Issue #119 - Sunday, July 27, 2014

Dear Fellow Grower,

In today's issue...

• Learn how to build a manifold using the main-lining technique to increase yields and create an easier to manage canopy (without needing a ScrOG net!)
• Discover how to easily spot a Nitrogen Deficiency and learn how to make sure they never hurt your grow!
• This week's Trophy Pics feature G13 Cheese under LEDs!

Happy Growing!

Nebula Haze & Sirius Fourside (founders of GrowWeedEasy.com)

"If you are not willing to risk the unusual, you will have to settle for the ordinary." 

~ Jim Rohn

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This cannabis main-lining tutorial is a work in progress! I did not create "main-lining" and am not the first grower to try main-lining cannabis. Several growers have asked me to put together a main-lining tutorial based on what I've learned so far in my setup, so I am simply sharing my experiences and personal technique for making a cannabis manifold. I am not an expert, but I hope this information helps other growers!

Main-Lining (building a manifold) for growing cannabis is a relatively new technique on the grow scene. At least, it's only recently that growers have been talking about it by the name "main-lining" or "manifolding." This technique has not been tested by a lot of growers. We encourage you to contact us about your experiences with main-lining cannabis, so we can add what you've learned to this page. 

Until the main-lining process has been better tested, it's hard to predict how it will work in your setup. In this article we'll share everything we've learned so far about building cannabis manifolds, but know that we're still collecting data.

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The technique of "main-lining" or manifolding cannabis was first described and named by a talented grower known as Nugbuckets.

The idea of main-lining is to build a "manifold" at the base of your cannabis plant to efficiently deliver resources to all colas. During the process of building a manifold, the grower can choose to create a plant with usually 8 or 16 colas (8 is most common, 16 for ScrOG setups, and 32 is rarely an efficient use of plant resources).

Why I build manifolds when growing cannabis indoors

• Bigger yields! The main reason I continue main-lining and building manifolds is because this training technique has resulted in harvesting much bigger yields from the exact same setup I had before. I've used other types of plant training, and main-lining cannabis seemed to get better results than any other individual plant training technique.
  
  
• Easier for me than other training methods - While it may seem like a lot of steps, the basic idea of main-lining cannabis is to cut the plant 3 times, then just arrange the colas where you want. Each of the colas tend to grow about the same height as each other. This makes it straightforward to get a "sea of colas" that are each thick and dense, without a lot of popcorn or larfy buds.
  
  
• Less time training - Since you just top the plant 3 times and place buds, it really doesn't take much time to get plants to become a desireable shape with lots of colas indoors. Some training methods can create similar shapes and canopies, such as ScrOG, but ScrOGing can take up to an hour a night during the intense process of filling the net in the late vegetative stage before the flip to flowering. Manifolding only takes a few minutes for the first few weeks of veg, then no more training is needed besides holding up heavy colas late in the flowering stage.
  
  
• Training takes place in beginning instead of the middle or end - Since all the training happens in the first few weeks of the plants life, you get to sit back and care for the plants, instead of worry about getting a shape you want.
  
  
• Less likely to get bud rot or mold - While this method produces many big thick colas, each cola is uniform and tends instead of growing just one main cola. When colas get too thick, they run the risk of developing bud rot (inside of buds simply rot away), or getting moldy during the curing process. Instead of growing just one main cola which can get spoiled, manifolding cannabis during the early veg stage builds a support structure for many colas that are thick and uniform, with less chance of getting bud rot or other types of mold.
  
  
• Less time trimming - With only long, dense colas without larfy small buds, trimming is much faster. There's only 8 long colas to trim, and that makes trimming go by faster than trimming lots more nugs
  
  
• Better drying - Since all the buds are a similar width and density, drying is a lot more straightforward. All the buds tend to be done drying at the same time.

Main-Lining - Building a Manifold

Creating a Plant with 8+ Fat Colas Using a Simple Topping Technique

This technique of building a manifold at the base of cannabis plants has been adapted to many growers in many setups, and it's not always done the same way.The following steps do not describe the process exactly how Nugbuckets does it, but I've had great results with main-lining this way. Many growers have asked me for a quick, concise tutorial, so here it is.

Sometimes I wonder if main-lining is as good for soil as hydroponics. I've had soil growers tell me that this technique adds too much time in the veg stage for the results. Then again, Nugbuckets was an avid organic soil grower. But I know for sure that plants respond really well to main-lining in a hydro setup.

What You Need to Start Main-Lining Cannabis

• Healthy, fast-growing plant in early veg stage
• Sharp scissors
• Plant ties & Soft Wire Ties
• Plant yo-yos (or "yoyo supports") - you're going to need these to hold up all your tall, heavy colas when they start to fall over from their own weight

Important Definitions

Node - a set of leaves attached to a stem. When talking about the "3rd node" for example, it means the 3rd set of leaves from the base

Growth tip - a part of the plant that is growing new nodes and leaves; if the growth tip is part of a long stem that reaches near the top of the plant, it's often called a "cola" or "top"

Cola/Top - a main stem with a growth tip at the end - colas will grow buds in the flowering stage. The goal of main-lining is to end up with 8 (or 16) evenly spaced colas.

Topping - To "top" a cannabis plant means to cut off growth tip. You can cut off a growth tip at the end of a stem, or further down. In this article, you will be topping plants right above certain nodes.

Important! Never start main-lining a plant that isn't growing fast and healthy. For an unhealthy plant, main-lining could slow growth even more. Stunting a plant could add more time and reduce yields, so only start main-lining with fast-growing plants.

This is the super condensed version for main-lining cannabis indoors, exactly as I do it now (after some trial and error). The complete tutorial with pictures and notes is below.

Main-Lining Cannabis Indoors

Nebula's Step-By-Step Tutorial for a Wide-Based Indoor Cannabis Plant

Quick Reference - Main-Lining Cannabis Diagram

1.) Create 2 main colas

• Let young plant grow 6 nodes
• Top to 3rd node (now have 2 colas)
• Clean extra growth

2.) Create 4 main colas

• Let each new cola grow 2-4 nodes
• Top to 1st or 3rd node (now have 4 colas) -  top to the 1st node for a more compact plant, and to the 3rd node for a bigger plant with a wider manifold
• After plant is growing fast, clean up extra growth

Note: In this step, growers should top to the 1st node for a more compact plant, and to the 3rd node for a bigger plant with a wider manifold. I tend to grow pretty big plants, so I top at the 3rd node in this step. If you have a plant that is growing faster than the others in your grow space, this is a chance to top it at the 1st while topping the others at the 3rd - this will slightly slow down growth of the fast-growing plant, but it's not certain how big a difference this will make.

3.) Create 8 Colas

• Let each new cola grow 3 nodes
• Top to 2nd node (now have 8 colas)
• After plant is growing fast, clean up extra growth 

4.) After plant is growing healthy, switch to flowering

• If you desire a larger plant, you can let the plant veg for a few more weeks, but make sure to clean up undergrowth so that all energy is directed to the 8 main colas.

5.) Arrange colas to fill up your space under the light

• This part needs some LST (low stress training), which basically means bending the colas so they create an even canopy to fill up the space under your grow lights
• The idea is to fill up the entire space under your grow lights with colas that are a few inches away from each other. Try to arrange them so that they are evenly spaced and have similar height to each other. Bend any tall colas out and away from the center of the plant, so they are closer to the edges of the space. 
• Use plant ties to secure young plants
• Use soft wire ties to hook around colas or anchors when plant ties are not strong enough, and use the plant ties from now on as "string"
• Use plant yo-yos to secure colas once they start getting too heavy with buds to hold up their own weight. (at this point, the above measures just aren't enough to hold up the dense long buds, and plant yo-yos are the perfect solution)

Now you just wait for big fat colas to form under your grow lights! 

• Strain Choice
• Environment
• Plant Training

Manifold Grow Journal - See a cannabis plant get main-lined from beginning to end

Remember, sharing is caring!

Jump to...

Nugbuckets' Main-Lining Tutorial

More Cannabis Plant Training Techniques

Growing Problems & Symptoms

10-Step Quick Start Guide to Growing Cannabis

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