Growing your own fruits and vegetables has many benefits as you will save money paid on groceries, eat healthier produce, and protect yourself and your family from the harmful chemicals that might be in fruits and vegetables sold in supermarkets. Moreover, gardening is known to be a natural stress reliever. Gardening isn’t hard as some people might think, all you have to do is provide your plants with the needed amount of water, light, and nutrients.
However, not everyone has a space to set up a garden or a backyard to grow plants and provide them with sunlight, but thanks to technology, now you can grow your own produce in your apartment by using grow lights. Grow lights provide a light spectrum similar to the sunlight, and there are different types for different needs of different plants. Read on to learn how to choose the right grow light for your indoor garden.
Choose Your Crops
First, you need to decide what type and the number of crops you want to grow, then, according to that, choose the right type, size, and number of bulbs. Check the color spectrum provided by the lights before buying them to make sure they provide the right spectrum that allows photosynthesis. There is violet-blue light, which promotes the absorption of chlorophyll and photosynthesis, and there is red light, which promotes flowering and budding. The best choice is to purchase LED lights as most of them provide both types of colors.
Choose the Spectrum
There are two types of grow lights spectrums; targeted and full spectrum. Targeted spectrum lights release a specific color, which makes them the best option for some growing stages or specific crops only. However, there are some targeted spectrum lights that have switches to change their colors to suit different stages of plant growth. On the other hand, full-spectrum grow lights are very similar to natural sunlight, and they cover all the stages of plant growth.
Needed Coverage
After measuring the space you plan to use for your indoor garden, you can figure out how many grow lights you need for your home garden. As a general rule, for every square foot, you need from 20-40 watts of coverage. To calculate the lowest square feet area covered by one bulb, read the wattage and divide that number by 20, but if you want to calculate the highest coverage area, divide that number by 40.
Grow Bulbs vs. Lighting Fixtures
People are always indecisive about whether to use grow bulbs or lighting fixtures. The difference between the two is that most people prefer to put grow bulbs in old lamps because it is the cheaper and easier option.
As with light Fixtures, they will cost you money, but they are the best choice as they emit light evenly and on multiple plants. Moreover, light fixtures have a fuller light spectrum because they are specially made for this purpose.
The Type of Bulb
There are 3 types of bulbs; incandescent, fluorescent, and LED. Incandescent grow lights are the cheapest, however, they are not energy efficient. As for fluorescent lights, they are more energy-efficient with a better light spectrum but more expensive than incandescent grow lights. LEDs are the best type of bulb as they have ultra-low heat output, the best light spectrum, and the most efficiency. For more Grow Light Info, you can conveniently surf the internet. There are many useful websites out there to help you choose the right type of bulb that would fit your crops, space, and budget.
Consider Height of Crops & Mobility of Lights
When shopping for grow lights, make sure that the light automatically adjusts to the height of plants as they grow taller because adjusting the light is too hard to do manually. Moreover, when the bulbs get hot, you need to move them away from the plants. Keeping a fair distance between the grow lights, and the crops are vital whether you do it manually or automatically.
Your Budget
To narrow down your list, set a budget for your home garden first. When calculating the budget of grow lights, you need to consider the amount of light needed and the energy costs. Bear in mind that the grow lights will be switched on for about 12 hours a day. However, if your home garden isn’t that big, this shouldn’t be a problem.
Having a home garden can take up a little bit more of your time, but it is very rewarding. Other than the positive energy that plants spread in your house, you will eat fresh produce full of vitamins and without harmful chemicals in it. Moreover, taking care of plants and watching them grow can alleviate stress and boost your mood. Before purchasing grow lights for your little garden, you need to set a budget, choose your crops to choose the right type of bulbs and light spectrum. You might think that indoor garden produce won’t be that much, however, you will be amazed by the number of fresh fruits and veggies this small space can produce.
