I have read that it is NOT recommended to top Auto-flowering plants. Naturally I read that info the day after I topped two of my 4 autoflowers. That same source highly recommended Low Stress Training. The plants responded well to training and the lower branches developed a lot in the 5 days they have been outdoors. As I knew in advance about the wind and rain storm, I had the plants well protected. I was surprised at how much the 3 plants grew over the past 4 days.