"have" should be in the subject line. Not really "advanced" cultivation...but i figured this would serve better here than anywhere. I don;t see many Beginners LST'ing. I used to use duct tape...always hated it...then i started using wool string...all in all I had used tons of extremely inconvenient ways to LST....they always required entirely too much time to adjust once the plants outgrew the strings...problems having your strings come loose because it sliiiides through the duct tape? no more. No more loose ends, ever. I have found the solution and I just want to pass it on to others. I'm sure others have done this. I recently bought a bunch of 6 inch zip ties...i have put them to good use. http://www.9thtee.com/zipties.htm (i'm not propping this site...first good image i found) I use five gallon bucket. I just take my fiskars point and round out a small hole through the plastic of the five-gallon bucket at the top...just enough to stick this thin end of the zip tie through. I then attach it to the other end as someone normally would during normal use. I zip it onto the second or third indentation...essentially as loose as I can get it because my plants are tall. I then zip tie another onto the loop of the first one, again keeping it as loose as possible. I end up having to do one more usually (this is the height I usually start LST'ing at), and with this third one i can tie the plant down....sometimes at a 90 degree angle. In order to get this angle you have to establish the zip ties on the base of the stem...keeping the stem going straight up even if pulled the opposite direction at the top of the plant. Obviously, supporting the base is done the same way...you need about three of them to reach across the soil on a five gallon pot. But nonetheless the process is the same. After you have your plant trained sufficiently...it will outgrow your zips, like any other tie. Instead of reconnecting them or having to pull off fresh duct tape and waste more...you just either zip them tigher, or add to your zip ties. Often all that is needed is having the last one holding the plant cut, and you just add a new one while also being able to pull your plant down further, or to the side further. You can also go back to the original zip tie at the bottom and zip one to that, allowing you to pull the plant in a different direction, in seconds. Or you can just fiskar yourself another hole at the opposite side of the bucket. By zipping them as loosely as you do you then have at least three (or I do anyway) places to adjust and make them tighter...each one impacting the plants angle differently. I need to get some pictures up to fully establish what I mean. Thanks for listening, i'm only trying to help out some frustrated by their inefficient ways of LST'ing. it's big in my garden and I've been pulling my hair out for years looking for a quick, cheap, and efficient way to do it. plus i didnt want strings crossing through my garden.
Wow--that is pretty cool. Came at a perfect time, too, because I havent LST's up to now, but Im ready to give it a go in a side-by-side with clones from the same mom, to see how much diff it makes, yeild-wise. Thanks--I was planning on using twine, LOL. But I see the advantage to using zips. Dix
I brutally abuse the stalks. every few days I pinch and bend along the entire length of the stem starting when they're about 8 inches high. it's pretty brutal training, but I usually have a ton of time to veg and not a lot of space, so some stunting is welcome.
I do a SCROG, but still do some training before the screen goes in. I used to just put a large rubber band around my buckets, then tuck some jute string under the band. Very easy to set up and adjust. Just put one end under the rubber band, loop the other end over a branch, then tuck the other end of the string under the band. This worked well when I grew in buckets, but not so well now that I use grow bags. My last grow somebody gave me a great idea for bags -- binder clips. You know, these: Just clip one on the top of a bag, then clip both ends of the string to it. Also very easy to set up and very easy to adjust. I've also started using this method after my screen is in, if I have a branch that needs a little redirecting. Instead of clipping the bag, I just put the clip on a string in my screen. Very versatile.
Think I metioned this before but....... I use branches that have broken off trees in my yard or even old stems from havested plants....stuck straight down in the 20L buckets I use with a half inch or so from an offshot holding it down. No tie down. The passive resistance works well and keeps me from having to fuck with them all the time.
Random branches... I couldn't consciously use sticks from the yard as they may contain unwanted pests... I hate the fact that I say this...but my room is not sustainably pest free...i feel if a few got in there they'd spread like wildfire. Also, don't your feeder roots just absolutely hate you for sticking a wide stick into your soil? I feel that could almost do more damage than good...
I mostly think in outdoor terms. . :bong-2: Same a staking a tomato plant with a stick or whatever. Never seen a side effect but obviously I wouldn't go poking through a mature root ball. Indoor I use copper wire. Bonsai trick. Although I've sometimes used copper wire outdoor too as I've been told it deters slugs.
