Outdoor autoflower spiking

I need some help please. I am a 67 year old newbie to ILGM forum, so bear with me. I recently bought White Widow autoflower seeds from ILGM. I’ve done a few amateur photo period grows in my days. First time for autoflowers. While researching, I found the term “spiking” ,as in spiking the lower part of the stalk. Is this practice harmful? Will it do anything to increase yield or potency?

I believe you are referring to stem splitting. Some folks split the stem at the base 4 to 5 days prior to harvest. The theory is it throws the plant into “survival” mode and increases trichome production. Some people swear by it but I’ve split and not split plants and didn’t notice a significant difference. Just my experience, and at that late stage, it probably won’t hurt anything since the plant is coming down anyway. You definitely don’t want to do it until very late in flower.

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