Pruning node shoots

[FNG]

Hello. First post. I´m a beginner with a question about pruning shoots that come out of nodes. To prune or not to prune?

I have 8 plants in an overcrowded room (like I said I´m new at this). The are about to flip into bloom and are doing pretty well. I´ve pruned them several times after watching videos and reading a grow bible and though not quite ¨lollipopped", they are leaning in that direction. Of course I topped the plants and that went well also.

Since I've never actually seen a plant grow to maturity, it's a learning experience. What's confusing me is the shoots that come out of nodes. When left alone they grow into little branches with nodes and leaves of their own. Are they supposed to be left alone? Do they produce flower themselves?

Any help would be appreciated.
Thanks,
Ed

[gbauto]

How large are your girls at the moment?
I typically won't let my indoor plants grow taller than about 13-14" above the floor during veg.
The last run of a sativa dominant strain stretched to almost 5 feet tall from there, so be aware of that possibility.
I top all of the plants I grow, usually with 6 main stems that I then use the tertiary branches that form to fill out the canopy.
I will remove any growth that isn't showing signs of developing strongly, they usually just form into larfy buds.

https://photos.app.goo.gl/LwL8g38TCwqgwKDg8

[FNG]

They vary from a couple of feet to one that is 5 and a couple others close to it. I agree that I should have turned to flower much earlier but as I mentioned I wrongly thought they were autoflower and by the time I realized they weren't it was too late. Most of the plants should be OK but I'll have to move the tall ones to a different place because they are almost into the lights.
I did clean out the bottom third of thee plants but I sure there are some branches the I should have sacrificed. Each plant has about 6 solid branches.
I thought that once in bloom the vertical growth would stop or really slow down but evidently not.
Thanks for the observations. I'll know better next time.

[FNG]

Hi and thank you for the reply. My plants range from a couple of feet to one that's about 5 and growing into the light. Kind of got away from me and the ceiling is a bit low. I'm hoping that the growth slows down during the bloom which i read is supposed to happen.

My post addressed the specific issue about the stems that grow out at the main nodes. Some of them are quite long and sprouting nodes of their own. I need to know if I'm supposed to let them grow or prune them off. Do they bloom themselves although they are a fraction of the size of the stem they are popping out of? I know that the flowering takes place at the nodes they grow out of. The videos I've watched where big stems are lollipopped don't seem to have stems growing out of them so I'm wondering if they get pruned.

Appreciate the help.

[OldManGrower]

Do NOT remove the "node shoots" as this is where your buds will form.

[FNG]

Hey thanks for that! Having never grown before I've never seen the process unfold.

[MysticMimi]

Hi Ed, and welcome to GWE. Curious about the strain you’re growing. You have an indoor girl in veg that’s 5 ft? They normally will double in height in the first month after you switch to bloom. You have a job ahead of you. I remove only the node shoots at the bottom of the plants that I know won’t reach the canopy. Good luck!

[FNG]

Hi. There are 3 strains. 2 Acapulco Gold, 2 Panama Red and 3 Jack Herrer. I kind of bungled the germination process slightly, thought a few weren't going to sprout so I germinated too many, ending up with 8 plants when I was aiming for 6. Now that I've seen it progress, that closet, though it's 6x8, is too small for even 6. Next time I'll go for 4 since I have 4 King led lights. Interesting how even with the same strain the plants have different heights. The 5 footer is a Red.

The other thing I botched was I thought they were all autoflower. The vender had some funky labeling. So I was waiting for them to turn. Once I checked and saw they were periodic, I immediately pushed them into bloom but by then the one was too big with another one right behind it. I'll probably have to move those 2 with a light into another area.

Live and learn! Yes I have my work cut out for me, but's all fun. Appreciated the help.