Light stand

Phillthy

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i went to Home Depot and bought a fluorescent lights for “plants and aquarium” I hooked everything up and the light gives off a red hue. I’ve read that the red hue is usually used for flowering. Will the red hue help it grow more foliage?
 

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Paradox

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You dont need special plant bulbs. Full spectrum bulbs work fine and they are cheaper usually.
I use regular daylight bulbs (full spectrum) on my lights and my trops grow all winter for me.

June 2015_small.jpg
 

coltranem

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I have an led grow light setup for vegetables and the lights have purple hue but seem to work fine. My convern would be getting those lights closer to the foliage. At least with vegetables you want fluorescent bulbs with 6-8 inches of the foliage. Some reflectors might help too.
 

Phillthy

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@Paradox this is my other setup. It’s regular fluorescent lights. And closer to the trees.
Will I have better winter growth if I change the lights on my Fukien tea to regular lights?
 

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Stickroot

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You dont need special plant bulbs. Full spectrum bulbs work fine and they are cheaper usually.
I use regular daylight bulbs (full spectrum) on my lights and my trops grow all winter for me.

View attachment 163881
Some people want to do more than just get by. You can watch nothing happen all winter or your plants can thrive all winter.
I like to thrive!
image.jpeg image.jpeg image.jpeg And even in this bulb you can spend $60 or you can spend $130, makes a huge difference.
 

Redwood Ryan

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The lights need to get a whole lot closer in order to do anything. They can literally touch the leaves of the trees without any issues, since those are T8 bulbs. T5 will burn treetops, T8 are cool to the touch.
 

Phillthy

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If I put the lights closer to the tree the long shoots would go past the light bulbs. Would that hinder the growth of the shoots?
 

coltranem

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Yes..but the way you have it now it will hinder the rest of the growth and only give light to the tips of those shoots. You'd need much stronger lights to cover all the foliage.
 

Paradox

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Some people want to do more than just get by. You can watch nothing happen all winter or your plants can thrive all winter.
I like to thrive!

My trees to more than "just get by". ALL of my trees put on growth during the winter. I have to prune my BRT every month or so under my lights. I put BRT, willow leaf ficus and tiger bark ficus under my system.

My ficus also put on growth. I grew a willow leaf ficus from a 0.25 inch trunk to about 1.5-2 inches at the base spending most of the last 3 years under those lights.
I had one summer that I could not put my trees outside and they spent 18, months under those lights and grew the entire time.

In my definition that is thriving, not "just getting by"

I paid for my entire light setup for what two of those bulbs go for. I also imagine they throw off a lot of heat. My trees already burn themselves on my bulbs when they grow too much into it and they already add enough heat to the room. Those would incinerate them. No thanks.
 

Stickroot

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My trees to more than "just get by". ALL of my trees put on growth during the winter. I have to prune my BRT every month or so under my lights. I put BRT, willow leaf ficus and tiger bark ficus under my system.

My ficus also put on growth. I grew a willow leaf ficus from a 0.25 inch trunk to about 1.5-2 inches at the base spending most of the last 3 years under those lights.
I had one summer that I could not put my trees outside and they spent 18, months under those lights and grew the entire time.

In my definition that is thriving, not "just getting by"

I paid for my entire light setup for what two of those bulbs go for. I also imagine they throw off a lot of heat. My trees already burn themselves on my bulbs when they grow too much into it and they already add enough heat to the room. Those would incinerate them. No thanks.
Yeah you gotta have the proper hoods and ventilation for these high quality lights, they are not for the faint of heart :p
 

Paradox

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@Paradox this is my other setup. It’s regular fluorescent lights. And closer to the trees.
Will I have better winter growth if I change the lights on my Fukien tea to regular lights?

What are the specs on those lights and how many bulbs per fixture?
 

Stickroot

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A 1000 watt Hortilux is is bright it screws up pictures!
image.jpeg I just put a new bulb in and hooked up a new ballast.
Now to move the exercise equipment out and the Trops back in.
BBQ workshop tomorrow :)
Lots of hands!
This other pic is of Hortilux Floresent bulbs they have high lumens also, but not like the superlux do.
 

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M. Frary

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Yeah you gotta have the proper hoods and ventilation for these high quality lights, they are not for the faint of heart :p
These are mini suns.
I have 2 400 watters and one 1000 watt one. Metal halide in the 400 watt ones and the 1000 watt is high pressure sodium.
I don't use them anymore but they're there if I want them.
 
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