How To Train Your Cannabis Plants

Do you want to know how to increase the yield of your marijuana harvest when you are using the indoor growing method? Training your cannabis plants is essential to getting it right. This is one of the easiest ways that you can increases your harvest yield without upgrading the setup and the lighting system. In fact, your yield could increase to 40 percent when training your cannabis plants in comparison to not training those plants. Why would you want to train your cannabis plants and not allow them to grow naturally?

Natural Growth

Well, naturally, cannabis grows in a shape like a Christmas tree in sunlight. If you are growing cannabis indoors, you don't have the privilege of having constant sunlight. The grow lights do not do the same thing that the sun does, which is providing light from all sides. In addition, there is no penetration coming from grow lights as there is with sunlight.

Even when you grow weed outdoors, you will notice that the marijuana buds growing lower will be smaller than the ones growing at the top. Marijuana pollinates more so with the wind and so that is why higher buds are more favorable. When the lower buds are grown indoors, they suffer more than outdoors. Grow lights will enhance its growth since the lights are directed from the top of your cannabis plants. Training is so important because in the indoor setting, the plant doesn't get a lot of light toward the sides, but more on top. So, the buds will be smaller, if not trained.

The Different Types of Training

To benefit from training your cannabis plants, it is best to create top colas so as to take advantage of the grow lights. In that way, less light will be lost and the yield will be more productive. Let's look at the primary types of training for your cannabis plants. They are:

• Bending your cannabis plants and securing them while you reduce the damage
• Use a strategy to get your cannabis plants to grow in the most desired shape by damaging or removing the unnecessary parts
• For major and faster yields, manipulate the timelines

Some marijuana growers will use one of these methods or more than one to train their cannabis plants.  As long as the methods complement each other, why not used one or more? However, in the case of auto-flowering, you won't be able to manipulate the timelines and you wouldn't be able to damage the parts or the plant will grow stunted. So, if you were working on auto-flowering, the recommendation would be bending the plants and securing them from damage. Let's break down the methods

Bending the Plants

The method used for bending and securing your cannabis plants is known as LST or Low Stress Training where the stems are bent and secured in place. The basic idea is to bend the stems, which are tall and keep them away from the middle so they can be grown flat and wider in shape. Do this when the stems are younger and more flexible. Some growers will often use this method for all their plant training. However, others will only use it for bending.

Securing the Plants

You can use twisty ties to train your cannabis plants by securing the stems after you have bent them. Some marijuana growers will be more creative by using a soft coated wire or pipe cleaner. However, it is best not to use any sharp objects such as chicken wire. It will cut into your cannabis plants as they grow.

Supercropping method

The supercropping method is bending the cannabis plants, but in a more extreme way. You would only use this method if the stems are very tall and hard to bend. You would soften the stem with this method by bending it at an acute angle.

Final Thoughts

There are other methods such as defoliation, FIMing, main lining, SOG and SCROG. If you want to learn more about weed growing training, visit the Cannabis Training University.