What Kind Of Artificial Light Do Plants Need

Blue wavelength light for foliage growth.

What kind of artificial light do plants need.

Culinary herbs greens and starter plants can be grown year round with them. To grow strong seedlings the light should be placed close to the tray and raised as the plants grow taller. Interior plants that are not exposed to direct light do not tend to dry out as quickly as their counterparts. Outdoor conditions are mimicked with varying colour temperatures and spectral outputs from the grow light as well as varying the intensity of the lamps depending on the type of plant being cultivated the stage of.

Growing indoor plants for artificial light spaces. Don t be tempted to leave the lights on 24 7 however at least six hours of darkness each day is essential to plant health. Houseplants that need lots of light like cattleya orchids succulents and carnivorous plants also perform much better under these full spectrum lights. Once you ve chosen plants for a windowless room there are some considerations on care.

Furthermore with the artificial lights you don t have a problem if there is cloudy weather because you don t need the sun anymore. The room light alone may be enough for low light plants. The wavelengths in sunlight contain all the colors of the rainbow while artificial light often lacks a few. For plants that do need a little more than ambient light you ll want to have your lamps set up closer to the plants to get that extra intensity.

You need to figure out how bright the light is coming from the bulb. As a general rule provide 14 to 18 hours of artificial light with a few hours of darkness each day. You may need to resort to a water meter to tell when it is time to water the container. When using a bulb type that doesn t generate any heat fluorescent or led you can set up your lights quite close to the plants.

In fact low light foliage plants such as pothos and peace lily can grow quite nicely in windowless offices with enough artificial light. Plants grown indoors require more hours of light than those grown outdoors. Red wavelength light for flowering and fruiting. With starter plants and seedlings place the t8 or t5 bulbs two to four inches from the plants to mimic the sun.

When choosing an artificial light or grow light consider these factors. The main reason why people use artificial light is that it eliminates the need for windows and you don t have to take your indoor plants outside daily. Failing to provide one or the other can weaken plants. Plants need to get a certain amount of light for photosynthesis to occur.

Grow lights either attempt to provide a light spectrum similar to that of the sun or to provide a spectrum that is more tailored to the needs of the plants being cultivated. Plants need both blue and red hues to thrive so you need to make sure any artificial light you provide contains plenty of both. Seedlings and mature plants growing indoors need more hours of light than you may expect.