Notching & Nicking in Hydroponics: Fine-Tune Plant Growth

What Is Notching and Nicking?

Today we dive into a lesser-known but incredibly effective technique for plant training—notching and nicking. While traditional growers often remove the apical bud to promote side branching, this can shock the plant and halt growth temporarily—a big no-no for growers working with autoflowering varieties or time-sensitive crops.

Notching and nicking provide a surgical-level solution to plant architecture without the drawbacks of topping.

Why Topping Isn’t Always Ideal

Removing the apical bud completely halts the production and downward flow of auxins, the hormones that suppress lateral bud development. While this encourages bushier growth, it also stresses the plant, sometimes delaying it by a full week or more—precious time lost if you’re on a strict growth schedule.

How Notching Works

Rather than removing the apical bud, notching involves making a small cut just above a dormant bud. This blocks auxin flow to that bud, encouraging it to grow into a full branch without pausing vertical growth. Think of it as hacking the plant’s hormone signaling.

• ✅ Stimulates lateral growth
• ✅ Maintains apical dominance
• ✅ Avoids growth slow-down
• ✅ Perfect for autoflowers and tomatoes

The Reverse: Nicking Below a Bud

If you want to suppress growth from a bud, you can do the opposite—make a small cut below the bud. This causes auxins to pool within the bud, preventing it from developing further.

Other Plant-Shaping Techniques

Dr. Sharp also mentions another effective approach: bending or training stems. By gently bending the main stem, auxin concentration drops, which in turn allows side shoots to catch up or new ones to emerge—classic low-stress training (LST) for those in the know.

Pairing LST with notching means:

• Greater canopy control
• Reduced overlap and rubbing
• Better air circulation
• Lower disease risk

Practical Applications in Hydroponics

This method is especially useful for:

• Tomatoes (encouraging specific branches)
• Autoflowers (where timing is everything)
• Tight grow spaces (where airflow is limited)
• Growers seeking precision without yield loss

Dr. Sharp compares this technique to surgery for plants—a highly targeted, low-impact way to control shape, growth, and productivity.

Try It and Share Your Results

Whether you’re a hobbyist or commercial grower, notching is a method worth experimenting with. Dr. Sharp plans to try it on his own tomato plants this season. If you’ve used notching or nicking before, let us know—Did it boost your yields? Did it fail? We’d love to hear your feedback.

Final Thoughts

Notching and nicking are brilliant alternatives to traditional topping—offering more control, less stress, and faster results. Especially in hydroponics, where efficiency is king, this technique may just become a staple in your toolkit.

Article by Dr Russell Sharp

If you would like to keep up to date with subjects just like this, you can listen to both our podcasts! Links can be found bellow:

Hydroponics Daily Podcast: https://open.spotify.com/show/207T7p7fw9sPjINfSjVXW2

Cereal Killers Podcast: https://t.co/eSEbBkTVHl