That's kinda what I was thinking/wondering. Kinda like a shock - take off all the producers of energy (photosynthesis) and it kicks into survival mode to stay alive. Perhaps it's a genetic/DNA trigger in the plant... Dunno, but it makes sense....
When you strip the plants it shocks them! I also do it just before a water change and then feed at half strength for the first week. 24 hrs later the plants react by pushing out leaves new branches. Over the next three weeks new branches will form as new bud sites appear along those branches. You will add a week flowering time using the technique.
Do you think there would be much of a difference between hydro and soil? Reactions, length of time, etc?
I've been stripping leaves while growing in soil, and it doesn't take long for the plants to bounce back. It all depends on what food you have for them, but they definitely bounce back fast. Just don't hit them too hard with Nitrogen afterwards, like the boss said.
It works in soil too. I went to dxe house and gave him a first hand lesson. He does it all the time ducrider uses the same technique too.
I am thinking of doing a small table. I just love the DWC except changing the lid from 3 weeks of flower till the end. Its a jungle of buds.
I started the defoliation on half the room today. It took me about 1 hour and 15 minuted to do all 5 plants. From back to front. Left rear is Blue Dawg, Right rear is BBs Cheese, Middle plant is the one and only cross of Bubblicious and Wildberry. I call it Bubba Berry. She is looking fanyastic. supper tight internode spacing! Left front is Blue Dawg and right front is GSC.
They look pretty happy, in spite of having no leaves. More questions, if you don't mind... Do you give them another week of half strength nutes? Do you raise the lights any? Have they finished stretching at this point? Do you see any signs of shock in the plants as they recover? I'm still trying to figure out something strange with the buds from my defoliation fiasco that has just become apparent, but that's for another thread. Thanks, OS
I cut back Only 25% less than the normal amount with the second defoliation. Then back to full strength next feeding. No signs of shock.
nippie, everything in the room is on Botanicare. The two blue dawgs in the front of the room are the test subjects.oth are clones, so the same DNA. One gets Botanicare and the other gets the Elite nutrients. I figure I can compair bud size and weight. I'll put pictures up too.
I need to do more defoliation, but my plants get too big to want to do it. Haha! I haven't been doing week 3, and it drives me nuts towards the end of flower. So much crap I'm going to have to cut off at the end. Looks great!
