Should i release low stress binds before i switch to flower?

[Spanky]

Hello Gang,
I searched this and I am not asking it properly because I couldn’t find the answer. I have a nice plant that is ready to switch to flower. I have topped it and spread it apart by tying down the extending bud sites to my fabric pot. It is fairly uniform in height which is very low to the pot, but very wide with lots of light reaching lots of bud sites. I’m pretty excited!

I had one successful grow about two years ago and I seem to recall that within a week of switching over, all the stems grew so much I was sure they wanted to be untied. So, I did.

Was I just lucky or is that the normal procedure? The tutorials don’t mention it when talking about training, unless I missed it.

So release or no release?

Thanks to all.

[9fingerleafs]

Hello spanky. That’s a good question and doesn’t have a simple answer. It’s going to depend on the kind of space you have. Outdoor indoor? And the relationship between horizontal spread and height. Meaning if you want them to grow straight up from now on or you need to keep spreading? But most importantly the strain, some plants are very strong and will never stop trying to cluster branches in the center, others are very stretchy and any angle other than straight up will end up with a bunch of diagonal disorganized colas. But there are some plants that actually harden up in what ever position you set then into flower and just bulk up.
I guess my advice would be to wait until you feel removing the ties will not mess up the spread of canopy. Check the branches to see how hard are they pulling. You could post some pictures and more people will give their opinion

[Gingerbeard]

Hey Spanky
What I'm reading in part of your message is that you have your plants spread wide and flat to get light to bud sites lower on the stem. A ScrOG without the screen. I tried that two and three plants ago. Before that, I LST'd low on a stem, to bring a cola in line with others.
Between training a plant flat and wide, and pulling colas down, I have to go with the later. The lower buds on the stems didn't seem to be any different when getting direct light. All in all, keeping colas apart for circulation and vertical growth produces better, is easier to manipulate, and allows for more pots in your tent.
I'm going to say release the hounds before flowering if you're doing a pre 12/12 defoliation. After defoliating, you might see cola A would be better in the middle and cola B would be better in the north-west corner. When third week defoliation comes around, release, trim, LST.

[CaptainWiese91]

Good point. I kept my lower buds on the stem/branch that got tied down. They are just as big as the “main” bud on the branch and in the same height also. So it can be done.

So I have a scrog without screen actually 🤔 never thought about that.

[CaptainWiese91]

9fingerleaves - have a good point here. All my plants got tied down, but I actually released some of the branches like in the middle of the flowering phase. Because the “tied ones” where under the even canopy. And mine actually grow them self up again, but in the shape I wanted, without blocking for the buds in the middle.
And if they did grow higher than the canopy, I would gently give them a tied down again

[9fingerleafs]

Very true. You can always tie down again and re shape

[SoOrbudgal]

I have tied and released during veg and flowering and then retied during bloom if they started touching. Also put small dowels along inside of pot to pull cola away from center and tie. Good luck and happy growing.

[homegrown]

If you have enough height in your tent..let them go! Just keep an eye on the faster or taller stems and hold them back a bit. I did three grows of same strain, with lesser amounts of LST each time. The last grow, which i released at 12/12 flip produced long full stems.

[SoOrbudgal]

This is what I've found happens also homegrown love it