Gang, I’m an old dude who is trying a grow for the 1st time since the 74. My flowers seem to be stalled and I’m not sure why. First, the basics: Using a 5 gal pot….so to speak, and growing GSC. Branches trained, topped after 6 nodes, Big Bud fert in the water can, pruned the fan leaves, lower branches and inner flowers. So, do I need to eliminate more leaves? More lower/inner flowers? Lop off the 2 lower branches? Just chill and see how she does? I worked in the industry for 3 years before retired, and had a gas, but never learned any growing tips. Your help is greatly appreciated.
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Indeed it is, but man, the flowers seem stuck in neutral, though showing some signs of expanding.
plant looks pretty healthy from the pic, not sure if its an auto or photo, the only concern i would have is enough air flow as it looks pretty dense… 
CRAP! No, not auto flower, rather sexed. Sorry
The breezes outdoors do help, but should I prune some more leaves?
Maybe I’m just a nervous dad-to-be waiting for a bunch of big bouncing baby buds. Here’s a close up of the flowers. Perhaps it’s normal to take such a long time, but it’s been about 3 weeks since they first appeared.
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it all looks normal to me at about 3 weeks, we do alot of waiting as growers, we usually mess things up when we get tired of waiting & try to push things along, as far as trimming more, you will have to be the judge of that, it just looks pretty bushy to me, but so do some of mine. i just like having good airflow as its been a very soggy summer here in the northeast, just watch out for mold…
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Good advice. I’m seeking the balance between having enough leaves (minus the fan leaves) to generate food for the plant, yet not too many that the energy requirement for them makes the buds smaller. Here’s hoping!
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Thought you folks might enjoy this story. Here’s a picture of our ‘74 grow (I’m on the right). As my buddy and I were weeding the weed, our next door neighbor came over, a guy in his mid 40’s, and nice dude. He hooks his thumbs on the side of his blazer, pulls the sides back to rest his hands on his hips, and there’s a badge and gun on his belt. Minneapolis Police Detective! He said “You guys are good neighbors, but I recommend you weed a bit more thoroughly, if you get what I’m saying.” Hooo boy did we yank that baby out quickly, with a respectful “Yes sir!” He nodded and said “That looks a lot better.”
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very cool that you still have that photo great story
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Howdy, Jeff. Your grow looks fine. Of course I’m next to blind, but it looks good. My thinking on extra leaves is as follows. If I’m gonna use a net, anything below the net when flowers begin developing in earnest is strictly a RESOURCE. You invested in the leaves, let them hang out so the plant can use them if they’re no longer getting light.
I’ve got a bunch of yellowing leaves right now on mine. I remind myself of how a maple tree looks when it’s sugar time. Chlorophyll is gone, other pigments dominate, and the plant uses the minerals as they shut down. Unless a leaf is limp, totally dead, I’m leaving it. If it’s not in the way I let it dry up.
Any defoliation ought to occur early enough so the plant recovers before veg. Once in veg, I’m pretty much convinced you got that you got, snd may as well let the plant have the minerals in those leaves not producing sugars. Ventilate, don’t defoliate. Get you a Caribbean island breeze going for the girls, and don’t tell em what to wear, har!
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As a guy raised in the great north country of MN, I appreciate the help and response. Much appreciated.
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you do not have to defoliate…Has it been HOT? Heat will stress the flowers into the shape they appear…a little sparse. Are you / have you moved in to a MORE FLOWERING nutrient? If still on High N (vegging), it will stunt the flower production
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You nailed it - the weather has been really hot. Also good to know about the NPK for flowering. Thankfully my fert is 0-1-3, and recommended for this stage. I started with Osmocoat. The growing media was 3/4 Happy Frog soil, 1/4 Miracle Gro potting mix to help drainage.
“Ventilate, don’t defoliate”. Not only is it saged advice, it rhymes! Being an outdoor grow under the cover of our courtyard, it really funnels any breezes through the area, and I’d never dream of telling her what to wear! (Like my daughters, they wouldn’t listen anyway)
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@Bugdoc the plant looks great! You could remove more of the large fan leaves that are covering bud locations. Are you feeding it nutrients for flowering stage? If not you could do that a few times. I usually stop the feeding 2 weeks prior so the plant has time to be flushed with your daily waterings.
Thank you Mary Ellen - that is most kind. Great tip on flushing the plant and will do so. What about the non-fan leaves (which I assume are the 7 point ones)? Should I trim those to increase sunlight?
I’m using Big Bud nutrient, and she’s gong through at least a gallon of water every day. I’ll have to go online to see when to harvest. It’s been so hot here I’m hoping the buds aren’t stunted, but should cool off next week though. One exciting development is Juliette is developing trichomes….and I named her that because its the GirlScout Cookies strain, and Juliette Lowe was the founder of the Scouts.
OOPS! I mean the 5 point, non-fan leaves, if I have that correct with the 7 point being the true fans.
@Bugdoc just the big fan leaves especially the ones blocking the buds or leaves with purple or red stems. The smaller leaves help build the buds 
don’t take those. They will start bulking up when the daylight shortens.