The goal of every cannabis grower is to have the most successful growing season that they possibly can. They research to find the best plant food, the right strains to grow in the environment in which they live, and the best soil conditions to give their plants the best chance. There is so much that goes into a successful harvest, most importantly super cropping your cannabis plants.
Then there are the tricks of the trade that they look for to give their plants a little boost. One of those great tricks is called supercropping. Supercropping cannabis plants is an easy way to improve your yield.
What Is Super cropping?
Supercropping is a high-stress training technique for cannabis plants that elicits specific natural responses to maximize and optimize the grower’s yield. It is a simple process, but it does take practice to get good at it.
There are low-stress techniques and high-stress techniques but super cropping is one of the most popular amongst growers because of the results that it can produce. It is the stress that super cropping puts on the plant that stimulates an incredible natural response. The stress has to be done in a very controlled and specific way so that the plant is not damaged beyond repair.
It can even be used in combination with other techniques. Growers have to make sure to do the right research and understand the techniques that they are using so that they do not stress the plant to the point of no return.
Get Amazing Seed Deals
- Feminized Seeds
- Autoflower Seeds
- High THC Seeds
- High Yield Seeds
- Beginner Seeds
When Should Plants Be Super Cropped?
There are two very specific stages of cannabis plant growth. There is the vegetative state that lasts 3 to 5 weeks. This is the stage where the plants work to create strong, healthy root systems and plenty of stems and healthy leaves. This is the time where the size comes in before the flowering period.
Supercropping is best done during this vegetative stage at about the 3 or 4-week point. This will allow for new stems and leaves to grow before the flowering stage to give more surface area to the plant.
Some experienced growers will supercrop their plants a couple of weeks into the flowering period, but they have gained the experience to know what they are doing. It is not necessarily recommended but it can be done.
One thing that growers and those new to supercropping should also know is that supercropping is a technique that is not going to benefit autoflowering plants.
The Benefits of Super cropping
There are a couple of reasons why cannabis growers decide to supercrop their plants.
Improve Yield
The first, and for many, the most important reason is that it will maximize the yield by increasing the potency of their buds. When growers supercrop their plants, the manufactured stress of bending the stems stimulates the desired natural response.
Cannabis plants produce resins that contain the cannabinoids (like THC and CBD). The plants produce these resins as a protective response to stress. Naturally, it is a response to stress such as pests, dehydration, or damage. The glands all over the plants will produce these resins to fight the stress and the sun will soften the resin so that it coats the plant.
The stress stimulates resin production, and it is the resin that coats the buds to generate a more potent product and even increased THC levels.
Improved Light Use
One of the results of supercropping is that the plant will become wider and bushier. It forces the plant to have a flat canopy and grow outward instead of upward. This growth makes it so that no branch or stem is higher than another and thus no branch is closer to the light source than another.
This allows light to coat the plant evenly and it also allows light to penetrate the leaves and branches much more effectively. And we all learned in 1st grade that plants need light to grow.
How To Supercrop
It is actually a simple process. You will take the stems between your thumb and forefinger and pinch and roll the stem until you can feel the inside fibers become increasingly pliable, all while trying not to break the outside layer of the stem.
Once you feel the stem become pliable, you will bend the stem over and tie it down gently with string or a zip tie. You want the stem to sit at a 90-degree angle. If you are new to this, you will want to test it out on one stem to make sure the plant responds the way that you want it to. You also want to do this to make sure that you are doing it right.
If you do break the outside of the stem, don’t panic. You can use a little bit of tape to tape around the break and in about a week it should be healed.
Supercropping your cannabis plants is not a difficult process, but it will take you time to perfect it and get good at it. Once you do, you are going to see amazing results from this process. Don’t get discouraged if things don’t go your way at first, you will get it and you will be so glad that you stuck with it.
If you are ready to get that garden started, it is time to get everything that you need. I can’t think of a better place for you to start than ILGM.com. If you need it, they have it.
From high-quality seeds to plant food regimens, from books to a public forum, ILGM.com has all of the resources that a cannabis grower could need or want to be fully prepared for the growing season.
ILGM.com can take the difficulty out of the process and can be a resource for their customers from beginning to end. They are not just a seed bank; they are an online resource full of information and products. These professionals have decades of experience and knowledge in the cannabis industry, and they are there to share their knowledge with you.