What light is needed in the growth phase?
In order to develop well in the vegetative phase, your plants mainly need light in the blue colour spectrum. Overall, we can talk about a spectrum of approx. 4000 - 8000 Kelvin, whereby lamps with around 5000 - 7000 Kelvin have proven to be ideal. A very precise colour spectrum can be achieved with LED technology, TLEDs such as the Secret Jardin TLED Growth with 42 watts can be combined and distributed everywhere in the grow box due to their low weight. Metal hydride light sources are well suited for conventional lighting concepts, but consume significantly more electricity.
Which light is suitable for the flowering phase?
In order for the plants of your indoor grow to produce strong flowers with delicious terpenes, they absolutely need light in the red colour spectrum. Wavelengths of 2500 to 3500 Kelvin are ideal. For this colour temperature, you can use sodium vapour lamps or several LED light strips. According to the latest findings, the additional use of the colour red spectrum (approx. 730 nm) is very beneficial to plant development. For this reason, Far-Red LEDs are now increasingly being added to full-spectrum LED light sources.
What are full-spectrum LEDs?
Modern LED technology makes it possible to combine the complete light spectrum that your plants need from seedling to flowering in one grow lamp. The use of LEDs with different wavelengths ensures a balanced colour spectrum, whereby the colour spectrum of LED grow lamps is usually not specified in Kelvin but in nanometres (nm). In this case, full-spectrum LEDs usually have a range of approx. 400 - 780 nm (including colour red), and some models, such as the Greenception GCx series from Greenception, even offer a UV-A component.
How can you save costs with LED technology?
Compared to conventional MH and NDL lamps, the last generation of LED grow lamps already saved up to 30 % in energy costs on average. Of course, the efficiency of the individual LEDs is constantly being improved; current models such as a Lumatek Zeus Pro 600W with a light efficiency of 2.9 µmol/J are already moving in the direction of 40 % savings potential. In addition, LEDs can be dimmed excellently without losing efficiency. This saves even more electricity costs when raising young plants and during the growth phase.
Which lamps are suitable for cultivation?
There are now excellent LED and LSR lamps especially for very young plants and for propagating cuttings. They emit little heat and have no hot spots. This protects the sensitive young plants and ensures successful rooting. In the area of fluorescent tubes, complete fittings such as the Lightwave T5 cuttings fitting or ready-made LED solutions such as the Cosmorrow LEDs from Secret Jardin are available. Here, there are also practical double power supplies that can be used to directly supply two LED light strips.
