# HST

> HST (high-stress training) covers training methods that deliberately cut, crush or break plant tissue, such as topping, FIM and supercropping, to reshape growth.

- Canonical: https://genetixbay.com/knowledge/glossary/hst.html
- Also written: high-stress training, high stress training, high stress techniques
- Glossary category: Cultivation and training · Evidence: Grower practice
- Status: Draft: awaiting expert review · Updated: 2026-10-31
- Licence: CC BY-SA 4.0 (https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0/), attribute "GenetixBay cannabis glossary"

High-stress training is an umbrella term for techniques that wound the plant on purpose: removing [growing tips](https://genetixbay.com/knowledge/glossary/apical-meristem.md) (topping, [FIM](https://genetixbay.com/knowledge/glossary/fim.md)), crushing and bending stems ([supercropping](https://genetixbay.com/knowledge/glossary/supercropping.md)), or heavy pruning. The wound redirects hormones and growth, but the plant needs time to recover, usually a few days to a week per event.

## In practice

HST is done in veg, or in the first week or two of flower for supercropping, on healthy, well-rooted plants. Space events out and never stack several at once on a stressed plant. [Photoperiod plants](https://genetixbay.com/knowledge/glossary/photoperiod.md) tolerate HST well because veg can simply be extended. [Autoflowers](https://genetixbay.com/knowledge/glossary/autoflower.md) do not, because they cannot buy back lost days; [LST](https://genetixbay.com/knowledge/glossary/lst.md) is the better tool for them.

## Myth check

House position: stem snapping (supercropping) gives better buds, and the founder does it all the time. This is grower practice, house-endorsed; controlled trials are lacking. Stress does not reliably raise potency, and stress beyond what the plant can recover from costs yield. See [HST and supercropping](https://genetixbay.com/knowledge/training/hst-supercropping.md).

## Don't confuse with

- **LST**: bending without wounding.
- **Stress (environmental)**: heat, drought or [light stress](https://genetixbay.com/knowledge/glossary/light-stress.md); HST is mechanical.

## Related terms

[LST](https://genetixbay.com/knowledge/glossary/lst.md), [Topping](https://genetixbay.com/knowledge/glossary/topping.md), [FIM](https://genetixbay.com/knowledge/glossary/fim.md), [Supercropping](https://genetixbay.com/knowledge/glossary/supercropping.md), [Monster cropping](https://genetixbay.com/knowledge/glossary/monster-cropping.md)

## Read more

- [HST and supercropping: controlled stem crushing](https://genetixbay.com/knowledge/training/hst-supercropping.md)