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Q : Last spring I had lots of luck start seed ofcoleus , impatiens , zinnias , marigolds , and vinca with just one fluorescent ignitor . I want to add together more this yr , and I ’d like to have it away which light are best.-Kristin Fahey , Akron , Ohio
A : Stick with average fluorescent lights . They are readily available , fairly priced , and work well for seedling . Combining a “ warm ” ashen subway with a “ cool ” white in the same regular will give the same results as a pair of extra “ grow lights . ” The best are probably 4 - foot - long shop lights . Since scant intensity is reduced at each end of any fluorescent tube , longer tubes loosely give you more utile light per ft . I advocate the 4 - metrical unit units because , given their widespread use in workshop and garages , they are usually a well buy than longer ones ( indeed , they ’re often on cut-rate sale in ironware stores and home center field ) . Each unit of measurement support a distich of tubes and will illuminate a growing area about 8 inches wide . Keep the lights just 2 or 3 inch above the tops of the seedlings , and pass on them on for 16 hours each day . When fluorescent are further away , the energy reaching the plant life is reduced , and the seedlings will stretch toward the luminousness and become weak - stem . The need to raise the lights as the seedlings get often guide nurseryman to advert their semen - starting lights with chains ; they move the Ernst Boris Chain a link or two to make small adjustment . The main reward of the fluorescent light stands sold in garden catalog is that they make it even easier to adjust the peak of the light fastness .
Over time , the energy a fluorescent underground delivers to plants throw off importantly , long before you could find a seeable decrease in light . A in force dominion of pollex is to replace your seedling lights after 12 to 18 month of service . They ’ll still have fate of biography leave for other manipulation around your dwelling , and your seedling will grow well with tonic fluorescent tubes . Once seedlings contact a height of 8 inches , it ’s difficult to keep them growing well under fluorescent . The lower leaves become hide from the lights and thus ca n’t get enough energy . But with most annual , there ’s no need to wait that long before act them out of doors . Four to eight calendar week of develop ( after the first leaves come along ) is plenty for nearly all annual flower and vegetables . If you desire to alternate a few more weeks onto your seed - starting effort , the best scheme is to build a cold frame ( an unheated bottomless box with a transparent adjustable lid ) . With a frame , plants can go out of doors at least two weeks before it ’s warm enough to set them in open ground . And it ’s the pure place to help them adapt to the vivid illumination of full sunshine .
To learn more about growing under light , we recommendGardening Under Lights : The Complete Guide for Indoor Growers , by Leslie Halleck .
