Plants need optimal conditions for them to grow. Moisture, warmth and oxygen are the conditions required for a seed to germinate. However, in the later stages of growth, a lot more is needed for a plant to thrive. However, if you live in an area where the conditions are not optimal for plant growth to occur, this does not mean that you cannot have your small garden or even do large scale farming to supplement your income. This is all thanks to technological advancements. From your high school science, you probably know that photosynthesis cannot occur without light. You might be living in an area where you do not get much natural sunlight, and you therefore need a substitute for it. Also, during winter, there might not be enough sunlight for your plants’ needs. Additionally, if you want to have a small garden indoors, the plants will not be exposed to sunlight, and they might therefore not grow well. Grow lights really come in handy in such situations. Below are some of the benefits of using grow lights.
Benefits
- With artificial lighting, it is easy to control the plants’ life cycle. This is because you can control the intensity of light delivered to the plants.
- You can still grow your plants even in the absence of natural sunlight, so your plants can still thrive during winter when the daylight hours are shorter.
- You can grow your plants indoors. This is great if you have limited space, for example, if you live in an apartment where you have no space outdoors to do your gardening.
- It is possible to control temperatures in a grow room. You can therefore maintain the temperature at a level that is optimal for the plants’ growth.
Some tips to help your plants thrive
- Keep your plants as close to the source of light as possible. This will help to improve the quality of the yield. However, make sure that the light source does not touch the plants as this can be detrimental to the health of the plants.
- Get lights that are sufficient for the size of your garden. If you have a big garden, you will need more lights than if you have a small garden. Experts recommend having a voltage of about 20 watts for each square foot.
- Grow lights emit less heat than other lighting methods. So your plants will need less water than they would if you were growing them in natural light.
- You need to ensure that the lights are not emitting too much heat as this can affect the plants. Place your hand under the lights to test how hot they are. If they are too hot for you, they are probably also too hot for the plants. Move them up a bit higher to reduce the heat.
For the best results, make sure you buy high-quality grow lights such as those recommended by Green Depot Denver. You should also use them in the recommended way in order to get optimal yield.
Hi Emily,
Interesting read. Your post gives good information about artificial lights.
Thanks for sharing this post. Have a good day. 🙂