The Reasons Why You Should Be Training Indoor Cannabis Plants

If you are fed up with mediocre yields every harvest, and run out of buds to smoke before your next cannabis harvest, then you should try training cannabis plants. Applying the right plant training techniques to weed plants can allow you to control the shape and structure of your crop, reduce the stretch once flowering cannabis, and ultimately increase yields.

In this article, I explain the reasons why plant training is advantageous for an indoor grower, the benefits of training weed plants, the different cannabis plant training techniques, and common plant training mistakes to avoid.

Contents Page

• The Benefits Associated with Training Indoor Cannabis Plants
• What Stage Should You Be Training Weed Plants?
• What Tools and Equipment Are Needed for Cannabis Plant Training?
• The Different Cannabis Plant Training Techniques
• Other styles of growing weed plants for maximizing your grow space
• What To Consider When Training Weed Plants

The Benefits Associated with Training Indoor Cannabis Plants

Training indoor weed plants can allow you to have more control over the plant’s shape, growth structure, yield potential, and make growing in small spaces much easier and more practical.

It is also a wonderful way to become familiar with how cannabis grows and can adapt to different plant training scenarios.

What Stage Should You Be Training Weed Plants?

Cannabis plants will go through multiple stages from seed to harvest, and they are explained below. The best time to apply cannabis plant training techniques is during the vegetation and transition stages, and to avoid applying during the seedling and flowering stage.

• The seedling stage (18/6)
• The vegetation stage (18/6)
• The transition stage (12/12)
• The flowering stage (12/12)
• The harvest stage (12/12)

What Tools and Equipment Are Needed for Cannabis Plant Training?

• Sharp scalpel
• Sharp and sterile scissors
• Gardening wire

Below are 6 different hands-on techniques that you can apply to your weed plants. These techniques should only be done during the vegetation and transition stage to avoid stress.

1. Super Cropping Cannabis Plants

Super cropping is a high stress plant training technique, that involves snapping the stem between the internodes. This should be done to healthy and mature plants that will be able to endure the break, and then grow back forming a solid hard wood knuckle.

2. Topping Cannabis Plants

Topping or pinching out is a very popular training technique that produces 2 main crown shoots, instead of one. The way topping works is by cutting off the top growth shoot using a pair of scissors, and allowing the 2 smaller auxiliary shoots to become the dominant new growth. Topping can be done multiple times during the vegetation stage to produce an extremely bushy canopy before flowering.

3. Tying Down Weed Plants

Referred to as a low stress technique, tying down the highest point of the canopy, will lower plant height, and produce a bushy and wide growth structure. Once the tied down shoot grows back vertically, the plant will produce a stocky and uniform canopy. A great technique for growers with limited height inside their grow space.

4. Lollipopping Cannabis Plants

Pruning away the lower set of side branches and fan leaves beneath the tallest part of your weed plant, results in a lollipop shaped canopy. Most growers will carefully cut away 80% of growth, which dramatically improves air flow and lets a cannabis plant focus all its energy on the remaining growth. Lollipopping autos can increase their yields by up to 20% and increase the size of the buds according to Autoseeds.

5. Fimming Weed Plants

The fimming technique involves cutting away 80% of the leaves of a crown shoot, temporarily slowing down apical dominance. The result is the foliage beneath takes over, and the plant puts its energy into making the lowest foliage more bushy and dense, until the crown shoot returns to normal over a 5-7 day period.

6. Mainlining Indoor Cannabis Plants

Other styles of growing weed plants for maximizing your grow space

The Sea of Green Method (S.O.G)

SOG is a style of growing that uses up to 9-36 small-sized plants vegetated for 2–3 weeks prior to flowering, creating a fast turn around time between harvesting and superb yields. Sea of Green can maximize the yield on a small amount of growing space, as advised by Sensi Seeds.

The Screen of Green Method (S.C.R.O.G)

SCROG is another complex way to grow that requires long vegetative times and plenty of weed plant training techniques. Using a screen, plants are systematically grown upwards through the screen, which allows growers with 1 or 2 plants to fill an entire grow space and maximize the yield potential.

What To Consider When Training Weed Plants

Not Enough Recovery Time Between Plant Training

Cannabis plants need recovery time after each technique, especially super cropping and topping. Not giving them enough time can result in damaging the plants, stunted growth, and induce high levels of stress.

Training Weed Plants Once They Start Flowering

It is always best to apply weed plant training during the vegetation and transition period. Avoid topping your plants once they start flowering, especially once they are developing cannabis buds.

Using blunt or dirty scissors 

When making a clean cut for topping, fimming,  lollipopping and pruning cannabis, always use a sharp, clean and sterile pair of scissors. Never use an old, blunt, and dirty pair of scissors, and invest in brand-new equipment before cannabis plant training for the best results.

All photos credit: Bill Sutherland