Pruning/Topping - Dress the wound or not?

[User420111]

So my issue is I overachieved and my outside garden has now overgrown the privacy fence by more than a foot. So I feel like I've only got two options, to continue building the fence higher, or cut the plants back down below the line of sight.

I'm leaning towards the second option. So my question is, when topping and making such large cuts, do any of you dress the wound with anything, or just let the plants heal naturally? My first google search has most people saying just let the plant heal on its own. But I wanted to see what you old timers thought.


tia

These are six feet tall from the dirt. I'd have to take about 18" off the top I think.

[OldManGrower]

I leave the cut alone. It will heal up just fine. I have never grown something this large as I am strictly an indoor grower. However you might try to super crop the plant, I don't know if it can be done to a plant this large, but if you can, it's better than losing the top of your plant.

[User420111]

I don't think I have enough room to bend them over, is the problem. I've only got about a foot of clearance on either side at this point, so if I bend them over far enough to compensate for more vertical growth I think I'd be really cramping everything. I suppose that's a good place to start though. If they don't like it I can always get more radical. Thanks!

[Ckbrew]

No need to dress the topping cuts. Consider super cropping. Bend the main stem over 90 degrees and rig up a support for the branch. The side branches will grow up again, so make your bend is lower with plenty of room for the branches to grow up again.

[Gingerbeard]

Top? How about supercropping?
Or cut one for space and supercrop another in place.

[Bluey]

A hedge trimmer will work fine on that. Try staking them down first though. You can also grow them flat as ground cover by staking them down. Makes for a stealthy grow