Just got my first bonsai, have some questions!

Bumps

Seedling
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Hi everyone,

Just got my first bonsai, all tropical trees, and am thinking about buying this grow light for them. I am afraid that my trees won't get enough light by the window and have a few questions about grow lights.

1. How long should I have the light on each day?

2. Should I hang the grow light above where the trees currently are, so that they get the natural sunlight as well as the artificial light? Or should I move them away from the window and hang the light there?

3. Do I need to adjust the light to certain settings? I can't find any good information online about this?

Thank you!
 

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Carol 83

Flower Girl
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I'll let someone more knowledgeable comment on the quality of the light. My trees get some natural sunlight, as well as supplemental lighting. I think most do 18 hours on, 6 hours off for the lights. Hard to tell from your picture, what kind of trees do you have?
 

Bumps

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I'll let someone more knowledgeable comment on the quality of the light. My trees get some natural sunlight, as well as supplemental lighting. I think most do 18 hours on, 6 hours off for the lights. Hard to tell from your picture, what kind of trees do you have?

Tiger Bark Ficus
Natal Plum
Ficus b. "Nina" (Drwaf varigated Ficus)
Serrisa Japonica (Star of Thousands)
 

Carol 83

Flower Girl
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Tiger Bark Ficus
Natal Plum
Ficus b. "Nina" (Drwaf varigated Ficus)
Serrisa Japonica (Star of Thousands)
Nice, I think Natal Plum is such a good choice and underutilized . Mine grow like crazy under the lights and the flowers smell wonderful. The ficus are great starter tropicals as well. The serissa can be challenging. Welcome to B-nut!
 

Bumps

Seedling
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Is that large garden/lawn out the window not yours?
It is. No garden just a large backyard. I was told these trees are all tropical and cannot be outside during this time of year.
 

Leo in N E Illinois

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normally I run my lights 18 hours per day. Longer day length to a large degree makes up for lower light intensity. The LED panel should be hung as low as possible to the foliage, but high enough that all your trees are in the "cone" of light. Too high, the intensity of the light drops off with the square of the distance. A light at 4 foot above the trees, will be 1/16 the intensity of the same light at 1 foot over the trees. So closer to the tops is better, but you want to get the tops of all your trees in the zone of light.
 

Bumps

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normally I run my lights 18 hours per day. Longer day length to a large degree makes up for lower light intensity. The LED panel should be hung as low as possible to the foliage, but high enough that all your trees are in the "cone" of light. Too high, the intensity of the light drops off with the square of the distance. A light at 4 foot above the trees, will be 1/16 the intensity of the same light at 1 foot over the trees. So closer to the tops is better, but you want to get the tops of all your trees in the zone of light.
I was speaking to the owner of the company and he recommended 2 feet above the trees to cover 4-6 trees per light.
 

Lutonian

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Just a quick tip if you use the room as a lounge or spend a lot of time there the LED light kind hurts my eyes and are an annoying colour best to use white colour T5 type bulb. if you are not in this room often it wont matter the colour of the light.

There are lot of options for lighting each has its merits and demerits
 

Michael P

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Lighting for bonsai is a lot like lighting for planted aquaria, except bonsai need more. Strict "grow lights" are very high in the red and blue parts of the spectrum. This gives a purple light that plants love but looks unnatural and annoying to the human eye.

The color appearance (or temperature) of light is measured in degrees Kelvin (K). 6,000-8,000 K looks like natural sunlight at midday, and is the color most people prefer for viewing an aquarium or house plants. So if appearance is important, look for a fixture that has a combined color "temperature" in that range. You can get this from fluorescent, metal halide, or LED fixtures. Because of their efficiency and low operating temperature, LEDs have become the standard.

I can't tell what the combined K of this fixture is from the pictures you posted. The manufacturer should provide this information, as well as the photosynthetically active radiation rating (PAR). If they won't tell, don't buy the light.
 
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Bumps

Seedling
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Lighting for bonsai is a lot like lighting for planted aquaria, except bonsai need more. Strict "grow lights" are very high in the red and blue parts of the spectrum. This gives a purple light that plants love but looks unnatural and annoying to the human eye.

The color appearance (or temperature) of light is measured in degrees Kelvin (K). 6,000-8,000 K looks like natural sunlight at midday, and is the color most people prefer for viewing an aquarium or house plants. So if appearance is important, look for a fixture that has a combined color "temperature" in that range. You can get this from fluorescent, metal halide, or LED fixtures. Because of their efficiency and low operating temperature, LEDs have become the standard.

I can't tell what the combined K of this fixture is from the pictures you posted. The manufacturer should provide this information, as well as the photosynthetically active radiation rating (PAR). If they won't tell, don't buy the light.

Thanks for the reply @Michael P I just asked and will report back once I get an answer. All he has told me so far is that these will work really well for bonsai and told me to hang the light 24 inches about the plants in order to cover 4-6 plants
 
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