Doesn’t matter if you’re a newbie or an experienced marijuana grower, a piece of advice never hurts. Unless you take that advice and screw it up. If you’re especially interested in getting higher yields the following growing tips are for you. Have you ever heard of plant training? Don’t worry, this doesn’t involve sending your marijuana plants to a boot camp. It’s just all about manipulation to a certain extent.

1. Use Low-Stress Training (LST)

Why this growing method is called “low-stress training”? It doesn’t involve cutting the top or the branches of the cannabis plants. Thus, the plants don’t over-go stress, as well as continue a normal and steady growth.

The essence of this method is to manipulate and bend the cannabis plants in order to create a number of new colas for buds to grow on. Besides, it lets you control the shape and size of your plants to achieve higher yields with the same grow lights. If your plants are growing too tall for the setup or overgrowing other plants, cannabis low-stress training lets you keep all of them at an even height.

LST lets grower evenly distribute the light because all parts of your marijuana plants have more or less the same distance from the grow lights. This allows an even growth of all buds, and, consequently, there are higher yields.

How does this training happen? “Disobedient” branches are bent and secured with soft ties or a gardening wire to the sides. Other branches are being pulled away from the main stem of the plant.

As the branches are bent horizontally, after a few days each growth node becomes a cola and starts growing upwards. An extra benefit – the plant starts to distribute more energy to all the branches evenly instead of just the main one.

Note: Make sure that you’re not using a string or anything sharp to tie because it will cut in the branches as they grow bigger. It’s better to use a coated gardening wire, special plant ties or a twisty tie. You can secure the ties with something heavy or just simply make small holes on the edge of the pot for the knots. Don’t do the training on a branch that doesn’t bend because it might break.

2. Super Cropping Your Cannabis Plants

Super cropping is a high-stress training method involving planned hurting of your marijuana plant. The plant grows thicker with more buds and more THC. Also, they are shorter and more controlled.

Some wild plants have natural ways like poison or sharpness to protect themselves from herbivores. Cannabis has THC that most animals will avoid. If cannabis feels stressed, it switches to overdrive to produce more buds and more THC. Every grower should take advantage of this.

The best time for super cropping is the vegetative stage. At that moment the plant has many healthy branches, it continues growing and can concentrate the energy for new leaves and colas.

Choose old, but – green and flexible branches. Never choose wood-like branches – they might break. If you have many colas, crop the same place where they are. If you have only one main cola, crop it closer to the top.

The main idea is to damage the inner tissue without damaging the outside of the stalk. Thus, the stem becomes more flexible and can be bent in any growing direction.

Squeeze the branch tightly between your thumb and forefinger in a place that you want to super crop. The pressure will loosen the stem’s tissue. Wiggle it back and forth with the same pressure for about 10 seconds. Continue doing this until you feel that the inside has become softer. Carefully bend the stem in a 90* angle in the direction you want and secure it in place using a tie.

The outside tissue shouldn’t be damaged but sometimes it happens. In such cases apply duct tape on the damaged place and remove it after a week.

When completely accustomed to the new position, the plant will grow the bent into a knot. This precious knot will carry more nutrients and water than before.

3. Try to FIM (Fuck I Missed) Cannabis

FIMing is one of the plant training methods that involves damaging your cannabis plant at a very early stage. This is done to promote the plant to spend more energy in growing many main stems into main colas that would have thick buds, thus, having higher yields. FIMing is especially effective for increasing yields when growing indoors.

This technique is very similar to topping – when the very top of the cannabis plant’s stem is being cut when it’s only a seedling. Both techniques produce the same result – thicker plants with more colas. However, in FIMing the top growth is being cut off instead of removing it properly between the nodes. That’s why this technique is also called “fuck I missed”. Probably, the first person who did that just wanted to do topping but failed to do it.

So, what are the differences? FIMing only shaves the top growth, not causing any damage to the stem. It can create up to 4 main colas at the top of the plant but the colas won’t be evenly spaced. It doesn’t reduce the height of the plant and also the recovery is fast. Topping cuts the top off allowing the plant to grow only 2 new colas. However, it allows reducing the plant’s height but as it is more stressful the plant takes longer to recover. Whether you top or FIM, the plant will grow wider and bushier. Both techniques should be only applied during the vegetative stage. However, if done too early, the plant might have problems to recover.

Experienced growers FIM their plants several times and end up with more than ten colas. As the plant grows wider, not taller, the lights also are being used more efficiently.

4. Talk to Your Marijuana Plants or Expose them to Wind

Some scientists think that light, water, and nutrients are not enough for plants to grow and that talking to them promotes their growth. If that’s the case, maybe talking to the cannabis plants also could help them flourish even more. At least talking wouldn’t hurt or be manipulative.

The first person to claim that conversations with plants benefit them greatly was a German professor Gustav Fechner in 1848. Since then, many others have been promoting this idea.

Recently, it was found out that this might be true because plants respond to certain vibrations that might help them survive in a changing environment. Especially wind benefits plants by improving their resistance – their stalks grow thicker and shorter.

Another theory is that carbon dioxide produced by human speech affects the growth of plants by increasing the rate of photosynthesis in them. But, it requires hours and hours of talking.

Even though these methods might not be proven, they might be effective. Maybe talking to your marijuana babies will not only help them but also to you too. Also, you can try setting up a fan to create an artificial wind to strengthen the stalks of your plants.

But, don’t forget the essentials – good LEDs, water, and nutrients.

Have you tried any of these methods with successful results? Leave a comment below.

Here is my complete Growing Guide.