Here's a picture of the flower tent from day 7 of 12/12.
It shows what I am trying to do with my lst training - and have pretty much achieved. My flower space is square - a floor space of 120cmx120cm (3ft11x3ft11). In that I fit a desk fan at one end, and a dehumidifier in between the plants. What I wanted to do was create an even canopy that took up the whole area. I did my first training last grow, partly due to 100% germination and not wanting to lose any plants. This gave me a chance to try multiple tie downs over a 14 week veg period. Along with this I got to train a kolossus which vegged for 7 weeks. It was the kolossus which informed my plan, with the 14 week veg girls giving me the confidence to apply it, both then and on this grow.
So, the details. What I do is to make a hole on one side of the pot - the opposite side I want to train (the decision on which side to bend down is based on a gut feeling, test the plant, see which way she's happier bending...and then bend her the opposite way, gently and slowly.) Before doing the actual training, tie string through the hole you have made, go around the base of the plants stem and then tie this off fairly tightly (but without cutting the plant - I find thicker string is better than thin chord). This acts as support for the plant when you begin to bend her top to the opposite side of the pot.
This is step two. Make a hole pretty much opposite the first hole, this will be the training tie down hole. Make this hole in the best place in order to pull down the top, bearing in mind that it must get lower than rest of the plant eventually. This means that on some strains you need to put the hole slightly to one side or the other to avoid fan leaves and side branches when the top is lowered. Don't be afraid to change your mind if once you get the top down under the string you find the hole is in a bad place - carefully pop the string off and the plant top back up and make a new hole in the perfect place you will now know. The whole time take things slow and gently, carefully move the leaves and branches as they come in contact with the string.
On the first tie down it can be possible to get the top below the rest of the plant. On others it must be a second tie down that achieves this. What you must do is get some string through the hole, and this time carefully work it around the top of the plant - either the first or the second node, the tightness of them informs my decision - back around the other side and down to the base of the pot. It is here that I tie the two ends of the string, which draws the top down. Be careful to do this slowly, as when the top lowers leaves and branches will need to be moved through the string in order to make room for the lowered top. You also need to keep checking the top to make sure the string does not cut into the stem - gently lowering the stem with your hand relieves pressure from string. Tie the string off in a bow at a point you feel comfortable with - do not force it lower than it will go.
The Shacks were turning back to the light almost instantly. The Jacks far more slowly. One of the Jacks has even got an original main top that is inches below the new main tops. After a few days it is possible to tie the original tie down again, making it lower - easily below the rest of the plant on every plant I have tried it on so far. 6 weeks veg gives me the chance to do one further tie down, which is to a new hole further along the pot from the one used for the first tie down.
The way the plants react and develop side branches on one side of the main trunk works perfectly for a square grow space. They all reach in towards the centre of the tent and light. You get multiple tops, an even canopy, and minimal stress.
I just added a red CFL. But the main light is still the 400W Metal Halide. This will be used for the first 14 days of 12/12 to aid with veg growth during stretch.
