Find out how to choose the best grow lights for seedlings!Was your recent attempt to grow seedlings did not go as you hoped?If you experienced having leggy and weak sprouts after germinating your seeds, then the problem is most likely the light they received right after the moment they surfaced.Now, you might be wondering do you really need a grow light to start seeds indoors?A direct and simple answer is, seedlings need more light than full-grown plants, Itâs ideal for seedlings to get as much as 14 to 16 hours or at least 8 hours of exposure to light in a day and that is actually more than a whole day of sunlight.Types of grow lightsYou can choose between fluorescent, LED, and high-intensity discharge (HID) bulbs, each of which has its own pros and cons.
However, they usually require bulky external ballasts (like, for example, overhead shop lights) so aren't as easy to work with as incandescent and LED bulbs.Cool white bulbs are a good source of blue and yellow-green light, but are a poor source of red light.
If you are growing seedlings under two-bulb fluorescent fixtures, you can usually achieve a good color balance by combining one cool white and one warm white bulb.Full-spectrum fluorescent bulbs produce a balance of cool and warm light that replicates the natural solar spectrum, although these are less energy efficient than other fluorescent bulbs and tend to produce more heat.
For a typical seedling tray, that means using 2 bulbs, ideally with a reflector hood over them to focus all the light on the seedlings below.LED grow lightsUnlike other bulbs which produce light across a broad spectrum, light-emitting diodes (LEDs) give off light within a narrow band.
The result is a purple glow that not everyone likes.Full spectrum LED grow light provides plants in all stages from veg to flower with everything they need in the natural sunlight.LEDs are mercury-free and won't shatter like glass.
These bulbs are long-lived (up to 5x longer than fluorescent lamps) and very energy efficient, but they cost considerably more than fluorescent bulbs.Research is still ongoing to determine which combination of light frequencies are best for plant growth and how LED grow lights compare to fluorescent bulbs in producing healthy seedlings.