Hi growers and stoners
I read the article on Scrogging so thought I would do one on SOG.
Any comments gratefully accepted, but be gentle with me.....
Sea Of Green
The Sea of Green technique, or SOG, originated in the commercial greenhouses and grow rooms of the Netherlands at some time during the 1980s. The reasoning behind it is that you can get more produce in a shorter amount of time by filling your available space with lots of small plants instead of a few large plants.
By keeping plants small and restricting lateral branching you can force plants to grow straight up and form just one cola. The result is like a bud on a stick (budsicles). The buds, when the plants are packed tightly in together, form a continuous canopy (the Sea of Green) which converts light energy to bud in a very efficient way.
There are a couple of requirements before you select your plants for SOG. The first is that this system has been specifically developed for clones. With clones you know that your plants are female, and that they will develop at the same rate. Most growers who use the SOG system have a single, productive mother plant, ensuring all clones in the system are genetic sisters. This will ensure uniformity.
SOG systems do not work as well from seed as the plants are required to flower from a very young age. Cannabis plants from seed have no gender until they are three of four weeks old (they carry the potentiality of having both genders so that they can adapt to environmental conditions, this is why plants hermie under stress).
Another thing to keep in mind is that SOG systems are generally best for indicas. The short stature, quick flowering period and tendency towards single colas with no lateral branching make indicas ideal for this system. If you prefer a sativa type buzz, well there are plenty of hybrids available that give a sativa hit whilst growing with indica growth patterns. The main thing to avoid when selecting your strain is stretch. Unpredictable stretch is the kiss of death to the SOG gardener.
When selecting a mother plant choose a good phenotype with stable characteristics and the traits you desire (yield, vigour, stature, etc) If you can get a donor clone from a known mother then so much the better as the careful selection process will be already done.
Get your mother plant well established in her space. This may take a few months depending on whether she is from clone or seed. The plant will need to be established enough to take lots of cuttings from her. Fimming can help her as it will promote more shoots and as a consequence more potential clones.
You are unlikely to be able to take enough cuttings at once to fill your area. Some growers use two or more genetically identical mothers whilst others use a staggered approach. If you need to stagger your cuttings, take enough to fill maybe a third of your final flowering area. Plant these out into pots, in either soil or hydro, under the same 18/6 lighting as the mother. Repeat every couple of weeks until you have enough clones to fill your flowering area. When calculating how many plants to fit into your SOG system you should work on the basic premise of around 1 plant for every 10”-12” square.
Pot selection is also important. Some people prefer to use square pots as they fill a space more efficiently. This is not really necessary as the amount of light hitting the soil is irrelevant. What is necessary however is that you use pots that are taller than they are wide. Cannabis plants, like other plants, will produce vegetation that will mimic the root structure. Wide shallow roots will provide bushy plants. Long deep roots will provide plants with fewer laterals, pushing their energy upward into cola production.
Once you have taken enough cuttings allow some time for the last ones taken to establish a root structure and become ready for flowering. Because you have staggered the cutting you will have plants at 2 – 4 different stages. In the flowering area you will arrange these so that the taller plants are around the outside with the shorter ones in the middle. The result is that together the growing tips of the plants will form a bowl shape. This will enable you to get your light closer to the canopy and make the most efficient use of light because the plants will all be at around the same distance from the bulb.
OK. You now have enough clones to fill your chosen flowering area to its chosen density. The pots are squeezed in shoulder to shoulder and the lights have been switched to 12/12. The rest is just a question of time. Continue feeding with a good bloom nute and flower your plants until they are ready. Harvest, dry, cure and enjoy in a responsible manner!
I read the article on Scrogging so thought I would do one on SOG.
Any comments gratefully accepted, but be gentle with me.....
Sea Of Green
The Sea of Green technique, or SOG, originated in the commercial greenhouses and grow rooms of the Netherlands at some time during the 1980s. The reasoning behind it is that you can get more produce in a shorter amount of time by filling your available space with lots of small plants instead of a few large plants.
By keeping plants small and restricting lateral branching you can force plants to grow straight up and form just one cola. The result is like a bud on a stick (budsicles). The buds, when the plants are packed tightly in together, form a continuous canopy (the Sea of Green) which converts light energy to bud in a very efficient way.
There are a couple of requirements before you select your plants for SOG. The first is that this system has been specifically developed for clones. With clones you know that your plants are female, and that they will develop at the same rate. Most growers who use the SOG system have a single, productive mother plant, ensuring all clones in the system are genetic sisters. This will ensure uniformity.
SOG systems do not work as well from seed as the plants are required to flower from a very young age. Cannabis plants from seed have no gender until they are three of four weeks old (they carry the potentiality of having both genders so that they can adapt to environmental conditions, this is why plants hermie under stress).
Another thing to keep in mind is that SOG systems are generally best for indicas. The short stature, quick flowering period and tendency towards single colas with no lateral branching make indicas ideal for this system. If you prefer a sativa type buzz, well there are plenty of hybrids available that give a sativa hit whilst growing with indica growth patterns. The main thing to avoid when selecting your strain is stretch. Unpredictable stretch is the kiss of death to the SOG gardener.
When selecting a mother plant choose a good phenotype with stable characteristics and the traits you desire (yield, vigour, stature, etc) If you can get a donor clone from a known mother then so much the better as the careful selection process will be already done.
Get your mother plant well established in her space. This may take a few months depending on whether she is from clone or seed. The plant will need to be established enough to take lots of cuttings from her. Fimming can help her as it will promote more shoots and as a consequence more potential clones.
You are unlikely to be able to take enough cuttings at once to fill your area. Some growers use two or more genetically identical mothers whilst others use a staggered approach. If you need to stagger your cuttings, take enough to fill maybe a third of your final flowering area. Plant these out into pots, in either soil or hydro, under the same 18/6 lighting as the mother. Repeat every couple of weeks until you have enough clones to fill your flowering area. When calculating how many plants to fit into your SOG system you should work on the basic premise of around 1 plant for every 10”-12” square.
Pot selection is also important. Some people prefer to use square pots as they fill a space more efficiently. This is not really necessary as the amount of light hitting the soil is irrelevant. What is necessary however is that you use pots that are taller than they are wide. Cannabis plants, like other plants, will produce vegetation that will mimic the root structure. Wide shallow roots will provide bushy plants. Long deep roots will provide plants with fewer laterals, pushing their energy upward into cola production.
Once you have taken enough cuttings allow some time for the last ones taken to establish a root structure and become ready for flowering. Because you have staggered the cutting you will have plants at 2 – 4 different stages. In the flowering area you will arrange these so that the taller plants are around the outside with the shorter ones in the middle. The result is that together the growing tips of the plants will form a bowl shape. This will enable you to get your light closer to the canopy and make the most efficient use of light because the plants will all be at around the same distance from the bulb.
OK. You now have enough clones to fill your chosen flowering area to its chosen density. The pots are squeezed in shoulder to shoulder and the lights have been switched to 12/12. The rest is just a question of time. Continue feeding with a good bloom nute and flower your plants until they are ready. Harvest, dry, cure and enjoy in a responsible manner!
Comment