GrowCNanswered grow question 3 years ago Low stress training does not use a net. For LST use ties to bend the plant. Use a old soldering iron or heat a nail in a flame and melt a series of holes around the top of your pots. Then you can tie your branches down to the holes. A benefit of not using a net is you can move & rotate your plants in the tent and you can remove them for inspection. It is also a lot easier to water the rear plants without a net blocking access.
As for when to start... you need enough plant to train. If training your main stalk I like to let it get at least 3-5 cm (2 or 3") of straight, vertical stem before training the stalk above to grow horizontally. You can start training the branches when you have branches long enough to train. Wires are best because you will need to adjust your ties as the branches grow longer.