TRAINING TECHNIQUES: defoliation
vIDEO TRANSCRIPT
Hi, I’m your prof from Indica Institute, and this is my series of lessons on “Cannabis Plant Training” I’ve designed this course to help and instruct people on how to train their plants. The course covers low stress, high stress and light schedule training techniques. Visit me at Indica Institute or my YouTube channel for a list of cannabis related courses, tips and more.
This lesson will teach you how to properly defoliate your plants. I hope you find the video useful, and please like and subscribe so I can continue making more videos like these!
Hello and welcome to my course on plant training techniques. The objective of this lesson is to learn how to train your plants by defoliating them, how to do it, when to do it, and how it works to produce greater yields for your plants.
Note that if you’re a beginner grower I suggest you first use and master the low stress training techniques of bend & secure, super cropping and screen of green. You can find an instructional video for this at Indica Institute or on my YouTube channel. Only after mastering low stress training should you move on to any high stress training techniques like topping, pinching, manifolding or defoliation.
So what is Defoliation? It’s a high stress plant training technique that involves systematically removing fan leaves from your cannabis plant in order to get greater yields at harvest. It’s a technique that’s been debated by seasoned growers on effectiveness for a long time.
This is because it can cause a lot of stress for your plant, and severely damage it beyond repair if it isn’t done right. If you’re a beginner or intermediate grower looking to advance beyond low stress training techniques, consider trying the topping technique before considering defoliation.
To defoliate, start by removing the largest fan leaves, and be careful not to damage any bud sites. Remove leaves from the bottom first, preferably starting with ones that are not benefiting from light regardless. Be careful not to remove too many that it will damage your plant beyond repair. It should still be tough to see through your plant to the other side. Remember this as you progressively defoliate in stages.
Do not remove too much in one sitting. Begin with the bottom fifth of the plant, and remove only the largest leaves. Start with leaves that are overlapping or near the centre of the plant and are clearly not accessing any light. Allow your plant some time to recover, usually 10-20 days is a good time frame depending on how many leaves are removed and how finicky your plants are. Then work your way up the plant in intervals. Usually beginner defoliators remove too much leaves, so do not make this mistake. Remove less than you think you should to be safe, no more than about 20% of the fan leaves in one sitting.
You should only consider defoliation if you are growing your plants indoors. Also, if there are pre-existing issues with your plant, you must address these issues before defoliating. For instance if your fan leaves are yellowing or curling and dying, this is not a reason to defoliate. You must treat these symptoms and let your plant recover before defoliating.
Wait until your plant has 5-6 nodes and is past the seedling stage before defoliating. You should defoliate in stages leading up to flowering. Leave the smaller fan leaves at the top to help your plant absorb energy and fatten up your buds. If the strain of your plant is known to be finicky or is already pretty sparse in terms of foliage, defoliation is probably not a good option. It should be used primarily with your bushier more resilient strains.
Once your plant switches over to the flowering stage consider stopping any further high stress training. All the energy of your plants should be focused on creating fat buds during this stage. You should still be using low stress techniques during this stage though.
Does this mean you can’t defoliate during the flowering stage? No, you can defoliate during the flowering stage, I just wouldn’t recommend it if you’re new to using this technique. After perfecting this technique during the vegetative stage you would like to try it in flowering, do so with caution. You should also only consider defoliation if (a) you have strong and bright enough lighting (b) your plant has been healthy and fast growing its whole life (c) your plant has been hardy it’s whole life (d) and leaves are laying on top of each other or casting shadows over plant bud sites.
To defoliate during the flowering stage, first remove any fan leaves that are casting shadows over your main bud sites. Target just the larger fan leaves, and abide by the same removal rules as you did during the vegetative stage. Leave the smaller fan leaves as your plant will benefit from them still. Your goal during this stage is to expose as many bud sites to light as possible.
So how does defoliation work? Doesn’t your plant need its leaves to produce energy and survive? While this is true, with proper defoliation you are not removing all of the leaves, rather just the large ones that aren’t benefiting from much light anyway.
Indoors your plant is in a controlled environment and does not require its fan leaves like it would outdoors. Outdoors your plant would benefit from these leaves for protection from a variety of environmental hazards. Therefore the theory is that your indoor plants will benefit from defoliation for a variety of reasons. For instance less leaves means more light will access the bud sites during flowering, resulting in higher yields. Your plant will also have less appendages to take care of, diverting more of its energy and focus to the bud sites. This results in faster growth and larger yields. Lastly, more fan leaves usually means higher humidity levels. This can be problematic to your plant as it can create mold and generate an inhabitable environment for the plant as a whole.
So what effect does defoliation have on your plants? Proper defoliation of your plant will result in a larger yield, but it will also promote a more horizontal growth in your plant. This will create a nice flat canopy that will optimize your indoor lighting.
So in review, only consider defoliation if you have mastered all the other high stress training techniques and would like to experiment and advance your learning. Start by removing the largest fan leaves, and do not remove too many at once. You should be working in stages, allowing 10-20 days between sessions for your plants to recover. Begin with the bottom fifth of the plant, removing only 20% of foliage at a time. Overlapping leaves and leaves that are hidden or shadowed should go first. Only defoliate with plants growing indoors, if they are healthy and hardy, fast growing, resilient strains. You can start defoliating in the vegetative stage when your plant has around 5-6 nodes and is no longer in the seedling stage.
If you choose to continue defoliating into the flowering stage, make sure your lighting is bright enough and your plant is healthy, resilient and hearty enough to cope. During flowering stage, remove fan leaves that are casting a shadow over your main bud sites, then target just the larger fan leaves or any overlapping leaves. Leave the smaller leaves because your plant will still benefit from these.
I hope you found this installment of my “Cannabis Plant Training” series useful. For more cannabis related courses or recommendations on the best grow products out there, visit me at Indica Institute or subscribe to my YouTube channel. If you have any comments or suggestions for a new video, be sure to join the discussion in the comment feed below.
Please like and share this video, and as always, thank you for listening!
This lesson will teach you how to properly defoliate your plants. I hope you find the video useful, and please like and subscribe so I can continue making more videos like these!
Hello and welcome to my course on plant training techniques. The objective of this lesson is to learn how to train your plants by defoliating them, how to do it, when to do it, and how it works to produce greater yields for your plants.
Note that if you’re a beginner grower I suggest you first use and master the low stress training techniques of bend & secure, super cropping and screen of green. You can find an instructional video for this at Indica Institute or on my YouTube channel. Only after mastering low stress training should you move on to any high stress training techniques like topping, pinching, manifolding or defoliation.
So what is Defoliation? It’s a high stress plant training technique that involves systematically removing fan leaves from your cannabis plant in order to get greater yields at harvest. It’s a technique that’s been debated by seasoned growers on effectiveness for a long time.
This is because it can cause a lot of stress for your plant, and severely damage it beyond repair if it isn’t done right. If you’re a beginner or intermediate grower looking to advance beyond low stress training techniques, consider trying the topping technique before considering defoliation.
To defoliate, start by removing the largest fan leaves, and be careful not to damage any bud sites. Remove leaves from the bottom first, preferably starting with ones that are not benefiting from light regardless. Be careful not to remove too many that it will damage your plant beyond repair. It should still be tough to see through your plant to the other side. Remember this as you progressively defoliate in stages.
Do not remove too much in one sitting. Begin with the bottom fifth of the plant, and remove only the largest leaves. Start with leaves that are overlapping or near the centre of the plant and are clearly not accessing any light. Allow your plant some time to recover, usually 10-20 days is a good time frame depending on how many leaves are removed and how finicky your plants are. Then work your way up the plant in intervals. Usually beginner defoliators remove too much leaves, so do not make this mistake. Remove less than you think you should to be safe, no more than about 20% of the fan leaves in one sitting.
You should only consider defoliation if you are growing your plants indoors. Also, if there are pre-existing issues with your plant, you must address these issues before defoliating. For instance if your fan leaves are yellowing or curling and dying, this is not a reason to defoliate. You must treat these symptoms and let your plant recover before defoliating.
Wait until your plant has 5-6 nodes and is past the seedling stage before defoliating. You should defoliate in stages leading up to flowering. Leave the smaller fan leaves at the top to help your plant absorb energy and fatten up your buds. If the strain of your plant is known to be finicky or is already pretty sparse in terms of foliage, defoliation is probably not a good option. It should be used primarily with your bushier more resilient strains.
Once your plant switches over to the flowering stage consider stopping any further high stress training. All the energy of your plants should be focused on creating fat buds during this stage. You should still be using low stress techniques during this stage though.
Does this mean you can’t defoliate during the flowering stage? No, you can defoliate during the flowering stage, I just wouldn’t recommend it if you’re new to using this technique. After perfecting this technique during the vegetative stage you would like to try it in flowering, do so with caution. You should also only consider defoliation if (a) you have strong and bright enough lighting (b) your plant has been healthy and fast growing its whole life (c) your plant has been hardy it’s whole life (d) and leaves are laying on top of each other or casting shadows over plant bud sites.
To defoliate during the flowering stage, first remove any fan leaves that are casting shadows over your main bud sites. Target just the larger fan leaves, and abide by the same removal rules as you did during the vegetative stage. Leave the smaller fan leaves as your plant will benefit from them still. Your goal during this stage is to expose as many bud sites to light as possible.
So how does defoliation work? Doesn’t your plant need its leaves to produce energy and survive? While this is true, with proper defoliation you are not removing all of the leaves, rather just the large ones that aren’t benefiting from much light anyway.
Indoors your plant is in a controlled environment and does not require its fan leaves like it would outdoors. Outdoors your plant would benefit from these leaves for protection from a variety of environmental hazards. Therefore the theory is that your indoor plants will benefit from defoliation for a variety of reasons. For instance less leaves means more light will access the bud sites during flowering, resulting in higher yields. Your plant will also have less appendages to take care of, diverting more of its energy and focus to the bud sites. This results in faster growth and larger yields. Lastly, more fan leaves usually means higher humidity levels. This can be problematic to your plant as it can create mold and generate an inhabitable environment for the plant as a whole.
So what effect does defoliation have on your plants? Proper defoliation of your plant will result in a larger yield, but it will also promote a more horizontal growth in your plant. This will create a nice flat canopy that will optimize your indoor lighting.
So in review, only consider defoliation if you have mastered all the other high stress training techniques and would like to experiment and advance your learning. Start by removing the largest fan leaves, and do not remove too many at once. You should be working in stages, allowing 10-20 days between sessions for your plants to recover. Begin with the bottom fifth of the plant, removing only 20% of foliage at a time. Overlapping leaves and leaves that are hidden or shadowed should go first. Only defoliate with plants growing indoors, if they are healthy and hardy, fast growing, resilient strains. You can start defoliating in the vegetative stage when your plant has around 5-6 nodes and is no longer in the seedling stage.
If you choose to continue defoliating into the flowering stage, make sure your lighting is bright enough and your plant is healthy, resilient and hearty enough to cope. During flowering stage, remove fan leaves that are casting a shadow over your main bud sites, then target just the larger fan leaves or any overlapping leaves. Leave the smaller leaves because your plant will still benefit from these.
I hope you found this installment of my “Cannabis Plant Training” series useful. For more cannabis related courses or recommendations on the best grow products out there, visit me at Indica Institute or subscribe to my YouTube channel. If you have any comments or suggestions for a new video, be sure to join the discussion in the comment feed below.
Please like and share this video, and as always, thank you for listening!
