Should I LST

[rizcuny]

When should I start LST my NL auto plants, they are now 15 days old from germination going into there 3rd week of life. Are they ready?

[DoctorJohnson]

I top autos ("HST" ) at about node 5 at 21 days (about the time that the first pistils/"preflowers" appear). It looks like you're getting close to that point.That encourages the side branches to bush out and become colas and is highly recommended.

Once you have topped them and "broken apical dominance", you just watch the side branches bush out and gently pull them away from the center with wires. Pretty easy.

I think the main thing with training is just to look at your babies every day and (not to be mystical about it) let them tell you what they need. When they start to get bushy and too dense, the natural and simple and easy and logical thing to do is to pull the growth out so they have better light exposure and better air circulation. If you haven't trained before, it feels kind of weird to be yanking on branches (be gentle ), but very quickly you get a feel for it and it becomes second nature.

Good luck and have fun. Your plants look great.

[BillBates]

Yes, what Doc said

[D.A.A.S.69]

Hey riz, yes, she is ready to train, if you dont want to top her, you can just bend her over and tie her down, so she's about at 90degrees, and she will have plenty of colas. To form, without the possibility of slowing her down, as topping might do.
But anyway that's how I did my NLights auto, and she turned into a huge plant ,with about 20huge colas.
You just have to keep tiring the branches down, so you have a flat canopy. It's real easy to do. Nebula even tell you how to do it,
GoodLuck

[rizcuny]

How is this?

[rizcuny]

[IslandColas]

Your training looks good but IMO your leaf tips look a little curly like your soil is either really hot or you may be overwatering. Just something to maybe look at

[rizcuny]

Yes I have noticed that, curling on the edges of the leaves, my air temp just above the soil is varying beetween 84F and 88F I guess that is too hot, I am definitely not over watering however the water I am giving them is not pH tested and is most likely around 7-7.8. Humidity is good, always between 55 & 65. Have a Co2 bag in the tent and a fan, I have been told the curling is wind burn but I’m sure it isn’t. The CFL’s being used are only emitting around 8000 lumens however a massive amount of heat, room temp is 70F and even with the tent slightly open I cannot get the temp below 85F most of the time. I plan on adding another 5000 lumens into the tent (2 more CFL’s) and I have not a clue how I am going to keep the temp below 85F because ideally I don’t want it over that when my Autos start flowering. Any help appreciated and keep in mind I don’t want to be spending a fortune on new equipment.

[IslandColas]

So what I mean by “hot” is too nutrient rich. But now that you talk about temp, yes those temps are a bit high. Your air temp can be 84 as long as you’re growing in soil. Hydro mediums would acclimate to the air temp and you could not be feeding plants 84 degree water. I would adjust my feeding by decreasing your nutrients by 25% and seeing how she reacts. I also don’t see a lot of perlite or other media to keep your soil airy, which could also be causing a suffocation effect when you water (reacting like an over watered plant). But that’s a lot of speculation. Three major things that WILL help though are:

better air flow in the tent (you need to purchase an in-line exhaust fan, if you haven’t, to constantly cycle fresh, cool, air into your tent. Buy one with proper cfm ratings to completely refresh your tents air every minute. This should only cost 50-100 bucks.)

Buy a ph tester and start PHing your water and nutrient solution. (15-100$) buy the drops for 7$ if you absolutely can’t swing a digital meter, but PH is HUGE. You could be seeing a nutrient lock out if your ph is too off. Correct ph will also allow your plant to uptake all the right nutrients and at the proper rates.

If you’re using cfls get rid of the co2 bag. It’s a waste of time and money. You need to be maximizing everything going into your plant before trying to play with co2. This includes providing maximum light, nutrients are maxed and fine tuned to a precision feed schedule, air temp and soil environment has to be spot on. Then will you ever really see a yield increase with co2. Don’t get me wrong co2 is a really cool thing and you may see slight differences in your plants but co2 is the very very last thing you should be thinking about. Leave it for the master growers with lots of resources.

But definitely play with lower nutrient levels

[rizcuny]

Thanks for taking the time to reply, I am purchasing pH kit and as if know I have not given my plants any nutes what so ever

[rizcuny]

Is it worth buying pH tester and pH down? My plants are already in their third week (autos)

[IslandColas]

Yes yes yes and yes. PH is one of the most important things you deal with when growing. It’s never to late to start feeding your girls properly!

[fwril]

I will second island on that, I'm fighting pH issues my self I highly recommend getting a pH pen and some pH up and down, Amazon has a pen for 16$ and also the pH kit for under 20$

[IslandColas]

Just be careful. Cheap pens need recalibration often. And tend to be inaccurate. If there’s one thing to spend some extra dough on it would be a good pen. I bought my blue lab pen for 90$ bucks. They’re quality and long lasting