Time Lapse Videos

How To Transplant, Set Up & Train with The OG Spring. This is an introductory Time Lapse that is intended to give you the most straightforward way of utilizing springs in your garden. Shot with T5 lighting set 36” off the table & the light was kept on 24 hrs a day. Also there are no fans moving these plants around. Notice how the transformation of the plant’s shape takes place over time as the Apex is worked up the spring so that Apical Dominance (what gives plants their Christmas tree shape) is gradually redistributed to the lower shoots & branches.

The video covers 30 Days of Apical Tuning LST on an OG Spring 13 (Large).  Starting off with a Transplant, Set Up & Train in the first session and followed up with regular visits where the Apex is reattached to The OG Spring each time along with some LST, Defoliation and Shoot Thinning. We do this so that our plant’s canopy is even and so our manifold (Trunk & Main Branches) is directing resources equally to each top. That is essentially the goal with plant training: To build a manifold where each branch/top is equally fed, well exposed to light and at the same elevation as all the other tops.

OG Spring 13 vs OG Spring 8 Comparison Time Lapse. In this video we compare the 2 Spring sizes Side by Side on a pair of evenly matched clones of Northern Lights # 5. The 13 (large) & 8 (small) both do the same exact thing when it comes to the effects they have on plants and both are set up in the same way. The differences are the trainable length of wire (the distance between the end coils – 28” for the Large & 14” for the Small) and what they are best suited for.

The large is a great all around player that works well for training big and small plants, & is perfect for Autoflowers. It will support up to about 4-5 weeks of training time depending on genetics & environmental conditions. Also the more aggressive the secondary training is with the branches, the longer you can train along the spring wire, which is true for either size spring. The 8 is great for smaller plants (1-3 weeks of training time) and because of their size, they can be packed in more tightly, much like in a Sea of Green approach, where there’s greater numbers of plants. They’re also great for training tops in early flower (scroll down to watch Spring Training in Flower – 1 Plant Time Lapse).

Now the other thing being compared here is the Timing of the training to the spring or in other words the size of the plant. We aren’t suggesting that these are the absolute best times & sizes to train with the springs, rather we are trying to show that there’s a good sized window of time that is great for spring training. We have trained anywhere from 4- 36” plants with the springs but generally speaking the sweet spot is between 8” to 14”. In our experience the earlier & the smaller the plant the more likely it is that any training will slow down it’s growth. The later the training the harder the stem and the more care that needs to be taken during bending. Also the effect of Spring Training a top tapers off the further down the trunk a branch is. Those lower tops will still be invigorated but won’t likely catch up to the upper canopy which is ok if you’re going for a more rounded Bush for outdoor . Spring training a plant that is well rooted, flexible & with some side shoots growing is optimal & will have a spring board like effect on shoot growth.

Ultimately, we think it’s important to start training where you’re comfortable and work from there, making adjustments and trying new things out each round. It’s something you can keep getting better at over time.

Training Comparison Time Lapse #1: OG Spring vs No Training (natural). This is 1 of 4 Training Comparison Time Lapses we have lined up here. The other 3 are Spring vs Topping, Spring vs Supercropping & Spring vs Regular Low Stress Training or LST. Visit the How It Works page to learn about LST.  In all of our comparisons we strive to keep as many inputs the same as possible so that what you are seeing between plants is the difference in training techniques.  In the case of the untrained plant it would actually be a lack of technique. We also use clones or cuttings & take enough extra cuts so that we can select 2 evenly matched subjects to compare. Then we use the same medium, nutrition, lighting type/exposure, temperature, humidity and CO2 (ambient). For this time lapse we are working with 2 clones of Blue Dream Haze from Cali Connection (sativa dominant hybrid). In all of our comparisons we have used the following for these inputs. Medium – Lucky Dog (Peat & Perlite). Nutrients – Dominion Organics Full Line according to Growth Stage. Lights – 300 watts of T5 36” off the table. Temp – varies but avg in the mid 70s and Humidity 50-60% (*our thoughts are that in this small space temp and humidity are experienced equally by both the test subjects and can fluctuate without skewing results). Notice the size of the plants when training begins in this video, about 18” tall. Point is with a bit of practice you can Spring train bigger plants and see some explosive growth!

Training Comparison Time Lapse # 2: OG Spring Vs. Topping. In this time lapse we compare the differences in growth rate between 2 clones of Northern Lights # 5 when one is trained with an OG Spring and the other is Topped. Both plants received the same inputs of light, water, nutrients, CO2, temp & humidity and were matched closely for size & vigor. We also decided to train both plants for 8 tops. The plant on the left was trained with a Spring and additional LST tie downs. The plant on the right was topped 3 times (over the course of 5 weeks) and also received LST tie downs to open up the canopy. The topping approach is one I used to use years ago to build my manifolds until I started going with straight LST techniques. Let me be clear, I’m not opposed to or down on topping or any other method of HIgh Stress Training. There’s a lot of ways to train cannabis that will improve yield and form nice manifolds. Our hope is to add Fibonacci based LST into the mix, not to say this way is the best way. We love seeing all the different approaches to training that cannabis readily accepts.

Training Comparison Time Lapse # 3 : OG Spring vs Regular LST. In this comparison our goal was to show the difference between Spring Training and a typical approach to Low Stress Training or LST. The Strain is Merlot OG from Ocean Grown.  Now to help clear up any confusion with “Hey I thought that Spring Training is LST??” Well it is, But there is one main difference between the 2 approaches. The difference being in how the techniques deal with Apical Dominance. Apical Dominance is a phenomenon that gives plants the conical shape that is often referred to as a “Christmas tree” shape.  With Regular LST Apical Dominance is broken by either Bending, Topping or Super Cropping the Apex first. The Apex is the top of the plant, or tip of the Christmas tree.  With Bending, the Apex is gently pulled all the way over past 90 degrees and attached to the side of the pot or stake etc. with garden wire or string of some sort.   With the Topping approach, the Apex is cut off and (High Stress Training-HST) followed up with Bending and tying down of the stem and/or anchoring the branches to the pot with garden ties. You can also start with Super Cropping (HST) the plant at a specific internode, and then pull down on the branches and tie those off to the pot edges or other anchor points. For this comparison we chose LST only so we bent the Apex over gently past 90 degrees to thoroughly break it’s dominance. Pulling the Apex over to 90 degrees or more has the effect of turning off the Apex and shifting dominance and vigor to other branches. With Spring Training we bend the Apex over and attach it to the spring keeping it angled upward and at a higher elevation than the lower shoots/branches. Then we work the Apex by reattaching it to the spring as it grows, gradually redistributing Apical Dominance over a period of time (varies anywhere between 1 week to 4 weeks during Veg) The reattaching of the Apex to the spring multiple times has the benefit of giving the plant repeated work outs with the Apex on a consistent basis rather than a one time bend and tie down that Regular LST does.

Training Comparison Time Lapse # 4 – Spring Training VS Super Cropping. This comparison is like all the others in that we use a pair of equally matched clones (Strain: Double Purple Doja), using the same medium, nutes, light, temp, humidity so that what is being compared is the training techniques. We decided to go for 8 tops on both plants as another form of control. The Spring Trained plant was trained to the Spring 3 times and the Super Cropped plant’s stems were folded 2 times. There may be more comparisons like these that we do but we think these 4 (Untrained, Topping, Regular LST & Super Cropping) were the most important to cover first. We feel like what might be more useful to show in the future is how to combine these techniques with spring training. It’s not an all or nothing game with Spring Training, you can mix and match techniques as you wish. It’s up to your imagination and ability to visualize the plant shape and structure you want to grow. To us this is where the art of plant training lies.

Training Larger Plants with an OG Spring. The intent of this time lapse was to show one of the ways the spring can be used to train large plants that are destined for life in a greenhouse or the outdoors. The plant being spring trained here is 20” tall at the time of training. We transplanted from a 1 gal to a 3 gal pot but it could’ve been into a much larger pot or raised bed etc. Waiting to train until a plant is a bit bigger has a few advantages for the outdoor grower. If you’re getting your outdoor plants ready indoors, you can hold off on training until you transplant into a larger pot or move it outside. This can help to save space (so you can pack more plants in ) in the grow room because once training begins plants quickly widen out consuming much more canopy space than untrained plants. Second, with a bit of experience you can transplant, train and support the plant in one visit and not have to revisit it for training purposes for a week or longer as the spring shifts the plant’s shape from to . This can be very helpful when working with large numbers of plants and there’s much to do. Once your plant’s manifold is formed you can easily add your trellis, cage, bamboo etc to continue training and supporting throughout the season. We do recommend removing the spring before wrapping a cage around it or anything that might limit access/removal of the spring as the season progresses. Also since the springs are stainless steel you’ll be able to use them outdoors for years to come with little maintenance. **Note** Very important to watch out for pinch points between soft wire and trunk with fast growing plants.

How To Set Up & Train 3 Plants & 3 Springs in 1 Pot. This approach falls under the category of Multiples.  Multiples are any plant & spring arrangement with more than 1 spring & 1 plant. The most common ones we use are Doubles & Triples, but this round we had a Quadruple too. You can definitely do more than that depending on your pot size (especially with beds). The smallest pot size I would use for a Double or Triple would be a 3 gallon, but 5 and 7 are really nice for this. In preparation for multiples I like to transplant rooted clones into a solo cup or pint container. This sets you up well for arranging them later in the 3,5 or 7 gallon pot. Another benefit of starting in pints is being able to match up plants for size & vigor before transplanting to the bigger pot. This isn’t totally critical but it makes it easier to train. If you want to combine plants of different size & vigor just go for more tops from the bigger ones and less from the smaller ones. The main thing is to get all the tops to the same height as soon as you can so that nobody gets crowded out.
You can also mix and match strains in one pot but it’s a good idea to have run them a few rounds before so you know what to expect from them. You’ll want to match them up as closely as possible for vigor, internodal length and flower stretch (why I don’t recommend multiples for seeds so much as these are largely unknowns, not to mention not knowing the sex, at least with regular beans). Aside from Multiples being nice looking and fun to do, they’re really efficient when it comes to shortening Veg time and reducing time spent on training. You’ll generally have more tops than you know what to do with really quickly & with just a few reattachments of the apex to the spring you’ll have a bush ready to flower

The Multi Spring Technique: 3 Plants – 3 Springs in 1-7 gal Pot. The Triple is one of our go-to methods for Veg Training, especially with slower vegging strains. We also use Double & Quadruple Plant/Spring set ups depending on what we need to do to fill in our veg space as efficiently as possible. We didn’t film the training portions of this time lapse simply because we were brand new to time lapsing and really had no idea where it would go. But what I can tell you is that we didn’t do much to this triple training wise after the initial set up, just reattached the Apex’s every 4-5 days. We started doing a bit of LST at the end of week 4 to dominant branches to keep the canopy balanced, but overall this is a very fast & easy way to build a bush.

4×4 Grow Tent Veg + Flower Time Lapse with 3 Plants & 3 Springs Per Pot. Starting out with 12 plants of 3 Strains each in Pint containers & then transplanted into 3 gallon pots. You could also use 5, 7, 10 etc. too, especially if you wanted to move them right into their final pot size for flowering. For the purposes of this project we chose to go with 3s and then we’ll bump them up to 7s for flower. Now on why we think multiples are a great option for many grows, including for those growing in tents. First of all you can compress Transplanting, Spring Set Up & Training into 1 visit. Spring training is such a Low Stress Technique that we’ve not seen any slow down in growth at all, especially when combined with a Low Stress Transplant technique as shown here. It’s the same transplant technique used by many folks in the community already, resulting in no down time or recovery.  After this initial transplant and train your off and running. A few follow up attachments of the Apexes to their springs & some understory clean up & you’ll quickly have all the great tops you need to fill out your canopy in flower. Second, Springs combine really well together into patterns that can form a canopy vortex. The Fibonacci Spiral shape of the spring makes it easy to create beautiful, efficient and productive arrangements for building plant canopy (Think like a Yin-Yang or a Boat Propeller). Third it’s a blast to do and to watch the transformation take place!

This was our first time lapse in the Flower Room. We wanted to show a mix of different training & support techniques that are commonly used. Stakes were used on the far left, ScrOG in the center and Double Layer Trellis on the right. All were combined with spring training at some point during Veg or Flower and Low Stress Training was used to carry out each method. We had hoped that all 3 techniques would stay visible throughout the time lapse but things got a bit too tall to see the staking and trellis sections as the weeks progressed. One thing we hope you’ll takeaway from this time lapse is that spring training is a highly cooperative technique that works well in combination with Staking, ScrOG & Trellis. (**Note the plant’s are on DIY rolling benches**)

Spring Training in Flower. This time lapse covers 10 weeks of Flower and includes Setting Stakes, Attaching OG Spring 8s and Training on them during Weeks 3 & 4. The general idea here is to redistribute the vigor of flower stretch from dominant tops to as many of the bud sites as possible with Low to No Stress Training. In order to keep the training as low in stress as possible we make sure that the stems are bent as gently as possible with a nice open arc, close to 45 degrees (angling upward). Think of it as a minimally invasive redirection with the goal being a flat/even canopy with the majority of buds ending up in the upper canopy getting great light exposure and air flow.
Getting the most out of Spring Training or any LST in Flower has a lot to do with the timing of the training. The window to begin it is about a week long in our experience and it’s best to be starting Spring Training sometime between Day 7 and Day 15 depending on how quickly the strain initiates flower. The faster Flower sets in the sooner you need to get started training. As flower stretch progresses stems quickly become woody, and at which point you’ve missed the window to begin training. If you’ve hit the training window properly then it’s quite easy to finish carrying out training the top to the spring as the stem hardens up. This is because the stem is already angled over toward the spring making the bending very minimal.
The benefits of spring training in flower include: A flat/even canopy without those run away tops heading for the lights. Good air flow, which helps the plant transpire and can help minimize habitat for things like Bud Rot (Botrytis), Powdery Mildew & Spider Mites. It also increases light exposure to individual buds, helping them to ripen up more fully, adding a bit in yield and potentially bringing more colors out at harvest.