Grow Lights Make Your Plants Grow!

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The Necessity of Night and Day

Replacing the sun in your indoor garden is important to growing strong, healthy plants.

Many newcomers to indoor growing might not understand that grow lights also must mimic the hours of the night. Plants are a lot more intelligent than many people would think. Every little action a plant takes happens in accordance to the sun. To do well at growing plants indoors, you should be aware of the necessity of night and day to your crop.

You create seasons as well as night and day with your grow lights.

Plants work at a slow pace in the early part of the growing season. The days are shorter and there are less hours of sunlight in the spring. There must be enough daylight hours for seeds to sprout or the arousal from dormancy outdoors. Plants put out more leaves and roots as the days lengthen into summer. They prepare to set flower to fruit or set seed as the days grow longer.  Having done their job in creating seed to ensure their procreation, when the days begin to shorten again plants prepare to go dormant again. The sun is their clock and all activity is scheduled by how long it shines in the sky.

At the height of the growing season outdoors, there is 12 – 16 hours of sunlight.

This means that you should be giving your indoor garden at least 12 hours of daylight with your grow lights. The purpose of shutting down your growing lights has far more meaning than just saving electricity. If the cost were not an issue, you would still need to give your indoor garden at least 8 hours of darkness. Plants that have no time to rest will not be healthy. For more information about this and more, ask your local hydroponics store.

Why Grow Light Height is Important

Anyone who has tried starting seeds in front of a sunny window is an eye witness to what plants do when their light source is too week. Just having a grow light is not the full secret to successful indoor gardening. It does tell them to stretch up and not sideways, but the type of grow light and the intensity makes your height over top the plants variable.

The little grow lights you can buy at any discount store are not effective for more than one plant. Real grow lights are much hotter and far superior illumination. When your light is too dim or too far above the plants, they will stretch out thin seeking the sun. Different types of plants bask in the amount of light they prefer outdoors as well as they do in your indoor garden.

Growing hostas outdoors fully exposed the hot afternoon sun, the heat and intensity burns the leaves. The same thing can happen in your indoor garden. Plants that are too close to the grow lights can actually get sunburned leaves. As your plants grow, you must raise the lights higher above the growing table. It helps to know more about the type of grow light you have chosen and the needs of the plants you are growing, for example HPS or LED grow lights.

Even plants that adore baking in all day sun outdoors can get burned foliage on the top leaves if your grow lights are too close to them. Mixing plants with different lighting needs under one lighting ballast will require you to know how close any of them should be to your grow lights. If you have the plants and light situated right and the intensity of illumination still isn’t giving you excellent results, you need to learn about light reflection.

Light Reflection Maximizes Indoor Gardening

Plants instinctively reach up for the sun when grown outdoors. The plants you grow in your indoor garden also reach for your growing lights. While your lighting mimics the sun, it cannot replace the never ending sky that creates illumination all around the sides of the plants as well. In contrast, your indoor garden is dark past the tops of the plants directly under the grow light ballast. This is the reason that growing tents are lined with reflective material, to maximize the lighting on all sides of the plants.

You can create a lot more evenly cast, beneficial illumination by surrounding your indoor garden with white surfaces. This increases the amount of useable light your grow lights make available to your plants by a great deal. Some people have the indoor gardens in rooms white glossy white walls to help distribute the grow light’s rays in all the places their plants need light. Healthier, far more robust plants is the results of the surrounding them with light reflecting surfaces.

If you are just starting to try out indoor gardening or getting some vegetable and flower seeds going, an indoor growing tent can seem very high priced. There are solutions that are inexpensive. Some people have used high gloss white painted plywood sections fastened together with hinges and hasps. Others have good results with white shower liners rigged up around their growing table. You can even get shimmering silver toned plastic tarps at major big discount hardware and building stores. With a little home engineering, all three of these can work well maximizing your growing lights.

When you’re new to this hobby of growing flowering and edible plants indoors, you don’t understand the need create better illumination. You don’t necessarily need more lights but the addition of reflection to better mimic the sun and sky. The difference will be very astounding. Bouncing back the rays from the grow lights will increase your yield of foliage, blooms or fruits and vegetables.

Hydroponic Gardening the Organic Way with Grow Lights

Organic gardening is becoming pretty popular in this day and age and it seems like the right way to go. When you are thinking about organic gardening, do you ever think about the methods you will be utilizing on that organic garden? If you do not have any techniques, then the bacteria and pests may take over that garden in no time. True organic gardening is impossible without that rich, lovely soil, right? Wrong. If you are a organic gardener, or you are interested in organic gardening, then this article is for you. Within this article, we are going to tell you how to grow that organic garden you have always wanted, without using any soil. We know it sounds impossible, but continue reading.

Hydroponic gardening is every organic gardeners dream. Before you go looking up hydroponic gardening in the dictionary, it is simply gardening using no soil. The plants in the garden will by relying on water to give them the nutrients they need in order to promote their growth. In many cases, plants who are growing the hydroponic way are more healthy then those plants who have their roots stuck in soil. You can even do this indoor with grow lights.

In organic hydroponic gardening, the main growing medium can be obtained from any source of organic material. For instance, in hydroponic gardening, perlite and Vermiculite are generally used. Please note: Always be careful when you are using Vermiculite because it’s actually a source of asbestos. Some other organic material that would make great choices for the gardener are cotton, straw, plant fiber or any other type of organic material you can think of.

In order to provide nutrients to the plant, keep in mind that the water is essential. Anything you put in the water should be organic in order to stay with those organic standards. In organic hydroponic gardening, many individuals use compost tea. You can use compost tea by soaking it in the water, then straining the solid material. When you do this, the water is going to be enriched with nutrients and the plants will feed on it. Another thing individuals use in organic hydroponic gardening consists of manure tea. This is a great source of bacterial contamination, therefore the manure should be sterilized before you make manure tea.

Some more organic choices are fish emulsion and seaweed. What you use in your organic garden is solely up to you, but be sure you stick with those organic standards.

LED grow lights

Plants know what they want from bonafide sunshine.

Every spectrum of light they require to perform each task necessary is present in nature. Indoor gardening is completely different. You must depend on your grow lights to substitute the spectrums your crop needs to not only thrive but to perform at optimum levels. Inside your grow room, you need to offer your plants pseudo sunshine psychology.

Your improvised sunlight must be effective and economical.

Traditional HID grow lights are expensive to purchase and an astronomical energy eating form of sunshine. Green living and growing go hand in hand. You want safer food to eat at the same time as you are trying to lessen your carbon footprint. Both must be done at a price that is affordable for you to maintain.

Owning grow lights is one thing.

The price of your grow lights is just the beginning of the out of pocket costs. Keeping them running and the electrical bill paid in full is another. Lighting for any purpose isn’t inexpensive and grow lights can really run up a hefty purchase ticket total. You want the best harvest for the least amount of money invested. While you are researching how much grow light fixtures cost, you should also be recording the output of useable spectrum.

Your plants do not use all of the light spectrums provided by HID lamps.

In essence, you are paying for wasted lumen wattage, and a lot of excess cooling used to maintain your pseudo sun brilliance. LED lighting is the grow light choice of the future. It uses 80% less electricity and emits exactly the spectrum your crop needs at each step of its life.

• Blue for stem and foliage growth
• Orange for fruit production
• Red for flowering

LED lights remain cool and keeping temperatures from excess in your grow tent.

And LED light fixture with 90 watts actually exceeds the growing light output of a 400-watt metal halide or HPS lamp. Additionally, the diodes in and LED grow light fixture can last for up to 100,000 hours. That’s over 5,550 consecutive 18-hour days.

Can your grow lamp bulb last for over 15 years of never ending 18-hour days?

LED grow light fixtures are not cheap. It is not just the cost of the equipment purchase you should be calculating in your budget for indoor gardening. If your grow room lights cost you $20 a month to run with traditional lamps, It means lessening just the light expenditure by $16 a month. Plus the cost of reducing the lamp inflated temperature in your indoor garden.

Fans are not free to operate to maintain the grow room temps just right.

The added cost of cooling will greatly depend on the size of your lights and the size of your hydroponic growing space. Using an average ratio, your exhaust fans are using $5 about per month to get rid of the heat created by your old technology lamps. LED lights are 90% cooler to operate. This would reduce your energy usage by another $4 per month.

You can be a greener indoor gardener as well as one with a lower cost of growing.

Making less of a carbon footprint is important. Saving money is necessary. If your current lighting is running you a maintenance cost of $25 a month for power, an LED grow light fixture system could save you $20 a month. That’s $240 a year and you won’t have to replace any bulbs for at least 15 years.

Money to startup versus cash to continue is important.

Greenbacks are not as green as the planet should be. Wasting money is not wise, no matter how you look at the scenario. LED lights cost more up front and offer you far more green for the long haul.

Hydroponics Has Tons of Benefits

You may not realize this, but hydroponic gardening is something that any individuals do not think about, let alone even know it exists. Hydroponic gardening used to be thought of as something that the general public would not be able to do. In this day and age, many individuals are starting to experiment with this type of gardening as it is a very effective method of gardening. Compared to the traditional methods of gardening, there are many benefits when it comes to hydroponic gardening. These benefits include everything from using small amounts of resources to food tasting better. Within this article, we are going to tell you about some of the key benefits from hydroponic gardening.

Have you ever stopping to think about the amount of space it is taking you to do your gardening? In order to do hydroponic gardening, you are not going to need much space and you will not need soil to do your gardening. This type of gardening will allow many individuals to have a great, high quality garden right inside their home. Since you are able to grow inside, this means you will be able to harvest plants throughout the year, even during the winter season when plants can’t grow outside.

Since the plants do not require soil, the individual will no longer have to dig in their garden and worry about those pesky weeds. This means you will not have to care for your plants as much. The majority of pests that attack your plants are not going to be present because they are inside and have no soil, so this means you will not need many pesticides. For an individual who is looking for a good way to organically grow, hydroponics is defiantly the way to go.

With hydroponics, you will see the plants yielding a larger crop. You will be using a nutrient rich solution when you grow the plants and this will cause the plants to grow faster. These plants will be producing up to three times more vegetables than normal plants you grow in the soil outside.

HydroFarm Grow Lights

Indoor gardening tools can be obtained with HydroFarm grow lights.  Any plant can be grown, anywhere and anytime you choose.  HydroFarm is the nation’s oldest and largest manufacturer of hydroponics equipment and grow lights.  They only sell to retailers and by searching the Internet, you are able to find a dealer close to you.  HydroFarm is based in Petaluma, California but has numerous distribution centers throughout the United States.

Lighting is critical when it comes to growing a garden indoors.  A single HydroFarm high intensity light can emit over 100,000 lumens which is good for at least six feet of effective light penetration.  Greater light coverage is maintained by a single light due to the height placed above the plants.  Fluorescents just cannot deliver strong light needed for plants taller than eight inches since they put out about approximately 5,000 lumens of light energy which covers less than a foot of penetration.

Growers favor halide and sodium grow lights.  The halides emit a full and complete blue/white light spectrum.  The sodium lights are compared with the golden hue of an autumn sunset, predominately in the yellow/orange and red spectrum and enhance flowering in many crops.  Halides are selected by most home gardeners due to their more balanced and comfortable light spectrum.

A HydroFarm intensity grow light can be hung with a simple ceiling hook by inserting the hangers provided.  This fixture weighs less than a typical hanging plant.  These systems are pre-wired and ready to plug into any standard home outlet.

Because of the horizontal reflectors, all the light is directed down to the plants and the intense light provided is due to the sideway mounting of the bulb.  HydroFarm high intensity lights are made for home use and it is the only complete line of grow light systems that is UL listed.  A tempered glass safety lens is required to protect the bulb.

In addition to growing light bulbs for hydroponic gardening, HydroFarm has available books, accessories, videos, nutrients and additives, seed starting, cloning, indoor greenhouses, pots and containers, plant care, fans, blowers and filters.  Anything you will need to be successful in your hydroponic gardening efforts can be located at the HydroFarm nearest you.

Hydroponics Lighting – Red/Orange Spectrum versus Blue Spectrum

Introduction

When it comes to your hydroponic project, by now you probably already know that the lights you have on your plants are going to determine your success with your hydroponic garden. Many of the hydroponic gardens are located inside, out of the sunlight. This means they will be needing some type of artificial sunlight. When it comes to your plants, you might be tempted to use those incandescent lamps and bulbs for your artificial sunlight, but the truth is they are not going to provide enough of the light that your plants are needing in order to grow. The plants that are in your hydroponic garden are in need of full spectrum lighting that acts like the sunlight. Specific hydroponics garden types will also be in need of specific types of lighting.

Lighting for Vegetables

Many individuals that are looking to create a hydroponic garden will be faced with tons of lighting they could use. If you plan on growing vegetables by using the hydroponic method, then you may want to use the blue spectrum lights, because they work better when growing vegetables. Blue spectrum light is a cooler type of light. The most popular type of blue light is the Metal Halide lights.

Lighting for Flowering Plants

When it comes to the flowering plants you will be using the hydroponic method to grow, you will be using the red-orange light because they grow best with these lights. The red-orange light is the HPS (high pressure sodium light).

Best Lighting Choices

When it comes to leafy plants, blue spectrum lights are a great choice. Those leafy plants include Radish, Collard, and Lettuce. Also, you should keep the plant in a nice, compact area. When it comes to hydroponic gardening, the plants can get leggy as they are looking for light, blue light will help to fight this. For a primary light source, blue spectrum light is the best type of light.

The normal Metal Halide light you can find will put out about ten thousand great hours of light that is good. After those ten thousand hours, it will start to produce less and less light. They can put out 175 watts to 1000 watts and above. When you are choosing the wattage output of your lights, it is all going to depend on the size of your hydroponic system. High Pressure Sodium lights that produce orange-red spectrum will last for about eighteen thousand hours of use. This lighting is best for the flowering plants like iris and paper whites. The orange-red light will be stimulating the hormones of the plants, which means there will be more flowers on the plant. You should be careful when you are placing a young plant under this type of light, because it could actually grow too fast, then it will get think and lanky. This is because the plant was lacking blue spectrum light.

Both Lighting Together Is the Best

In the end, we must say the best way to use your hydroponics system seems to be through both the blue and red-orange light. This technique will keep the plants flowering and compact.

Botanicare Nutrients are Available Anywhere

For the most complete line of organics and bio-organic products, the Botanicare series is available for container gardens as well as soil-less hydroponics gardening applications. Gardeners are able to achieve outstanding growth rates and produce enormous yields. The nutritional values in fruits, vegetables, and herbs are enhanced when using the series that Botanicare nutrients offer.

Botanicare

If you are serious about gardening, you may want to know answers to these questions…

• What is the most ideal pH? Between 5.8 and 6.2
• Can I use grow lights together with the fertilizers? Yes you can use fertilizers together with grow lights.
• Which American Agritech product is completely organic? These include Liquid Karma, Pureblend, Pureblend Pro, Clearex and Activit.
• Can I use humic or fulvic acid with Liquid Karma or Pure Blend Pro? No.  It is already available in Liquid Karma and Pure Blend Pro
• What is the ideal water temperature? Between 68 and 72 degrees F.
• Can I use hydrogen peroxide with Pure Blend Pro or Liquid Karma? No.  Hydrogen peroxide will kill off the beneficial microorganisms present in Pure Blend Pro and Liquid Karma
• What is the difference between Power Series and the Pure Blend Pro line? Pure Blend Pro is organic and Power Series is bio-organic with a combination of organic additives and inorganic salts.
• When should I use Cal-Mag? Cal-Mag can be used all the way from the vegetative stage to the fruiting and flowering stages.
• How often should I change my reservoir water? Every few weeks.
• Can I leave an aeroponics system running all the time or should I use a timer? That is optional.  If a cycle timer is used, one minute on, four minutes off is ideal.

Bontanicare series is the most extensive line of premium garden products.  The future in water gardening commands the latest advancements in horticultural technology developed byBotanicare as it is the leader in the international marketplace.  Their dedication to research and the development of unique products allows this highly specialized industry to thrive competitively against other markets with like products.