Dumb DWC newbie question about supporting plants

I'm starting my first-ever DWC grow (I have several successful grows under my belt, but all in soil). I've always supported my soil-grown plants with stakes, and I'm wondering whether I need to worry about support in a DWC setup. I know I can do a SOG, but if I don't do that, do I need to worry about heavy plants toppling over? I've read through tons of posts in this section, but couldn't really find any mention of this.

Thanks so much.

if you supported your plants with stakes when grown in soil than you will most definitely need stakes with dwc, buds will be noticeably heavier w/dwc. stem strength depends mainly on plant genetics. some strains need it some dont.

Thanks a lot!

You can get green gardening wire from home depot or wherever to tie up the branches and support the stalk, or use a tomato cage around the plant, or bamboo stakes, etc.

Most of the time if you grow a plant correctly then you will need some type of support. At the end of all my DWC grows my buds have gotten so big that they would of snapped off if not being supported correctly. Best thing to do is support the main stalk with a long steak, then use fishing line to support all branches to the main stalk. This not only helps the buds get better light but it also reduces stress on the plant, therefore making it grow bigger and getter

Thanks for the advice!

can anyone show me ONE picture of someone that required a stake to support the main stem of an indoor dwc plant 4-6ft tall? I've never seen or heard of anyone doing this before so how would it be required? My avatar is dwc... no stakes required.... how would you even support the stake anyways? Those things are for soil bud.

i like silica products, i use dyna gro protekt, and i notice a great difference on stem strength and haven't had problems with bud weight breaking stems

diowk said:

can anyone show me ONE picture of someone that required a stake to support the main stem of an indoor dwc plant 4-6ft tall? I've never seen or heard of anyone doing this before so how would it be required? My avatar is dwc... no stakes required.... how would you even support the stake anyways? Those things are for soil bud.

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I've been having a hard time figuring that out, too. I finally decided to make a screen from PVC pipes and plastic chicken wire to hang from the ceiling of my tent. Whether or not I actually do SOG, the screen will support the plants.

If you put a fan blowing on it the stem will thicken up.

I have 2 plants at the end of flower that fall over at the base if not supported.

If you want an easy low cost way to support your plants/LST try knotting up a simple net out of a nylon clothesline. Costs like $3 at any home store & then just cut it away at harvest time. I like to use it because it's adjustable, flexible, and can be cut away easily if in the way. I use bread ties to train my girls and/or to expose bare spots in the canopy & fill em in.

diowk said:

can anyone show me ONE picture of someone that required a stake to support the main stem of an indoor dwc plant 4-6ft tall? I've never seen or heard of anyone doing this before so how would it be required? My avatar is dwc... no stakes required.... how would you even support the stake anyways? Those things are for soil bud.

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I do it like this myself with another net after this one above for double support. these girls are almost 3 1/2-4ft

I tend to tie my branches up when they need support. There is no real way to stake I've found...

DriftWaffle said:

View attachment 2904595
I do it like this myself with another net after this one above for double support. these girls are almost 3 1/2-4ft

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Driftwaffle got that shit down...same way I do it. Ez.lo cost.no hassle.SCROG I loop it around at the crosses in one direction so you can adjust it later as needed to train certain colas or even out the canopy.

DriftWaffle said:

View attachment 2904595
I do it like this myself with another net after this one above for double support. these girls are almost 3 1/2-4ft

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Out of curiosity how do you change your totes with 2 levels of net secured to the walls?

cyanarnofsky said:

Out of curiosity how do you change your totes with 2 levels of net secured to the walls?

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I have a secondary valve off to the side by pump so can drain out system simply by turning the valve flow off and water gets pumped out line to drain outside

Week 5 of 8 Blueberry

cyanarnofsky said:

Out of curiosity how do you change your totes with 2 levels of net secured to the walls?

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I only use 1 net but changing out nutes is easy using a small aquarium pump... just lift up one corner of tote lid & drop it in. I have a tote for mixing up nutes same size as my res I use for change outs. The net gets adjusted as needed daily.

A few weeks ago one of my plants fell over and I was scrambling around for support. I removed some lower branches and turned a 6" net pot upside down, cut a hole in the middle and along the side and put it around the trunk like a collar. Its working so far to keep the base straight and the branches are supporting themselves.