how aerly can one start to tie them down?

[Guest]

hello, how aerly can i start to LST the plants?
i havnt repotted them yet and will do so in a week but can i start to lst the now? they are about 2 weeks+

 

[Guest]

You could start now, but if you plan to repot in a week then I would wait.

It all depends on how big of a bush you want...if your going huge then let them grow atleast a foot before training...if you want to flower a.s.a.p then then start training a.s.a.p.

If this is you first LST then early training will be best because the stems will still be very flexable.

Because you had alot of strech at the begining of your grow I would wait a little while, but it's all up to you.

 

[Guest]

ok thank you, good reply

 

[Guest]

Question - whats the REASON to LST - just to keep them small?

I have six plants, and one is getting MUCh bigger than others... Should I tie?

 

[Guest]

in a nutshell, LST is for creating multiple budsites and also to maintain and organized and consistent canopy shape (flat and even) so that light can penetrate each plant shoot evenly. It is used to maximize space and/or to work in small grow areas easier

 

[highonthechroni]

i LST after about 4 weeks.

cheers!

 

[Guest]

There is a hormone or something present in the highest growing tip. By putting it lower than the growing tips on the side branches the side branches think they are now the top growing tip and the plant devotes energy to growing the lower growing tips like it was the top tip. As mentioned you'll get a canopy with 6 side colas the same height as the main cola and all the colas will get good light.

LST, training and bending, scrog, they are all about getting the main cola bent down to the level of the other side colas. During the last week or 2 of veg and the first 2 weeks of flowering is when you'll want to keep an eye on this.

My 6 plant med grow has 4 different strains and all colas are within inches height wise of each other, this stuff really works and noobs need to learn about it through experience.

 

[highonthechroni]

hey dudes, here are some of my LST'd babies. they've all been tied twice now.

 

[Guest]

There is a hormone or something present in the highest growing tip. By putting it lower than the growing tips on the side branches the side branches think they are now the top growing tip and the plant devotes energy to growing the lower growing tips like it was the top tip. As mentioned you'll get a canopy with 6 side colas the same height as the main cola and all the colas will get good light.

LST, training and bending, scrog, they are all about getting the main cola bent down to the level of the other side colas. During the last week or 2 of veg and the first 2 weeks of flowering is when you'll want to keep an eye on this.

My 6 plant med grow has 4 different strains and all colas are within inches height wise of each other, this stuff really works and noobs need to learn about it through experience.

i thought it was phototropism that makes the newly-exposed shoots grow....do you have any sources talking about the hormone thing, that sounds interesting

 

[highonthechroni]

it's phototropism along with auxins (hormones)

 

[Guest]

yeah i didnt think hormones could tell which part of the plant is higher off the ground

 

[pipeline]

You can tie them down anytime after they're about 8 inches tall.

Hormones dont tell which part is higher off the ground, but rather where the cells are in relation to the growth tip (meristem), this is where auxin is produced. There is a decreasing gradient in auxin concentration throughout the plant from the meristem down (there are other auxin producing sites in leaves and at ends of branches but not as strong of auxin production)

When you bend the plant over, in response to gravity, auxin concentration increases on the lower side of the branch, and the upper side's shoot buds at the nodes (branch points) aren't inhibited by auxin, which was inhibiting their growth before the bending. The auxin on the lower side of the stem leads to a higher acidity around cell walls, their microfibrils loosten, expand/elongate, and then the stem bends upward, away from gravity!
try it at home.

 

[stoner 13th]

good post pipeline --

only recomendation i have is to repot before you start heavy lst training- it will be a bitch to repot a plant that is already tied down a lot- put it in a 3 gal pot, wait a day or 2 for it to recoup and then start the training-


edit/add--nice plants highonthechroni- love the look of em '

 

[Closet Funk]

I start to tie down mine when I transplant into my final pot. I let them grow about a week in veg and then flip to 12/12. By time the stretch is over there is plenty of main branches. Usually 8 to 10 depending on method. So I say about 3 weeks veg then transplant into final pot. Let it get used to it's final home, tie down, and let it grow for another week or so. Switch to 12/12 and you should have a bush style plant betime she starts flowering.

 

[highonthechroni]

makes more sense to LST in the veg pot!

 

[hoodini]

I am about 4 weeks into flower and one of my girls is quite a bit taller than the rest. I was wondering if its too late to tie her down or not. The only other option I might have is to lean her (kinda like a verticle grow) which would be better this late in my grow?

 

[_Dude]

I've been LSTing through 3 grows now. I do it because my girls like tall and skinny and I like short and broad, because of legal and height limits. If not for those limits I'd go SOG instead of SCROG because all the training is a PITA.

It's hard to advise on when to LST because of the variables. One strain might break at 2 weeks, another not. Then you have the dynamics of how stems mature. It gets kind of weird, how they harden and how you have to change your methods. I advise careful experimentation, and don't worry over breaking a stem or two.

I usually start training when they start getting taller than I want.

Good luck with it.

 

[_Dude]

I am about 4 weeks into flower and one of my girls is quite a bit taller than the rest. I was wondering if its too late to tie her down or not. The only other option I might have is to lean her (kinda like a verticle grow) which would be better this late in my grow?

AFAIK breakage is the only thing you need to worry about, so other than that no it isn't too late I don't think. If she's really stiff at her age, then tie her down a bit at a time. Keep tape close by in case you do break her.