New Grower LST questions????

[Kman1965]

Hello all....I have a quick question about LST. At what age should I start? I have looked around a little for a thread about LSTing and havnt really found much. My plants are 16 days old and curious as to when I should start tying them down. I appreciate any answers you guys might have.Thanks in advance.


K

 

[A4]

Somewhere around 3 weeks Kman but it is going to depend on the plant and growth. You can start any time she is tall enough to start training. Not much science to it, just take it slow and pull a little a day and give her time to relax.

 

[Bromeo]

As a rule of thumb i always wait till after they show sex.

 

[Kman1965]

Thanks A4 and Romeo. How long do I keep them bound? I realize there are no hard and fast rules about this. Depends on strains, conditions etc...This is the one part of the grow I am most nervous about. I have NO exp in this area.

 

[Bromeo]

Some never release them. Thats really up to you. At some point they become stiff and wood like. Thats when i release them. Even then some strains still reach back towards the light but usally not much.

 

[KUDO]

Here :smokebuds: im doing some L.S.T on my girl right know,it up to you how you do yours im going to try work her around the pot : hope this help

 

[Guerrilla_in_the_mist]

As I'm finding - there are a few different LST techniques you can employ.

Many pull out the lower shoots - and allow the cola to grow straight up, unimpeded - or you can bend the entire plant over to 90 degrees, and peg down all the lower shoots as well.

I employ the latter method - as my grow space is rather vertically challenged, so having the ladies stay low from the outset has worked best for me. I also veg and flower under 4 tube, 2' T5 HO - so this method allows me to better use the available lumens, as my lights don't have the power or penetration of a big LED or HPS.

I set up for LST by planting the seedling 1/3rd of the way across the soil surface - leaving 2/3rds of the distance to the pot's edge with which to bend the plant over in (did that make sense?).

I pegged my first two plants down when they produced their third set of leaves - about day 15 (above ground), or so - and both strains I did this to responded well to it. They both turned their heads back up to the light - I'd let her grow another node - then re-peg her down (at each new node, I would gently twist the new fan leaves - pegging one down so that they grew out to the sides, rather than have one touching the dirt and the other blocking light from the bud sites developing along the main stem.

Its a bit fiddly - especially for worked-a-career-at-sea hands like mine - but with patience, gentleness and a modicum of confidence (this is not something I do unless I'm enjoying a patient, mellow buzz - ha ha!) - it seems to work quite well - especially if overhead height, or light penetration is an issue for you.

There are a few pictures of the process in my signature link, below - I'll be adding a few more of the Bubbleicious in a couple of days - as I have been quite aggressive in her LST. She has been laid down pretty much flat, all the way around - and has produced quite a few bud sites, all of which are getting a share of light in their lumen-challenged environment.

If any of the above didn't make sense, or you'd like clarification - just ask. I'm only a single coffee into the day - and my syntax should only improve from this point - ha ha!

 

[Hazy]

LST can be applied at any age......the younger the better in my opinion. Here's a coule of pics of them gettin' it real early, also check my sig if you want to see something a bit different.

 

[Kman1965]

Thank you so much!! I really appreciate you guys taking the time to give me all that infor!! Kudo, Guerrilla, and Hazy Thats awesome.