How do YOU train your outdoor plants?

Kodiak said:

How To Improve On Your Harvest:
A Complete Guide To Topping, Training And Pruning

Super Cropping​

There is also a technique called super cropping, which involves the crushing of the soft inner tissue of the stem. This technique will allow you to gain some control over the plant, but it is mainly used to increase health, potency and yields. This soft inner tissue is made up of cellulose and forms a network of vascular tissue that can be divided into two groups; namely the xylem and phloem. These two are responsible for the transport of water and nutrients along the stem.

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Breaking the plant's inner walls will cause it to rebuild. The plant will rebuild the tissue stronger than before and this is why this technique can increase the harvest. While rebuilding the tissue the plant expands on the cellulose network, which is why the stem grows thicker than before at the point where it was crushed. This allows for a greater transport of water and nutrients, which will directly affect the yield.

Think of it this way; instead of having a two way street for water and nutrient transport, you now have a multi-laned super highway.​

If you pinch the main stem it will grow very thick, which will benefit the entire plant. Pinching the side branches will allow you to have more control over how she takes shape. Thanks to the bend on the newly crushed branch you can now redirect it in any way that you see fit. This will also allow more light to reach the lower buds. Since the branch will grow stronger at the breaking point, it will also be able to support more weight. The branches that are closest to the breaking point will also grow stronger in order to compensate for the injury.

Here we can see how the stem has grown stronger where the vascular tissue was damaged and then repaired.

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The idea here is to gain some control over the shape of the plant while improving on health and increasing her yield. Pinched plants usually grow into very healthy bushes with thick stems and branches. Super cropping is also a good way of getting several main colas. The pinched branches will eventually grow so thick that the plant will treat them as if they were dominant shoots instead of secondary branches.

Super cropping should be carried out during the second or third week of vegetative growth. Take a branch between your forefinger and thumb and proceed to pinch and twist at the same time until you feel the insides start to collapse under the pressure of your fingers. Slowly squeeze and bend the stem without snapping it. Just squeeze lightly until you feel the branch give, then let go. The branch might droop for a while but that's ok as it will heal over time.

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Keep in mind that sometimes you will have to keep the plant in a vegetative state slightly longer than usual as it takes the plant some time to repair the broken tissue and redirect energy. Plants are quite good at repairing these kinds of injuries, so there is no need to worry. In the end the plant will grow very strong and healthy. You might have to provide the pinched branches with some kind of support until they heal or the angle might become too extreme. Regular string will work just fine.

Topping and super cropping both serve the same purpose, the difference being that when you super crop a plant, you don't actually remove anything from it, you just bend it out of the way. The plant will however behave in a similar way because the main shoot is now located lower down than the secondary shoots. The result is that the plant sends up the secondary shoots as if the main shoot was actually removed. The secondary shoots can in turn be pinched and the effect is shifted towards shoots that are located further down on the stem. You will end up with a relatively even canopy which is good because then all the shoots will receive an equal amount of light.

Topping and super cropping should be considered mutually exclusive but a number of the other techniques can be used to further improve on the yield.​

If this technique is applied correctly and with patience, the outcome will most likely be a stronger, bushier plant and a greater number of main shoots. The procedure can be repeated several times during the vegetative stage for even better results. I would like to point out that the vegetative stage is not set within a certain time frame. You can extend it as far as you like in order to have more time to shape the plant. Most plants won't start flowering until they are put under a 12/12 light schedule. I usually wait at least until I see preflowers before I put the plants into flowering stage, this also gives me enough time to work with the plants.​

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