Defoliation

You should almost never defoliate. Leaves = energy. With the current size of your plant it would slow her down dramatically by removing leaves. Only reason you should is if your doing a SOG or SCROG and need more airflow below the canopy. Most of the time the plant will naturally defoliate any leaves that don't get enough light. If anything you want to focus the growth by removing the lower and inner "Sucker" growth. Each fan leaf will have new growth between the main stem and the leaf. This is what I call sucker growth. It will grow just like the main stem and is where buds will start growing when she matures. By removing the lower growth she will focus more on the upper growth and be less bushey. But remember each "Sucker" growth removed is a potential bud site and/or lateral growth. Your growing an auto flower, Your best bang for your buck is to do some LST. Bend the main stem back and forth between the leaf growth to weaken it. Then once its weakened carfully bend her over and steak her down. All of the "Sucker" growth will now have more light and start growing faster and larger. It will usually take less then a day for the plant to adjust and be bending towards the light again. Good Luck and Happy Growing