Alrighty. 3 weeks in and she’s growing strong. Changed the water giving her fresh nutes. pH is good. Temp and humidity are good. Even topped her for the first time per some good advice. Thanks @Mrb53004. Let’s just hope I did it right.
I actually took a vid of me cutting but it wouldn’t let me upload it here.
Excellent, most excellent in deed. It doesn’t matter if this was a true topping or fimming, it was enough to get to stage 2. Let her grow and you are prepared for the next few stages as they will be the same as what you just did. Later, you can start tying down the branches and you are on your way
Awesome. Thank you. Can’t wait to she what she becomes.
Looks like you nailed it pretty good.
No problem, I think she’ll be amazing 
@Mrb53004. Is this gonna be the new stalks from topping?? Idk, there’s so much growth going on underneath.
Those are the lower nodes and yes, they are branches. These branches will get flowers and when we talk about LST, if the main stem gets bent over, right below your cut (above where these branches are), they will become apical (main bud) branches and this is how we control shape and increase the quantity of buds.
This is where you are 
When you bend the plant, this is where you will be
When you look at the CENTER where it splits into 4 branches, the nodes you see are what you are describing now. With the plant growing horizontally like this,each node becomes an Apical (refers to the main bud on the main stem where all the growth is concentrated) bud. Each end (the 4 of them, that get pined down) will bend and grow vertically into Apicals. Each node will also grow vertically and we desire to have all tops at the same height (that is a canopy, often created in SOG, SCROG, that you hear about). I already see 2 new tops coming out of the main stem. Let it grow for a while and then you begin your bending. You will desire something to hook the branches and something to tie down to. Use something that will not cut / dig in to your branches (like pipe cleaners…you can also try doing a wrap like bonsai to guide the growth. I prefer tie or pin down). You do NOT have to have 4 tops. When your plant is ready and you bend it, you can have 2 tops. You can perform the topping again at a later time or just grow it out from 2 stems, each pulled on a different direction. They will get nodes and we usually only go 2/3 nodes deep and trim the rest so all nutrition goes to the tops. A Main bud and 1 or 2 more nodes, all reaching around the same height, is our goal
@Mrb53004. Whoa. That’s a lot of info. There are so many leaves right now idk what’s what. Trust me, I will continue to take pics and ask you when and where to cut and bend. I really appreciate your guidance.
Mrb532004’s book of plant manipulation (Mike,[email protected])
There are quite a few ways to trim, train a plant to maximize yield or fit in your environment.
When is the best time to start
A seedling should reach 2 to 3” tall before you do anything. Different seedlings will grow at different rates. We usually wait until we have reached the 3rd / 4th node before we begin
Cannabis Growth Timeline
Germinating: 1-7 days
Seedling: 2-3 weeks 
This is where we begin to manipulate. At this point we can either top or fim. 
Vegetative: 2-8 weeks
Pre-flowering: 1-2 weeks
Flowering: 6-8 weeks
Harvesting
Topping – When you cut the top off, it will result in 2 tops. Now you have 2 Apical (colas) for buds. Fimming can produce 3 or even 4 Apical tops. When we top, we usually wait for growth to reach the point where we can start to bend each of the branches sideways, 90degrees, like a candelabra. We can use string or pipe cleaners (nothing sharp) and start to train the plant. Be careful to keep the MAIN STEM straight, supported, and then gently, hook the stems.
Alternatively, you can LST like this: 
Now, if this were topped, you would have a main stem going in each direction. Eventually, the horizontal branches (nodes) will grow vertically. You then try to create a canopy. Much like what DMT has going on.
Cropping: Here we begin to remove leaves / branches to force growth at the Apical areas. Buds below the 3rd node are too small, take away from the tops and are pretty much useless so we trim them
#3 is a node. When we reach the point where we have the main Apical #1 and 2 more nodes (#3’s), anything below that just sucks energy from the plant. So eventually, we have a vertical stem (can be 2 to 8 of them), we keep the tops even, 2 nodes underneath and trim (branches and leaves) below that. We keep some fan leaves down there to create a SLOAR effect, where it is like an umbrella. Those fan leaves help in the photosynthesis, so we keep some. We exfoliate enough to have good air circulation and allow light to penetrate the canopy
I hope this makes it clear
At a minimum 2 Apicals. On some auto’s. I only go for a topping so that makes 2 apicals. On each branch is the main apical (1), plus 2 nodes (that makes 5) and popcorn nugs lower sometimes. 5 per x 2 = 10 minimum or 20 preferred if I get 4 apicals. And that is a canopy, in my world. Photo’s are different…this is just for my auto’s. Some auto’s I do not even touch. You kind of know what your kids are capable from at an early age
Wow, my girl has gotten so big so fast. There’s so much going on. I feel like I should be trimming her up some. Looks like there are stems growing on top of where leaves grow from. @Mrb53004. This is normal right?? You can barely see the top where I topped.
- just pull it the opposite wayI have obviously NOT seen this. Ohhhmyygahhhhh! She’s ready to take over the world. I have the stupidest grin on my face right now. 
(PS: Consolidate threads? Should be a place in Asana (or the other) to anyone in admin world who knows what I’m talking about)
I thought the same thing but I think it comes down to us to post in the same place so we have continuity. I see most of us are all over the place and It would be nice to try and keep things a little more organized. I have MANY BOOKMARKS BECAUSE i CAN’T KEEP IT ALL TOGETHER. But then again, I read all of them, all of the time.
If you tag things, then they will automatically consolidate neatly and then you can tell the tie in to do what it needs to do. (the word tie in will change momentarily, I’m creating something, so that sector isn’t working optimally at the moment…I think you understand?) Also, I have something in the ‘works’ for you, I just have to think it through as your ‘gift’ requires more of a thought process as it’s analytical. Thank you for understanding my alternative communication as I’m all over the place today.
