I’m sure we have all seen these terms bandied about a fair bit. Especially when we are first researching growing cannabis. They both seem to play a role in improving yield size as well as the quality of the plant. But what is actually the difference between the two and how do they affect your plants? Do they require different levels of skill or can any beginner start snipping away? Do they all involve cutting or are there sub-methods? If you have all of these questions I’m going to have a bash at answering them. Maybe I’ll even answer more questions, but I’m not promising anything.
What is LST?
First, let’s have a peep at low-stress training and figure out what it actually is. So this is a plant training method that helps your plant to grow horizontally rather than vertically. This will allow the plant to grow stronger overall, have more access to light, and produce bigger yields. LST usually means tying plants rather than snipping them or hurting them in any way. It takes a very gentle hand to make sure none of the stems snap. Damaged stems mean using growing energy to heal. This needs to happen when the plants are young and bendy, so tying shouldn’t be too difficult if you are careful. You can use anything from twine to wire to a zip tie as long as it won’t harm the stem.
If we get the plants to grow sideways the light can get to far more of the leaves than if we left the plants to their own devices. The more light gets to the plant, the more energy it has to grow. It also means if you are growing indoors you can lower the grow lights, getting them closer to the plants themselves. This also means you can use lower wattage bulbs and so can save money and energy while improving your plants.
LST Methods:
SOG – This is a technique that works well with four or more plants spaced out in a 1sq ft area. The point is to create a plant canopy that will take in as much light as possible. Hence the name Sea of Green. Once the plants have reaches 10 – 12 inches in height you will need to start the training to create the green canopy.
SCROG – This is similar to the last method but uses a screen over the canopy of weed. Then the screen is there if your plants start to stretch. You can just tuck the plants behind the screen and alter the path they are growing on. This is one of the easiest ways to ensure your low-stress training is successful.
What is HST?
High-stress training, otherwise known as super cropping, is a slightly more intense form of training. We are going to cut and damage the plants in order to improve them rather than bending. It is thought that using this form of training will increase the THC and CBD production of your plant. It is also thought to improve overall yields. The general thought behind this method is that plants have inbuilt danger responses. When it feels threatened or hurt it produces trichomes and cannabinoid compounds that improve the quality and strength of the plant. HST can be a little trickier than LST, which is hardly surprising. If the plants are not in peak health then wounding them can have the opposite effect. This method should also be used during the vegetative stage when the plant is young and healthy.
HST Methods:
Topping – This is one of the most popular high-stress training methods. It is extremely simple and very effective if it is done correctly. It involves just snipping at the top of the stem so that the plant can grow two bud sites instead of one. A little bit like the mythical hydra. This can be repeated throughout the vegetative stage to create plentiful sideways growing bud sites. This also makes the plant bushier rather than tall and allows for lower lights and more light penetration.
Super Cropping – This method feels a little sadistic for some reason. So if you are emotionally attached to your plants you may not want to go for this one. However, if you are a straight-up business grower who doesn’t mind either way this is a good way to improve crops and quality. This should also be done during the vegetative stage when the plants can heal. The point of this is to carefully harm the inner stem tissue without excessively harming the outside. Basically, this is accomplished by squeezing the stem between your fingers then roll it around until it’s nice and bendy. Keep going until the stem bends well without breaking and then tie it in that position. It’s a bit like tearing up muscle tissue so that it grows back stronger. You will also be tying it in a way that makes the plant grow sideways just like the other methods.
FIM (Fuck I Missed) – This method is related to topping but is a little wilder. Instead of removing the top of the stem, as you would in topping, you miss slightly. You cut a little higher than you usually would potentially resulting in 4 new bud sites instead of 2. This is really for the maverick growers out there. Sure it can create a much larger yield but it is hard to pull off and can really damage the plant. It is also much harder to get a clean cut this way so the plant could become infected.
The result is that LST may be better for those of you who are just starting to play with training. It is less intense, doesn’t hurt the plant as much and is harder to mess up. HST is for those who have a fair bit of experience and want to step their bud game up a level. Also, those who have a steady hand and don’t mind taking a few risks. Before trying either make sure you do plenty of your own research.
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