant (during wk#s 2-3 of bloom)....very good advice.

trichome fiend said:

...good advice veggiegardener, not that you needed reassurance.

...I lollipop my garden, removing approx. the lower 1/3 of each plant (during wk#s 2-3 of bloom)....very good advice.

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Lollypopping is a sound method when plants are touching each other, shading out that bottom 1/3. Especially in indoor grows with stationary lighting.

Two thirds of my grow is in two greenhouses. The other third is in a cage of chainlink and remesh.

Neither situation promotes lollypopping. In the greenhouses the lower branches will grow toward the side walls. They are often slender branches that grow along the fabric. I've found them over eight feet long with many uniform, tightly spaced buds along their length. They get a lot of light through the sidewalls.

I'm old. I ramble. Sorry...

LOL

water leaves are different from sun/fan leaves , water leaves are the first set of leaves to appear they hold water for the plant in its early days and sun/fan leaves do the same they hold water and nutes for the plant but they appear at each node but they also gather sunlight for the plant so its not too great to remove a healthy fan leave. water leaves on the other hand i remove pretty early i feel they hold the plant back.

removing these water leaves slows plant growth.
plain and simple that is the truth.
even though the light is not penetrating into the middle or lower parts of the plant, simply topping it or tying it down will bring those smaller nodes to the top.
your plant will be considerably stunted and slowed the more of these large leaves that you remove compared to a plant that has none of the leaves removed.

just try it yourself with two plants of the same strain the answer is obvious.

removed mine on my white rhino indoor medical grow and it had water leafs bigger than my hands twice size crazy big to wer i had too at simalar part on plant and was cocering like 3 kolas no joke....removed them then it did fill out like crazy no joke not a novice 31 years old 6 years under my belt so some things u have to make ur own dicision on like this subjuest u cant always listin to other people beacuse evry pants differnt grown differt styles diffrent climates thefore nobody can say whats good for u on this kinda stuff... i belive in triaql and eeor on things like this like some people swear by a product my work good for them and what there growing and things like that every strain can handle more or less fertz and spme like lower ph and some like it i lttle higher thru grow so take a chance dont be a foller right ur own book does that mean its 100 percnt the right way...feel me..ttl....$crilla g

philthy phil said:

removed mine on my white rhino indoor medical grow and it had water leafs bigger than my hands twice size crazy big to wer i had too at simalar part on plant and was cocering like 3 kolas no joke....removed them then it did fill out like crazy no joke not a novice 31 years old 6 years under my belt so some things u have to make ur own dicision on like this subjuest u cant always listin to other people beacuse evry pants differnt grown differt styles diffrent climates thefore nobody can say whats good for u on this kinda stuff... i belive in triaql and eeor on things like this like some people swear by a product my work good for them and what there growing and things like that every strain can handle more or less fertz and spme like lower ph and some like it i lttle higher thru grow so take a chance dont be a foller right ur own book does that mean its 100 percnt the right way...feel me..ttl....$crilla g

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I like to see people try these things.

Most of what I know came from trial and error. When I started, the books available were all about indoor grows under 4' florescent bulbs.

I'm holding one book, "Everything You've Always Wanted to know about Marijuana". Published in 1973 and sold for $1. 28 pages. C. Castle authored it.

Obviously, a lot of stuff has been discovered since then.

Trial and error will teach you more about this subject than any amount of reading.

But as you mentioned, there are varying conditions that can make different practices effective. I'm limited in my experience because I grow in some of the finest pot growing territory on the planet. Never grown anywhere else. (I'd love to do a couple grows in the highlands of Southeast Asia, but it seems dangerous. Tough for a large white guy to hide among a bunch of 5' Asians.)

BUT, by the time I was 6 years old, I was actively gardening with my Grandparents. One thing I learned very early is that removing green leaves is counterproductive. I've yet to see an exception. Cannabis is a plant. How can it be different?

sorry peoples rooms are all diffrent temps air cir,vents ect...

Hey VEg And PHilly , u guys are right . .this is my 3rd grow . To be honest , all 3 grows I have done differently . Trial and error is the best advise you can give yourself . Sure reading books bout growing does enhance on what you do . Every grow room is different . You learn from your mistakes . I have from that . I've removed my water leaves and yes plants took right off . Water leaaves will grow out as your plant gets bigger . That energy that you cut off from the water leaves is directed to other parts of the plant . Your plants are repairing themselfs because it lost those leaves . Only good can come from that . You will know when not to cut them off . Be your own grower and you will see at the end , the results of what you taught yourself to do .
Happy growing everyone . PEACE

Leo1967 said:

That energy that you cut off from the water leaves is directed to other parts of the plant .

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First, stop calling them "water leaves". Second, that's not how any of this works. The fan leaves generate energy for the plant, they don't absorb it, so removing fan leaves does not direct energy elsewhere, it actually stops that part of the plant from generating any energy at all.

Again... fan leaves generate the energy the plant needs to live and grow. This is photosynthesis. Removing fan leaves reduces the plant's energy output. Period.

DannyLee said:

Recognizing that the large water leaves can prevent nearly all light from reaching the interior of the plant and that the water leaves are of minimal value -- what would be the result of removing all water leaves early on -- a good thing, a bad thing?

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Do what you feel is right . I remove them . I do keep a couple but as the plant gets bigger and other water leaves grow in . I remove the bottom ones . I've had no problems what so ever . Everyone grows differently . And everyone has a opion . I keep a log on every cut that I make and I compare them to my last grow to see the difference in each grow . You as a grower can only make your plants thrive . Goodluck

spek9 said:

First, stop calling them "water leaves". Second, that's not how any of this works. The fan leaves generate energy for the plant, they don't absorb it, so removing fan leaves does not direct energy elsewhere, it actually stops that part of the plant from generating any energy at all.

Again... fan leaves generate the energy the plant needs to live and grow. This is photosynthesis. Removing fan leaves reduces the plant's energy output. Period.

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I have to disagree , I've had no problem with removing WATER LEAVES PERIOD . As I said , everyone grows differently and everyones out come is different .

spek9 said:

First, stop calling them "water leaves". Second, that's not how any of this works. The fan leaves generate energy for the plant, they don't absorb it, so removing fan leaves does not direct energy elsewhere, it actually stops that part of the plant from generating any energy at all.

Again... fan leaves generate the energy the plant needs to live and grow. This is photosynthesis. Removing fan leaves reduces the plant's energy output. Period.

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The broscience is actually getting funny to read. Water leaves? Hilarious. The energy that would go to the leaves goes to other parts of the plants. Ridiculous. It's like some of these people have absolutely no clue how a plant grows. They think photosynthesis is a brand of car. All you can do is shake your head and move on. Everyone has an opinion? People can have all the opinions they want but those opinions are just that and have nothing to do with actual science and plant growth.

DannyLee said:

the water leaves are of minimal value

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One of the dumbest things I've read on this site.

Leo1967 said:

Hey VEg And PHilly , u guys are right . .this is my 3rd grow . To be honest , all 3 grows I have done differently . Trial and error is the best advise you can give yourself . Sure reading books bout growing does enhance on what you do . Every grow room is different . You learn from your mistakes . I have from that . I've removed my water leaves and yes plants took right off . Water leaaves will grow out as your plant gets bigger . That energy that you cut off from the water leaves is directed to other parts of the plant . Your plants are repairing themselfs because it lost those leaves . Only good can come from that . You will know when not to cut them off . Be your own grower and you will see at the end , the results of what you taught yourself to do .
Happy growing everyone . PEACE

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9 year old thread....
Bad advice.....