GORDO'S Main Line grow.

[Gordo41]

Hi all, im doing a Main Line grow and thought some of you might be interested in doing the same, so I'll be posting here during the grow.
Mainline or Manifold of a plant is a method of training that will produce 4, 8, or even 16 main stems instead of just one or two that have a lot of side stems that don't really produce much of a yeald. I did one plant 2 years ago that produced 10 oz of dry buds, so i thought i would do another this year and post the progress here.
i hope anyone that has the time will join me on this jurney.

[Royal Nugs]

Good luck with your endeavors, I look forward to your journal.

The only complaint I have about the technique is the size the colas can get. If you run a strain like blue dream, if you can't drop the humidity you can run into bud rot problems.

I'm poor and can't afford a dehumidifier right now, so I run smaller colas.. about 25-30 per plant. Can't seem to get the humidity below 50%....

[PuravidaC]

Having the same issue. Lots of colas but humidity in upper 50's to low 60's. Seems to rise after watering and my girl is thirsty. Just read about using rock salt or bamboo charcoal to lower humidity. You might want to check it out.

[Weed Pharma]

When growing medical - you look to have the colas all about same size, more colas=smaller.
Now comes the reason (which I have not researched)- that way, all the colas get the same amount of light/distance/intensity then potency doesn't vary from bud to bud as much. It also is thought to allow an even dry/cure for better quality.

[Royal Nugs]

I grow for my wife, myself, and a few friends. I have no dreams of growing big massive colas. It would be cool, don't get me wrong, but I'm happy with my little colas.

It's not the size that matters, it's the motion of the ocean.... right?

[Gordo41]

I started the grow from some 3rd generation clones I had growing under T5 lights. Sorry i cant remember what strain they are but any good strain will work with the MLing (mainline) ive heard the Sativas work better but i cant attest to that. I think any hybrid would work just fine. Here are the clones i started with.
OBTW, this started on Sept 22 with these clones.

[Gordo41]

Good luck with your endeavors, I look forward to your journal.

The only complaint I have about the technique is the size the colas can get. If you run a strain like blue dream, if you can't drop the humidity you can run into bud rot problems.

I'm poor and can't afford a dehumidifier right now, so I run smaller colas.. about 25-30 per plant. Can't seem to get the humidity below 50%....

This is true. They say size doent matter. Haha. I don't know where you are but im in Florida and yes humidity is a problem if you grow outside. This grow will be in my tent where i have the opposed problem of low humidity. 25% in your case i would make sure you have lots of air flow on the plants to help with keeping them dryer.

[Royal Nugs]

I have my 440 cfm fan ripping the air out of there all day, every day. Plus 2 circ fans in the tent. Airflow is not an issue.

[Gordo41]

BTW, Nugs, you are a posting machine.

[Royal Nugs]

I can't help it, I love you guys too much :P

[Wattze]

I wish I could like your comment nugs lol you are a posting machine, I love it!

[Gordo41]

This is where i started on the clone, but do the same thing from seed but waite till the seedling has 6 nodes and then cut it back to the 3rd node.
This is so the plant has time to develop a good root system first. With a clone, there is no need to wait as it already has roots.

[Gordo41]

Once the two new stems are big enough to bend and stake use 14 ga solid core wire or the like to hold the stems down at 90 deg.

[Gordo41]

Thaken on sept 27th this shows a better view of the two new stems right before i cut the maine stem off.

[Gordo41]

Thaken today oct. 4th this will give you an idea just how fast this plant is growing. In part to the fact it has a fully developed root system already.
You can see that she now has 4 mane stems held down by the wire stakes. I will split them again just as they reach the side of the pot to form the 8 stems.
the first photo is one where i pushed the leaves down to show the stakes. The second photo is what it looks like without pushing it down.

[Pankace]

I can't wait to mainline my girl!

[kingfish]

Count me in.

[Chemichael]

Doing the same with my white widows and see how that goes. I love being able to work with some material and do something positive with the energy

[Gordo41]

If you're going to do a ML have the plants in a pot/bag that is 10-12" across the top so you have enough room for the stems to grow out to the edge before the final cut to the 8 stems.
Hope thats not confusing.

[Gordo41]

Tonight i did the final cut on 3 of the 4 MLs i have going. These girls now have the 8 colas/stems that will be the main stems that wil go straight up once they reach the sides of the pot. Here are some pics of them now. Please ask if you need help seeing the stems.

[Gordo41]

Here's a few more pics. You can also see i remover any side stems that appeared and any fan leaves. This make the plant put all its energy into the main stems.