When to Top my plants for different results?

[AnimalMachine]

Alright so I'll be working with an Aeroflo36 and just had a quick question about topping:

Is there a particular time to top your plants so that they wont branch outward as much but instead straight up? Reason I ask is cause of the space between the Aeroflo plants.

Thanks for any help!

 

[Xcon]

In that scenario, I'd go 12/12 from clone, no topping. SOG

 

[YogiBe@r]

speaking on this, ive never topped my plants. only grown once, what are the benefits, i understand it. but could someone elaborate ? if space isnt an issue, do i still benefit from topping ?

 

[Richard4vt]

speaking on this, ive never topped my plants. only grown once, what are the benefits, i understand it. but could someone elaborate ? if space isnt an issue, do i still benefit from topping ?

Topping the plants causes the plants upward growth to stall, and energy is instead diverted to the branches. It allows you to better control the height of the plant and to achieve a more even light distribution to all the budsites

I personally top as soon as the first set of 7 leaves show, and then again about 2 weeks later. After two toppings I generally have a plant with all of its branches and main stalks at about the same height. Why is this beneficial you ask? Plants contain a chemical called auxin that generally concentrates in areas of the plant that are closest to the light source, and this chemical is essential in plant development. Areas with higher auxin concentrations will grow faster and and stronger, and produce better. By topping the plant and bringing all the branches to the same height, auxin is redistributed throughout all of the plants budsites, leading to even canopy growth and overall better yields. This is the main idea behind scrogging, and is the key to why a single scrogged plant can often produce 2 or 3 times the amount of bud as plant grown normally.