Tips for obtaining compact growth

Acannademia · Jan 31, 2019

Hello everybody,

I am looking for tips on minimizing etiolation (stretching) over the course of entire growing cycles.

So far, here is what I have:

IR/R light ratio: Avoid infrared light, supplement red light
Plant Growth Retardants: These are effective at minimizing etiolation by inhibiting the GA pathway. Unfortunately plant growth retardants are usually systemic in plants and are hazardous to humans, and so are not safe for cannabis production. I was wondering if there are any safe alternative that I am not away of

Thank you in advance for your input!

~Acannademia

Acannademia · Jan 31, 2019

Other information that I have found:

Use Metal Halide Instead of HPS for first 2-3 weeks of flower. Blue light results in tighter internode spacing.

-This seems slightly conflicting with the information I have found on R:IR light, which suggests that red light is better tha infra-red. Is this more so true after the first few weeks of flowering, when most of the stretching occurs?
Reduce growing temperatures by 5 degrees Celcius in first few hours of daylight
Provide ample lighting
Bend branches to focus plant energy on strengthening stems instead of on etiolation

-What is the general method of bending stems for prevention of stretching? Is this referring to the method of gently pinching stems?

Rab.C · Jan 31, 2019

thanks for the info i am a new grower.

TychoMonolyth · Jan 31, 2019

Bending the stems can be LST (low stress training) where you tie the branches down. It can also be Supercropping where you gently squeezing a stem and slowly bending the branch (breaking it internaly, not breaking the outer shell of the branch).

What about root ball triming? Does that work? It does for Bonsi trees.

Keeping them in a tiny pot works for sure.

aridbud · Jan 31, 2019

TychoMonolyth said:
Bending the stems can be LST (low stress training) where you tie the branches down. It can also be Supercropping where you gently squeezing a stem and slowly bending the branch (breaking it internaly, not breaking the outer shell of the branch).

What about root ball triming? Does that work? It does for Bonsi trees.

Keeping them in a tiny pot works for sure.

Definitely LST.

Or grow autos.

Root ball trimming can work, but root balls are there for a reason...uptake water/oxygen/nutrients.

Acannademia · Jan 31, 2019

Unfortunately I cannot seem to find an edit button for my previous posts. I misspecified Red:Infra-red light when I meant to discuss Red:Far Red light.

I am interested in techniques that would not require high labour input. I am hoping to minimize stretching in a commercial production system, and trimming root balls would be too labour intensive, not to mention that I think it would adversely affect timelines. Good idea though! Trimming the roots back (without pruning leaves) would case a shift of endogenous hormones (would increase auxin:cytokinin ratio) such that more energy would be allocated to rooting re-growth. If timed correctly with the first few weeks of flowering, I could imagine this having a significant effect.

tleaf jr. · Jan 31, 2019

Dont forget distance between bulb and canopy...def wanna find that sweet spot.

RockinRobot · Jan 31, 2019

Never heard of lowering temps at beginning of light cycle, but, keeping night temps roughly same as daytime temps will help reduce stretch.

Stretch is also very strain related.

Acannademia · Jan 31, 2019

tleaf jr. said:
Dont forget distance between bulb and canopy...def wanna find that sweet spot.

Do you have more specific information on this?

Acannademia · Jan 31, 2019

RockinRobot said:
Never heard of lowering temps at beginning of light cycle, but, keeping night temps roughly same as daytime temps will help reduce stretch.

Stretch is also very strain related.

I've read anecdotal reports that most of the stretching occurs in the first few hours of daylight, and that quickly reducing temps during those hours can be effective in reducing stretching.

As with most things relating to cannabis production, there is a scarcity of reliable/academic information.

Wendull C. · Jan 31, 2019

I can attest to blue light for the first 2 weeks of stretch on strains like og kush.

Keep the difference in temps on day/ night within 5 degrees of each other.

Pgr are cancerous and ruin your finished product ime. I can spot p loaded nug a mile away and won't touch it. Some growers are getting smart and cutting the dosage down to levels you can't tell by eye, only tests. I would stay away from them unless weight is your only concern and you care nothing about consumers. Just my .02 cents. Not that it means much. That's why my scree name is what it is. I lmfao when others try to insult me with it.

tleaf jr. · Jan 31, 2019

Acannademia said:
Do you have more specific information on this?

Readings from a light meter will tell your how far the light reaches before it starts diminishing. Your want to cover a decent square footage, but you want the light close enough to penetrate lower bud sites and deliver enough light to keep plants from stretching.

Bottom line keep the light the right distance away from your plants.

Douglas.Curtis · Jan 31, 2019

Stretch at the beginning of flower is also tied to temp/humidity. Cooler temps and lower humidity will grow shorter, stockier plants and flowers with higher resin

lant content. Tropical conditions, with high heat and humidity, grow oversized plants which yield much higher plant:resin ratios.

I feed bloom nutrients during veg, which produces short stocky plants. I flower at 70F or below, with humidity well below 30%. Yes, you have to veg longer. No, there is no huge explosion of plant growth at flip. The plants grow medium sized flowers which are very trichome dense and terpene rich.

tleaf jr. · Jan 31, 2019

Damn curt 70 degrees kinda chilly but i understand in flower. I like 77 or 80 with a good breeze. God damn grow room feels better than my bedroom lol.

TychoMonolyth · Jan 31, 2019

Want to stay small without the work? Then grow in solo cups and top once or twice, or not at all.

My autos produce a pound easy and hit 10 feet. 12 if it's in tall corn.

Douglas.Curtis · Jan 31, 2019

tleaf jr. said:
Damn curt 70 degrees kinda chilly but i understand in flower. I like 77 or 80 with a good breeze. God damn grow room feels better than my bedroom lol.

When my flower room feels 'warm' in any way, I'm seriously unhappy. lol Since I moved to higher humidity, I've had to keep my temps higher and I don't like the end quality nearly as much. My current goal is to acquire de-humidification equipment.

In my opinion, warmth makes for extra plant under my carpet of trichomes. It sure makes for taller ones.

Acannademia · Jan 31, 2019

Wendull C. said:
I can attest to blue light for the first 2 weeks of stretch on strains like og kush.

Keep the difference in temps on day/ night within 5 degrees of each other.

Pgr are cancerous and ruin your finished product ime. I can spot p loaded nug a mile away and won't touch it. Some growers are getting smart and cutting the dosage down to levels you can't tell by eye, only tests. I would stay away from them unless weight is your only concern and you care nothing about consumers. Just my .02 cents. Not that it means much. That's why my scree name is what it is. I lmfao when others try to insult me with it.

In Canada the products coming from licensed producers are tested by Health Canada for the presence of non-permitted pesticides, PGRs, etc., which is a major benefit for consumers.

tleaf jr. said:
Readings from a light meter will tell your how far the light reaches before it starts diminishing. Your want to cover a decent square footage, but you want the light close enough to penetrate lower bud sites and deliver enough light to keep plants from stretching.

Bottom line keep the light the right distance away from your plants.

So you think that it is light penetrance to the under-canopy that influences stretching? Would inter-canopy lighting then help prevent stretching?

Acannademia · Jan 31, 2019

TychoMonolyth said:
Want to stay small without the work? Then grow in solo cups and top once or twice, or not at all.

My autos produce a pound easy and hit 10 feet. 12 if it's in tall corn.

You are claiming 1 pound yields from autoflowering strains outdoors? I've been out of the loop for a while... but that seems high to me.

Acannademia · Jan 31, 2019

Douglas.Curtis said:
Stretch at the beginning of flower is also tied to temp/humidity. Cooler temps and lower humidity will grow shorter, stockier plants and flowers with higher resinlant content. Tropical conditions, with high heat and humidity, grow oversized plants which yield much higher plant:resin ratios.

I feed bloom nutrients during veg, which produces short stocky plants. I flower at 70F or below, with humidity well below 30%. Yes, you have to veg longer. No, there is no huge explosion of plant growth at flip. The plants grow medium sized flowers which are very trichome dense and terpene rich.

Interesting. By how much do you think that veg is reduced? Do you use differences between day/night temps or just keep a constant 70F? To be clear, you let them rip at this temperature throughout the entire growing cycle?

Rab.C · Jan 31, 2019

i thought if i kept day and night temps closer plants wouldnt stretch as much
day temp 23c to 25c night temps 21c

Tips for obtaining compact growth

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