Cannabliss
New member
Hello fellow weed growers. Before anything, I want to point out that the Grow Weed Easy site provides us all with amazing details on what LST (Low Stress Training) is and how to go about practicing it located here. Feel free to check them out. Very good info. That being said, this topic isn’t necessarily on what LST is, but rather what techniques we ourselves use on our own plants (for those who wish to share of course lol).
I’m not claiming I invented these techniques, obviously. There are countless people that have come up with them I’m sure. I just thought I’d share them with you all. Maybe someone will post their techniques and I’ll try theirs. We all learn/discuss, and nobody loses.
The pic I’m providing is of a typical 5-gal bucket with those 6†bucket baskets.
The first one I started using years ago, and still am today, is the one you see with the green twisty ties. I drilled a few very small holes then I stuck a twisty tie (bent in half for strength) through the holes to create a very small “loopâ€. I tied them nice and tight underneath the basket and now you have a nice, strong loop to use for your LST. You can drill the holes anywhere you’d like in any pattern. Even add them as needed if you wish. Make sure you drill the holes as small as possible so light won’t try to ease its way in though. I believe the drill bit size I used was a 5/64. Now, there’s a reason I drilled my holes in that certain pattern. A while back, as my plant grew out horizontally in size, I wanted to keep giving it a bit more LST beyond the basket. So I bought a pack of round, wooden craft sticks and inserted one stick through two of the twisty tie loops so that the stick stuck out beyond the basket. This gave me much more room to keep tying the plant down if I so chose to. So basically if you took a top view pic, it would look like a + sign. That is some extreme LST, but it works.
Second one I started using were those clear (or white) plastic hooks with adhesive in the back. I bought these at the dollar store in a pack of 12. It’s obviously much faster and more convenient than the previous technique; just peel and stick. Those in the pic aren't stuck on. I just put them there so you know which ones I mean. You can stick them on the top like that or the sides of the bucket.
Third technique I found by accident. I had my growing notebook nearby while doing a little LST to my plant. One of the binder clips falls off and lands by my pile of sticky ties. I pick it up and look at it for a minute. Then I looked at the bucket and notice those little “grooves†on the side…. Lol. I had my doubts when I was clipping it on. But it actually held on quite nicely. I pulled it up and it even picked up the bucket, no lying. These are the 0.75â€. But you have to make sure those “grooves†on the buckets stick out enough for a better grip.
I’m sure there are your typical twisty ties tied to the basket’s edge, but I don’t like that techniques much because whenever I move the lid a bit, some of them tend to spring back out. However, gangs of growers use them, so it’s all good.
I guess these techniques can be used for those who do some serious LST early to mid veg or so. Once the plants get bigger and taller, then you want to start using a trellis, tomato rings, etc. Some even use ropes from the ceiling to help support the weight of their buds and so forth. Speaking of which, that’s pretty interesting. I’d like to know what those things technically are called that hang from the ceiling and help support your heavy buds. Anyway, what techniques do you guys use for your early LST? Happy growing!
I’m not claiming I invented these techniques, obviously. There are countless people that have come up with them I’m sure. I just thought I’d share them with you all. Maybe someone will post their techniques and I’ll try theirs. We all learn/discuss, and nobody loses.
The pic I’m providing is of a typical 5-gal bucket with those 6†bucket baskets.
The first one I started using years ago, and still am today, is the one you see with the green twisty ties. I drilled a few very small holes then I stuck a twisty tie (bent in half for strength) through the holes to create a very small “loopâ€. I tied them nice and tight underneath the basket and now you have a nice, strong loop to use for your LST. You can drill the holes anywhere you’d like in any pattern. Even add them as needed if you wish. Make sure you drill the holes as small as possible so light won’t try to ease its way in though. I believe the drill bit size I used was a 5/64. Now, there’s a reason I drilled my holes in that certain pattern. A while back, as my plant grew out horizontally in size, I wanted to keep giving it a bit more LST beyond the basket. So I bought a pack of round, wooden craft sticks and inserted one stick through two of the twisty tie loops so that the stick stuck out beyond the basket. This gave me much more room to keep tying the plant down if I so chose to. So basically if you took a top view pic, it would look like a + sign. That is some extreme LST, but it works.
Second one I started using were those clear (or white) plastic hooks with adhesive in the back. I bought these at the dollar store in a pack of 12. It’s obviously much faster and more convenient than the previous technique; just peel and stick. Those in the pic aren't stuck on. I just put them there so you know which ones I mean. You can stick them on the top like that or the sides of the bucket.
Third technique I found by accident. I had my growing notebook nearby while doing a little LST to my plant. One of the binder clips falls off and lands by my pile of sticky ties. I pick it up and look at it for a minute. Then I looked at the bucket and notice those little “grooves†on the side…. Lol. I had my doubts when I was clipping it on. But it actually held on quite nicely. I pulled it up and it even picked up the bucket, no lying. These are the 0.75â€. But you have to make sure those “grooves†on the buckets stick out enough for a better grip.
I’m sure there are your typical twisty ties tied to the basket’s edge, but I don’t like that techniques much because whenever I move the lid a bit, some of them tend to spring back out. However, gangs of growers use them, so it’s all good.
I guess these techniques can be used for those who do some serious LST early to mid veg or so. Once the plants get bigger and taller, then you want to start using a trellis, tomato rings, etc. Some even use ropes from the ceiling to help support the weight of their buds and so forth. Speaking of which, that’s pretty interesting. I’d like to know what those things technically are called that hang from the ceiling and help support your heavy buds. Anyway, what techniques do you guys use for your early LST? Happy growing!
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