Bonjour à tous les padawans et maîtres jedis stretch 15 centimètres (Stretch explanations more) EXPOSURE TO LIGHT One of the main culprits in abnormal stretching of cannabis plants is the lack of light. Plants that are too far from an adequate light source will respond by accelerating stem growth in order to get closer to the lamp themselves. Especially when there are many other plants. A lack of lighting can easily cause overcrowding in a growing chamber, reducing the steady progression of your crop and the distance ratio between your bulbs and your plants. To address this problem, be sure to provide enough light to your plants to prevent stem growth. At the same time, you should not position your lights too close to your plants either since this would also result in an over-stretching of the stems and in some cases, the loss of your crop. In addition to the distance between the light source and the plant, the type of light you will use also affects the size of the stretching of your crop. The orange and red lights encourage stretching and result in thinner, larger stems. And conversely, blue light stimulates a growth of thicker stems and a smaller size. When a species is ready to enter the vegetative phase and undergo its most drastic stretching period, metal halide lamps can be used to deter far too long stems. THE HEAT Heat is another essential element that can determine the stretch size of your plants during vegetation. Temperatures above 27 degrees push the stems to lengthen more and more and will propel the potential of sativas to push as high as possible. Heat lamps that are positioned too close to plants create an intolerable environment that will grow large, soft plants that will potentially wobble until they fall and lose flowers in its fall. OTHER CAUSES OF STRETCHING There are multiple variables that can lead to the stretching of plants beyond what could normally be expected of the plant. Environmental stressors resulting from transplantation (when a plant passes from one pot to another) can cause the plant to return to shock. This will eventually trigger a reaction causing a stretch. Cannabis plants that are not grown in decent conditions or do not receive enough nutrients will respond in a variety of ways and this includes stretching. Crops that are not spaced far enough apart are likely to stretch to sting the light to other plants. Due to extreme proximity, the plants will fight among themselves to reach the light, forcing them to expand as much as possible throughout the crop. HOW TO CONTROL STRETCHING DURING FLOWERING Stretching during flowering, you guessed it, takes place when you move your plants from the vegetation stage to the flowering stage. This is a completely normal reaction, as your plants are preparing to bear the weight of their heads. Stretching of a plant at the beginning of flowering varies widely; some plants can double in height while others grow only a few centimetres. There are, however, two main variables that can give you at least an idea of how your plants are stretching during flowering, and how much. Here are these two variables: Variety: Genetics has the greatest impact on the size of your plant. In general, sativa varieties stretch more than indicas and tend to develop long, slender stems. Light: Some lights, such as HPS, are more likely to encourage stretching. In addition, great distances between your canopy and your lights will cause the plants to stretch as they try to get closer to the light source. Stretching during flowering usually lasts the first two weeks of the phase. To minimize stretching, keep your lights between 10 (for CFL) and 30 centimetres (for HID) of your canopy. Finally, choose indica varieties if you have a smaller growing space. HOW TO AVOID STRETCHING In many cases, you can expect your cannabis plants to stretch during the flowering phase. Keeping that in mind helps to make a plan in case your species ends up growing much more than you could have imagined. If the information is available, get information on the standard size of your species and compare it to the size of your growing space taking into account the necessary distances between the bulbs and the plants. TRAFFIC While outdoor crop operations benefit from natural air to naturally limit stretching, indoor crops must assume the maintenance of air circulation within a confined space. Basic ventilation is enough to help the cannabis stems strengthen and become thicker rather than too high. In this way, the plants continue to grow vigorously without reaching heights and at the same time, your tolerance ceiling. MANUAL INTERVENTION For growers who want to get their hands dirty, there are physical procedures that can be done to reduce stretching. Similar to the natural effect that the wind has on cannabis plants, manually bending the leaves and stems will cause tiny cracks in the plant's tissues that will cause the plant to focus on regenerating its wounds instead of its vertical growth. THE TOPPING Topping is a form of manual intervention on cannabis to influence its performance, shape or size. In essence, topping is a process in which a new node is cut, growing from the plant to reduce its size and create a "v"-shaped notch that will eventually form two heads. Topping may be an effective measure to combat stretching, but it is important not to do so when the flowering phase begins. In most cases, an abnormal stretch of cannabis plants will not completely destroy your crop. In fact, stretching can indeed help increase your performance. For growers with a growing operation large enough to contain tall plants, stretching can increase the total yield of a species with more vertical space for head formation. In both cases, stretching can easily be planned in advance and there are multiple solutions to help you with this problem which is all too common. Jour49 arrosage Jour51 arrosage 2 litres d'eau Jour 54 légère defolliation arrosage avec deux litres d'eau ph6.3 à laquelle j'ajoute 0.6 gramme de feeding enhancer greenhouse Good luck for your grow 🤞🌱 May the force be with you 💪