Stressing the cannabis plant intentionally to obtain the desired quantity and quality

EZCalyx

Well-Known Member
Greetings curious cannabis cultivators. I'd like to talk to you about your theories, beliefs and practices on both LST (Low Stress Training) and HST (High Stress Training).

Low Stress Training
The selective pruning and bending of branches known as low stress training has been done to cannabis and other plants for 1000's of years. As you browse grow journals here on 420magazine you'll notice how popular it is and for good reason. Many of us on here and around the world have put it into practice and reaped its rewards. It is surprisingly gratifying to become one with your plants and essentially teach them exactly how you want them to grow. It's like a moonlit magical dance with nature where you have the lead. The science and theories behind this technique are fascinating. By removing lower branches that grow slower you can redirect the plants energy to the tops to maximize the quality. Most of us cannabis enthusiasts who produce what we personally enjoy and consume will always prefer quality over quantity. Many large scale growers are now adopting this practice to create a name for themselves within the industry.

I found an amazing article on greenhousegrower dot com how-cannabis-training-and-pruning-can-affect-quality
"Bending plants to change the apical orientation of shoots can result in significant changes to plant form without slowing development or stressing the plant. Due to the labor required to bend and secure branches, this technique is usually applied to small plants, where radical structural changes can result from simply bending a plant, and securing a selected fan leaf to its container with a clothespin.

Well-rooted plants can quickly recover from more intensive forms of training including topping and heavy pruning. Topping a plant involves removing the shoot apex. This intervention results in accelerated lateral branching and suppressed root development due to reduced auxin translocation to lower plant parts and the resultant shift in hormone ratios.

Canopy Management Tips

While the ideal plant structure for specific production environments will vary, similar requirements are indicated for most CEA systems. Cannabis is a high fluence crop, and light penetration to all flowering sites is required for production of quality inflorescences. Cannabis is susceptible to fungal pathogens, and lower plant parts should be removed to enable airflow through the crop. The promotion of airflow serves to limit microclimates, including the leaf boundary area, to the benefit of photosynthetic efficiency.

When plants arrive at their flowering location, their form should be well-established through previous vegetative development. Intensive training at the final location is inefficient due to the large relative footprint of flowering areas, and the inherent slowing of plant development that intensive training entails. Apical dominance should be distributed between four and eight main branches at similar heights prior to moving to flowering areas.

Established plants can be encouraged to form an even canopy through branch positioning within the trellis, supercropping, and pruning of errant parts. Once flowering has been induced, light penetration into the canopy is enabled by the selective removal of upper fan leaves. Senescent leaves are removed as they occur to limit opportunities for saprophyte establishment and to benefit airflow.

The efficient production of any crop requires cultural systems that evolve to meet specific challenges. An understanding of the physiological processes underlying these activities provides opportunities for cultivators to establish baseline systems and to innovate as required."

What is your favorite way to shape your plants using LST? I love cropping then bending the top selected branches down to create a short bushy plant with an even canopy. It's amazing how creative some people can get with this!

High Stress Training
This is where we delve inside cannabis and ponder the inner biology and chemical processes that manufacture all of those lovely cannabinoids and terpenes. We are aware that cannabis produces THC and the resinous trichomes as a defense mechanism for numerous reasons. The defense mechanism helps deter grazing herbivores from munching on the tasty salad. It can help protect from some insects and other pests. The bulbous resin glands also help protect cannabis from the harsh UV rays of the sun especially during drought periods. It has been studied that the resin glands like little crystal balls can redirect the harmful portions of light away from the leaves surface and protect it from getting scorched and drying out. Studies have shown that late flowering exposure to UVA and UVB can increase the amount of terpenes (flavor and pharmaceutical benefits) substantially.

Some cannabis cultivators have used the practice bending branches until they actually snap but leaving the stalk mostly intact to heal. Others have used the practice of shoving toothpicks through branches to intentionally wound a branch. The theory is that this level of wounding triggers the plants defense mechanism as if it knows it is being attacked and probably eaten increasing the trichome production. I have a theory that using something similar to a deer mouth, maybe a nut cracker and chewing lightly on the lower branches or crunching them enough to wound them will also trigger this defense mechanism.

During late flowering others have used the practice of simulating a drought. Withholding water from the plant causes it to increase trichome production to help protect the plant from the sun and drying out too much. The plant will deprioritize plant growth for resin production.

High Stress Training is the practice of hurting the plant and almost bringing it near death to cause it to protect itself.

What are some ways you have used HST to trick your plants into increasing potency?

We are aware that high grade cannabis is produced only from the female flower. LST and HST are ways to essentially punish and torture the plant. I think we should elevate ourselves and avoid jokes about physically harming the female version of this plant. I'll admit, I can enjoy dirty humor but I do believe we should avoid humor about hurting or punishing anyone. The plant is not a person with higher emotions but sometimes we can sure get emotionally attached to them.

Peace 420magazine fam!
 
Greetings curious cannabis cultivators. I'd like to talk to you about your theories, beliefs and practices on both LST (Low Stress Training) and HST (High Stress Training).
Hey @EZCalyx , nice article concerning what the meaning of low and high stress pruning.

I'm not sure what to call the way I do pruning, but I cut the plant at either the 3rd or 4th node (depending on the plant) and continue to do this another time and strive for 4 colas; as the stems are growing I tie them down so they are growing horizontal.

Thanks again for the time you obviously put into your post.
 
Hi there, I got a couple of experiences with Low stress and High stress. My current grow has some details.

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Feel free to ask :bong:
 
Hi there, I got a couple of experiences with Low stress and High stress. My current grow has some details.

IMG_2890.jpg
IMG_2779.jpg
IMG_2780.jpg
IMG_2787.jpg



Feel free to ask :bong:
I love those pics! Especially that first one! You are really shaping those nicely. I envy those able to grow outdoors. Thanks for sharing! Have you ever done a side by side experiment on how snapping the branches compares to not snapping them? I've honestly wanted to try this method but just cannot get myself to go for it. The High Stress Training stresses me out.
 
I like to top once at 4-5 and then use LST to create a short plant with 8-12 main colas. I have played with stressors at the end, such as droughting, driving a screw through the trunk, and playing with the lights and the temperature. I like putting the plants in darkness for 36 hours before the chop, but I don't see this as a stressor... its more trichome management at that point. I tend to believe that my plants are better when they finish out healthy, all green, well fed and watered. I grow organically, so my plants have all the nutrition they need, right up to the end... there are no stressors involving food in my garden.
I believe that in order for a plant to fully express its genetic potential, complete with all the trichomes and terpenes it is capable of producing, it has to be well fed and healthy right up to the end. We all have our own methods and beliefs, and over time this organic feeding method is what I have come to believe is best for the plants and I don't think that any of the various tricks and ways of stressing this plant will produce any better buds or more weight than what I am getting, by keeping them healthy during their entire life cycle. Here is my White Widow at 4 weeks with very little stress and no additional nutritional wants or needs. This plant is sucking down a good half gallon of water every day, if not more and I fully expect to get at least 4-5 oz dry from this one plant grown in a 5 gallon container.
DSCF1012.JPG
 
I like to top once at 4-5 and then use LST to create a short plant with 8-12 main colas. I have played with stressors at the end, such as droughting, driving a screw through the trunk, and playing with the lights and the temperature. I like putting the plants in darkness for 36 hours before the chop, but I don't see this as a stressor... its more trichome management at that point. I tend to believe that my plants are better when they finish out healthy, all green, well fed and watered. I grow organically, so my plants have all the nutrition they need, right up to the end... there are no stressors involving food in my garden.
I believe that in order for a plant to fully express its genetic potential, complete with all the trichomes and terpenes it is capable of producing, it has to be well fed and healthy right up to the end. We all have our own methods and beliefs, and over time this organic feeding method is what I have come to believe is best for the plants and I don't think that any of the various tricks and ways of stressing this plant will produce any better buds or more weight than what I am getting, by keeping them healthy during their entire life cycle. Here is my White Widow at 4 weeks with very little stress and no additional nutritional wants or needs. This plant is sucking down a good half gallon of water every day, if not more and I fully expect to get at least 4-5 oz dry from this one plant grown in a 5 gallon container.
DSCF1012.JPG
I've been browsing some your journals and I am impressed with your grows. I also seem to have many of the same philosophies as you but must admit I can learn a tremendous amount more from you and others here. It's cool that you feel you are maximizing your output while giving your plants the best life. Thanks for posting and I'd like to read more about your experience with the high stress training. Do you have any experience with adding UV during flowering?
 
Do you have any experience with adding UV during flowering?
I have seen it, but not done it yet. A good friend did quite a bit of experimenting with it using the old reptile lights back about a decade ago and learned that full time UV will degrade trichomes, but applying it for a couple of hours around the virtual noon hour will greatly increase them. These days there are very good LED light strips of just UV and I intend to get at least one, and use it in that way in a future grow. The experiments I am doing with deep and far red light strips have been wildly successful, and I hope that adding the UV lights will also make a noticeable difference in the quality of my product.
 
Here is a link that I have bookmarked, where I put a drywall screw through the base of the plant in its last week, to stimulate more trichomes. It does stress the plant, but it doesn't kill it... perfect for my growing style.

 
Hey @garybo thanks for your response. I like cropping or topping around the 5th or 6th node. I usually plan on chopping off the bottom few branches. Have you ever supplemented your light with UVA/UVB during flowering? This is something I want to experiment with further.
EzCalyx, interesting about chopping off he bottom few branches, I'll try that, thanks for that idea. I grow in sunlight, 5 and 10 gal fabric pots.
 
I wanted to share a training/pruning method I use a lot so I doodled a little something , pinching lower nodes or sucker branches. Just like you would do a indeterminate tomtato. They idea behind removing the suckers at the lower nodes is to redistribute the bulk of energy collected by the fan leaf at that node and sending up to the next available node.

When this method is applied X amount of times on the same branch the bulk of energy collected by the fan leaves at each node is sent upwards adding up and delivered to the next available node.

The new tops will enjoy the extra energy collected by the leaves and the nutrients that come with it.
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A link that examples the process with tomatos:

Hand by hand I use a second method to train my plants, thats selective bending or breaking. By doing this Im promoting the production of growth hormones naturally occuring in the plant such as Auxins.

Here is a link that better explains Auxins:
Difference Between Auxin and Gibberellin (with Comparison Chart and Similarities) - Bio Differences

Here is a link on Gravitropic bending or gravitropism:

I prefer to pass this and If you have the time to read it you will have the facts, rather than me trying to explain it.

My doodle on bending.
IMG_3167.jpg





If you feel this is method that applies to your grow, I highly suggest it. Results are there you just have to start pinching and bending. Information accesible for everyone.

:green_heart:
:passitleft:
 
I have seen it, but not done it yet. A good friend did quite a bit of experimenting with it using the old reptile lights back about a decade ago and learned that full time UV will degrade trichomes, but applying it for a couple of hours around the virtual noon hour will greatly increase them. These days there are very good LED light strips of just UV and I intend to get at least one, and use it in that way in a future grow. The experiments I am doing with deep and far red light strips have been wildly successful, and I hope that adding the UV lights will also make a noticeable difference in the quality of my product.

I have used reptile lights to add UV during flowering. I have no direct side by side comparison but I felt the buds I produced with UV that was added for a few hours a day for the last few weeks really helped bump up the flavor and effects. It could've been psychosomatic however. I am planning on getting a UV LED light bar for my next grow along with a far red LED to do what you have done with the pre-dark period red conditioning. Everybody loves a sunset why not cannabis too?
 
I have seen it, but not done it yet. A good friend did quite a bit of experimenting with it using the old reptile lights back about a decade ago and learned that full time UV will degrade trichomes, but applying it for a couple of hours around the virtual noon hour will greatly increase them. These days there are very good LED light strips of just UV and I intend to get at least one, and use it in that way in a future grow. The experiments I am doing with deep and far red light strips have been wildly successful, and I hope that adding the UV lights will also make a noticeable difference in the quality of my product.
Hi Emilya, When you do the Emerson Effect please Tag me. I've been wanting to see a journal like that for quite some time now. I might just buy the lights & more timers so I can do it too.

As far as stressing, topping & LST goes.... I guess I've tried them all.... or close at least. The pencil through the main stalk, Super Cropping, Topping 8-10 times, Ice Water & Cold Temps at the end, you name it. Never really noticed a difference in potency. I did get some pretty big plants though.
 
Hi Emilya, When you do the Emerson Effect please Tag me. I've been wanting to see a journal like that for quite some time now. I might just buy the lights & more timers so I can do it too.

As far as stressing, topping & LST goes.... I guess I've tried them all.... or close at least. The pencil through the main stalk, Super Cropping, Topping 8-10 times, Ice Water & Cold Temps at the end, you name it. Never really noticed a difference in potency. I did get some pretty big plants though.
The Emerson Effect says that with the red lights photosynthesis is higher than it would normally be. I am attempting to take advantage of this by running my red lights for two hours in the middle of their day. I don't have a control group where I am not doing this, but it does seem that I am getting more rapid growth than normal... but it could be other factors in my grow too, such as the lights running in a 13.5/10.5 pattern. Check out my sponsored grow for the details.
 
What an excellent, well written and informative piece - thanks.

As a new grower, I browse the forums a lot and when I saw an article about splitting the base of the plant, I immediately drew a parallel to what was once called ring-barking, I believe that the process has a new fangled name now.

So far, I've tried topping and lollipopping - I have autos and such a thing is supposed to be a no-no.

I also fimed one of my other autos - (naughty naughty)

I'm also doing LST on my smallest plant, people always bend the stalk down so that it is perpendicular to the normal direction of growth.

Does anyone ever tip the grow medium through 90 degrees, you could call it NST...maybe not quite, but close I think. I had the idea from an article I read about vertical strawberry cultivation.

Let the girl grow normally [in a container specially designed for the purpose] and then when she reaches the right stage, flip the medium through 90, attach the main cola to a dowel stick [better done from the time it's a small shoot] to keep it in place and trim accordingly.
 
What an excellent, well written and informative piece - thanks.

As a new grower, I browse the forums a lot and when I saw an article about splitting the base of the plant, I immediately drew a parallel to what was once called ring-barking, I believe that the process has a new fangled name now.

So far, I've tried topping and lollipopping - I have autos and such a thing is supposed to be a no-no.

I also fimed one of my other autos - (naughty naughty)

I'm also doing LST on my smallest plant, people always bend the stalk down so that it is perpendicular to the normal direction of growth.

Does anyone ever tip the grow medium through 90 degrees, you could call it NST...maybe not quite, but close I think. I had the idea from an article I read about vertical strawberry cultivation.

Let the girl grow normally [in a container specially designed for the purpose] and then when she reaches the right stage, flip the medium through 90, attach the main cola to a dowel stick [better done from the time it's a small shoot] to keep it in place and trim accordingly.

I have found after many experiments and later reading more about auxins and gibberellins the two mayor hormones controling stem elongation, growth, and direction/orientation of the plant in accordance with the light source, that it will always find its way to the light. Any technique will lead you to the same effect on the plant it will reajust itself to meet the light source.

The bending technique I use makes the plant shift from vertical stance to a 90 degree and sometimes more 120 degrees with the vector in direction of the gravity force so going down. But the plant takes no longer than 48 hrs to redirect itself and continue to grow vertical. This is called gravitropism.
 
Effects of the training method I have used;

this photo is May 28. Clearly see the apical dominance, one tallest stem with a main cola and below everything else.
IMG_2553.jpg


this photo is June 27. Abcense of a "main top" and several branches with same amount of growth
IMG_3461.jpg
to the bottom left you can see what used to be the main stem and main cola, and every branch coming out of it with the same amount of growth and vigor I would say.
IMG_3466.jpg


:peace:
 
What an excellent, well written and informative piece - thanks.

As a new grower, I browse the forums a lot and when I saw an article about splitting the base of the plant, I immediately drew a parallel to what was once called ring-barking, I believe that the process has a new fangled name now.

So far, I've tried topping and lollipopping - I have autos and such a thing is supposed to be a no-no.

I also fimed one of my other autos - (naughty naughty)

I'm also doing LST on my smallest plant, people always bend the stalk down so that it is perpendicular to the normal direction of growth.

Does anyone ever tip the grow medium through 90 degrees, you could call it NST...maybe not quite, but close I think. I had the idea from an article I read about vertical strawberry cultivation.

Let the girl grow normally [in a container specially designed for the purpose] and then when she reaches the right stage, flip the medium through 90, attach the main cola to a dowel stick [better done from the time it's a small shoot] to keep it in place and trim accordingly.

Your idea about turning the grow container 90 degrees is interesting. I see two initial problems. 1. You'd probably need something to cap off the soil so when it is 90 degrees it doesn't dump out of the container. 2. Roots always grow towards the center of the Earth or towards gravity. The turning of the plant container may direct the roots strangely but who knows, it could somehow be beneficial if used correctly.
 
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