So recently I had a plant that got snapped on the main stem and healed itself almost completely in about 1-2 weeks time, unfortunately it got the chop today as it was male. The other plant that is huge is a female and I have it all LST right now as that is my preferred method but I was interested in super cropping especially as I am trying to keep things low right now until we get both a veg and flower room set up. When it comes to super cropping though I am very unfamiliar, I know that there is a right side of the stem to do it and then there is a wrong side of the stem. I seem to like finding the wrong side and split the stems open a lot. What I am more concerned with though is how much can I super crop my plant at once before it is too much? Obviously that answer will vary upon many things such as how healthy she is before I begin, and whether or not I split the stem or properly do the technique. Say I have 20 colas right now (as I said I have been LSTing) if properly done can I super crop every one of those colas or is that too much for the plant to handle at once? Now if the answer to that question is yes I can super crop every one, if I do it and begin splitting the stems open, then how many (or what percentage of colas) would I be able to do without worrying about harming my plant? Again I understand they can take ALOT but I just want to make sure she is not too stressed out.
Supercropping after the 3-4th week of flower is a no-no, un wanted stressed. If your vegging then after your do any sort of training give them 1-2 weeks time to recover before doing anything else, an alfalfa tea brewed for 24hrs with molasses with help them recover faster, as will kelp. This is all experience and different strains will except different things, it's your job as a grower to notice when you can push and when they need TLC. Why don't you try 3 different ways you'd feel comfortable and compare your results? Such as growth / recovery / bud sites would be a good start. Just a heads up! HaGGarD
I mean, I'm using all LED. All organic. I LST'd 1 plant & Topped 1 plant. Same strain, FMS' C'99. Did nothing to expedite recovery & I'd say within the week they were fine. So I'd say since the recovery rate is probably strain-dependent, but you should assume that it'll be relatively good-- I mean, it is a weed, y'all.
Since I've started LSTing my girls I've found it by itself to be an effective enough of a training method, combined with selective pruning, for me to not bother with ever cutting my plants unless I'm taking clones. In my experiences, cutting them takes away growth and slows down the whole process across the plant as it now has to dedicate energy to healing itself, instead of growing more shoots and/or nodes. I believe in simply redirecting the existing energy in the plant towards a more productive area, via pruning unwanted nodes and leaves combined with LST. Less downtime and stress on your girls.
Perfect answer! I super crop through out veg until 2 weeks before flower.veg time and pot space are crucial when super cropping. I've gotten scrog results without a screen
Try twisting the stem side to side you will feel a pop then gently push down.some strains are difficult have some tape handy
Microbes - I am still in veg not flowering yet, still another month or so for that stuff just trying to lower the plant right now. Ganjas - I prefer LST over topping as in our first 2 grows we tried topping twice 1 was a male and the other got destroyed by mites although it saved our other plants from really being damaged by the mites. GiMiK - I also prefer to LST, however, we have had issues currently in the grow room: metal halide blew so now we have high pressure sodium until we replace the bulb (this is causing stretch). We also do not have our veg room set up yet, hopefully next month. And in the mean time my plant was getting too close to the light and I could not LST it really because it was taking up too much space so I chose to super crop to lower my canopy. I went ahead and supercropped my girl yesterday, some tops got bent good, others not so much. Since this is my first real experience supercropping I will have to keep an eye out to see how she reacts. The strain is Pandoras Box x Jack The Ripper. She is growing like crazy, she was a slow grower at first but once the training began she blew up! So I am hoping she likes to be super cropped as well.