growing seeds under lights

pad1956

16 years ago

HELP. Last year I started seeds under lights and they grew very long and spindly. My sweet alysum looked like spaghetti. What was I doing wrong? I want short, strong and sturdy seedlings, how do I get them?

thanks

peter

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Comments (14)

calistoga_al ca 15 usda 9
16 years ago
Sounds like not enough light. If you are going to grow under lights you should get a light meter so you can check on the amount of light at the plant. They are sold everywhere for about $25. Al
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crrand
16 years ago
Also, your lights need to be no more than 1 to 2 inches from the top of the seedlings.
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You need fluorescent lights. 48 inch shop lights are commonly used for these purposes. There are two kinds: One uses T5 bulbs and other T8. The T5 are fatter and use 48w per bulb. T8 s use 32w per bulb. I have two sets of T8 system. Each set costs about $20 (Fixture + bulbs). I can think that for an 8 ft x 8 ft area you will need 8 sets , if you use the whole area . BUT that sound like a commercial operation. Probably you can get by 4 sets maybe less. You will have to have a system that can be adjusted, as the seedlings grow. The easiest would be to adjust the lights. You will have to germinate your seeds first. For that, you do not need light but a warm place . Light is needed after germination. The distance between the top of seedling and the light should be no more than ONE inch. So there comes a need to adjust the lights very often as the seedlings grow. If I were you, I would start with 2 sets and do experimenting and you will then learn from your own experience and needs. There are wealth of information on youtube about starting from seeds on videos. It is much simpler that way to understand how to do it. There other other issues are involved beyond lighting, such as seed starting mix, watering, fertilizing, repotting.
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susanzone5 (NY)
16 years ago
I use a full spectrum light tube along with a cool white (cheap) tube in my shop lights, keep the lights no more than an inch away from seedlings, and, make sure there is only one plant growing in each cell, or a small number of plants in the case of alyssum. Overcrowding causes spindliness, too.
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toobusygardening
16 years ago
What if you are using a Bio Dome? I had the same problem with mine seedlings last year. I have 2 4ft shop lights with 4 grow lights in them.
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belleville_rose_gr
16 years ago
I use cheap shop lights from walmart and have one mounted above the trays and one on the side of the trays. They are on 16 hrs a day min.
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naturemitch
16 years ago
Hi,

If your lights are just above your plants(and I have found they can be a few inches above them)...than my other question to you is...did you give them light during germination or very shortly after germination? If you are not germinating under your light fixtures, and if you had lag time before they went under those fixtures, then you would get the spindlyness you are describing.

Any other info you can give on your set-up could help us understand why your seedlings are elongating.

good luck
m
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calistoga_al ca 15 usda 9
16 years ago
For germination most seeds are not demanding of light amounts, but as soon as grows starts, LARGE amounts are needed to prevent elongation of stems. Fluorescent light even though as close as possible is still minimal. Most seedlings when transplanted can be planted up to the first leaves to make them more stable. As soon as plants can be moved outside into natural light do it, even though you might have to move them out for a few hours, them back in. Al
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nissy12
16 years ago
Hi,

Last year I grew petunias without any light (well I had a big shop window and that seemed to work). We moved so I don't have the same windows anymore, so I'm looking into using lights to grow my petunias. I have been looking at those expensive LED light, but they are way out of my budget. I bought some fluorescent bulbs, they have 1500 lumens. Will those work ? Or is there something else I could use ?

Thanks for your help, this is my first post on this great forum !

Dennis
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rokal
16 years ago
I've been using 32 watt Philips Cool White Plus bulbs in cheap 4 ft. T-8 shop light fixtures from Home Depot. The bulbs are 2850 Lumens and 4100K. These are great for seedlings.

Expensive grow lights and bulbs are not worth the extra money for starting seedlings.
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shabbu
16 years ago
Hi Rokal,
I live in Buffalo,NY and am planning to do indoor propagation. You had mentioned, "The bulbs are 2850 Lumens and 4100K"....are these bulbs different from the "32 watt Philips Cool White Plus bulbs"? Sorry for the stupid question, but I am new to indoor stuff and I am trying to get an idea about lighting. I am planning to buy a cheap wire rack shelf and then hang the lights from there..so I can adjust the height of the lights.
Anyway hope you can elaborate more about the bulbs.
thanks,
Minal.
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rokal
16 years ago
minal,

The bulbs I use are the standard 32 Watt Philips Cool White Plus from Home Depot.

These bulbs output 2850 lumens with a kelvin temperature of 4100K. If you look on the package, you should see specs similar to these. However, I believe the specs may have improved slightly since I last purchased the bulbs.

The fixtures I use are 4ft, 2 bulb, T-8 florescent shop lights made by commercial electric. These are only $9.00 each at Home Depot.

A durable 48"L X 18"W X 72"H wire shelving unit costs around $70. You can mount 2 light fixtures on each of the shelves.

Check out the Growing Under Lights Forum for more information.

Regards,

Rokal
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shabbu
16 years ago
Hi Rokal,
Wow!!, Thanks a lot for all the specifics. And the forum recommendation was really helpful too. I am really looking forward to indoor propagation. I tried it last year, but I had the same problem with the spindly seedlings. So this year I am going to invest in a heating pad and some lights!!. Thanks once again.
Minal.
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nissy12
16 years ago
Hi Rokal,

I went to the Home Depot yesterday and I did find these 9 dollar commercial electric shop lights but they were only for T12 bulbs. Am I looking at the wrong ones ? The cheapest once that were T8 were 17 dollars. Which ones should I choose ? Or can you put T8 bulbs in T12 shop lights ? I'm sorry for all my questions, but this is my first year using lights.

Thanks,

Dennis
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rokal
16 years ago
nissy12,

The Commercial Electric shop lights that I purchased from HD operate both T-12 and T-8 bulbs. Mine have an electronic ballast as opposed to the outdated magnetic ballast. I would ask a sales clerk to confirm that this newer model can power T-8 lamps. If they can't help, buy one and open up the box. It should give you this information on the fixture.

Here are the specifics on the model that I purchased several years ago:

Commercial Electric 4 Ft. Shop LightModel HBSL-15
Internet/Catalog 162474
Store SKU # 140 904
Ballast: Sunpark SL-15 (electronic)

Regards,

Rokal
0

growing seeds under lights

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calistoga_al ca 15 usda 9

crrand

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