Well, you must have heard about LED strip grow lights if you have a garden or plants at your home. If you haven’t, here are the basics about it. Grow lights are primarily LEDs or electric lights which help in the growth of plants by providing a light spectrum, which is much similar to the sun. Generally, places, where people are in a hurry to grow plants for various reasons, have these grow lights.
Other than that, grow lights are also used for the welfare of plants, especially during the rainy and winter season, when the effects of sunlight are not seen to a great extent. Well in this regard, grow lights are generally seen in gardens where the space is huge, and the settings of those lights are done with ease, and effectively. However, people also keep plants inside their houses, which are mostly seen on the balconies, or any related places.
Individuals who place their plants inside their house face a major problem when the sunlight doesn’t reach their plant appropriately, as large buildings and apartments cover the area, blocking the sunlight. Well, at that time, these grow lights are the perfect replacement. However, some people are not much aware of these, and how they work. Hence, in this article, we’ll discuss the detailed process of using grow lights on indoor plants. Before, moving forward you can also check out this article to get a detailed view of the same.
Choosing a Grow Light
The first thing you need to apply to grow lights in your indoor plants is to choose a suitable one first. Here is the main work that people need to do, as they can’t decide whether to choose an existing light with special grow bulbs or go for a brand new fixture with built-in lighting. Well, this solely depends on budget, convenience, and what type of quality you prefer. The difference between grow light bulbs and grow light fixtures is that the former is cheaper and the latter is expensive. But growing light fixtures are more effective and help your plant to grow faster.
Which light color to choose?
Well, some people often ask which color would be best for their plants, which one will suit whom, etc. The expert’s recommendation goes to the violet-blue light color having a nanometer range of 400 to 520 which also encourages chlorophyll absorption, helps in the photosynthesis of the plants, and eventually grows. In case, this light is not available you can also buy a red light with a 610 to 720 spectrum range which promotes budding and flowering.
Before buying any particular color, users should remember that they should buy a grow light that can provide a proper spectrum of light, by which photosynthesis can be done properly, which is the significant reason for plant growth. Make sure that the one you’re buying has the provided color spectrum. The lights which administer full spectrum are a perfect choice for your plants. You’ll find most of the LED grow lights offering both types of the color spectrum, and you can derive all the benefits eventually.
Set up your Indoor Plant Growing Area
If you have two-three plants at your home, you can easily set them up on your balcony, and circle a grow light around them. However, in case you are planning to have a mini garden, here are some tips you need to remember –
- First, consider your indoor garden plot, i.e., where you want to make it. It can be your basement area, any small single shelf, or an entire room. Pot the plants accordingly, one by one, and also make sure to do the beddings.
- Depending on the size of the plants which you place in your area, keep a gap of at least 4 to 8 inches in trays or pots, so your plants can grow freely without getting obstructed by each other.
- Now depending on the size of your garden plot, one grow light might be enough, or you can also need many of them. Place them accordingly, so that the plants get full access to the light.
How to Place the Grow Lights
It would be best if you keep the grow lights hanging above your plants. It would be an ideal mimic of the natural sunlight, which provides light to the plants in the same way. Note that, if you have bought an incandescent grow light bulb, then place it over 24 inches of your plants. And in case, you have bought fluorescent or LED lights, then keep them a bit lower, around 12 to 6 inches over your plants respectively.
Also, remember that the lighting level that the plants require to grow gradually can depend upon their specific characteristics. Like it depends on what plant you want to grow at your home, as considering them the lights sets, and height can change. The aforementioned positions were maintained on a general basis.
How long should the grow lights glow on the plants?
On a general rule, most of the flowering and vegetable plans require a minimum of 12 to 16 hours of light every day, with their former ones requiring the top end of this range. But as said before, these timings can alter depending on what type of plant you want to grow. You need to research properly on that plant, and then take the necessary steps.
In addition to that, don’t forget to keep your plant inside darkness for at least 8 hours a day. Darkness is one of the most important things in the plant growth cycle. Daytime sees the plants securing sunlight, producing energy via photosynthesis, and at night, they break this energy down for their growth and to continue the process of flowering via respiration.
Overall, using LED strip grow lights to make your indoor garden is one of the wonderful things you can do. Not only does it offer you stunning beauty, but a small garden at home, also helps people to find the peace, they desire, and with the help of the grow lights, you can absolutely achieve the same.