It's not gonna work. Florescent lights need to be very close to the plant; within 2-4 inches. The flo lights do not push off enough lumens to do much. What exactly do you hope to accomplish with this setup? Flowering plants with peppers or dormant wintering to last until spring?

It needs to be much closer, like just at the point where if it were any closer the light bulb would be burning your plant.

I would have gotten a high-wattage compact fluorescent, as it would allow for concentrating all of the light right over the plant, rather than it being spread out over those long tubes, which is a waste of light and electricity.

Also you can just leave your plant by a sunny window over the winter and set it back outside next spring, though it likely will not produce many peppers for you until then.

Here is a link that might be useful: How To Build a CFL Grow Light Fixture

Well, that's a bummer. I was all proud of myself. :(

Looks like I'm going back to Home Depot. I think I'll keep the light though and just re-purpose it for something else.

I'd really like the plant to grow over the winter, but keeping it alive till spring will suffice. I don't really have a sunny window, which is why I decided to spring for the lights. All I have is a west facing window that is partially covered by trees.

For some reason, I thought that CFL bulbs wouldn't be right. Now that I know better, I can pick one up relatively cheap. Thanks for the link to the you-tube video. It's very informative.

42 watt 2800 lumens 6500 degree lights. Prepare for new pictures soon...

In the interest of not spending more money I decided to get a bit creative. I lowered the light down to the closet shelves and added some height to the base with Styrofoam. Lo and behold! We're about 4" from the top of the plant and 12" from the base of the dirt.

This setup is 64 Watts, 5650 lumens with a 3500k and 4100k bulb. I think it's Comparable in specs to the 84 watt, 5600 Lumen setup in the youtube video.

Orangehero, you make an interesting point though. Since the plant is only under half the light, am I really only getting 2825 lumens on it? Or does the fact that some of the light reflects off the walls count for anything? I figure that I can use the shelf directly below the light for growing some other small plants I have. I have an avacado seed that has grown roots and is ready to sprout any day that I'm sure could use the light.

Do you think I should spring for higher K bulbs? I read somewhere that a range of light (1 warm, 1 cold) was better, but I trust the users of this forum more.

New pics!

Hey bud .... that will probably work, but dont expect miracles. For a single plant like that if you get two 42 wtt CFL's and put them in circular reflectors it would work well over the winter.

See that reflector I have hanging over the seedlings in this pic? That is a 42 wtt CFL, Two of those reflectors, one on each side ... would do the trick till spring. Since you have that longer light though you might as well use it. Worst case scenario it will keep the plant alive.

{{gwi:1235585}}

I once grew a great jungle of a garden in a spare bathroom under a 400 watt HPS. Sure its a HID light, but people said theres no way I could grow full size tomato plants in a bathroom under it.... heres the proof ;)

Heres some determinant type tomato plants, early girl and totem hybrid I believe:

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Then I switched to indeterimant early girl, fantastic hybrid, and sweet cherry tomato plants in the shower, then put the determinant tomato plants out on the floor along with some upcomming bell pepper plants, a peach habanero plant (the one from my other thread in fact) and a lettuce bin. Oh, and lets not forget the basil bush.

Who says you cant grow a jungle under a 400 watt HPS in a 5'x8' bathroom ... HA!!

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Words fail me... That is amazing... Wow!

There is hope for us poor apartment dwellers after all. Those pics are inspirational!

I'll try to update this thread and keep everyone updated on the progress of the plant.

I really appreciate everyone's input. I'm having too much fun with this plant :)

-Pizzaburgers

Realize though .. that HID lighting is MUCH different then fouro's .... If your not already familiar with the differences do some reading, you definately wouldnt be able to pull that off with 400 watts of flouro's just so your aware.

great plants. is that arugula. nice extension under a 400W. very cool!

The whole setup cost me $37 bucks and consists of a shop light, one 32 Watt T8 Cool White Bulb and one 32 Watt T8 Warm Light Bulb.

You payed three times too much. Typical "on sale" prices are around $10 per shop light and $1 per bulb. Several weeks ago, Menards was selling at those prices (but you had to buy a 10 pack of bulbs).

Man, I think I should rename this thread to "how NOT to grow plants overwinter!"

I just went to my local home depot... nothing was on sale, but this was the cheapest shop light that had a plug attached to it and two bulb sockets. It cost about $24 and the bulbs were $5.50 each for a pack of 2. My area tends to have everything priced higher than the national average.

We don't have Menards where I am... only Home Depot and Lowes and they have comprable prices.

@ozzz - I know that these are not real professional grow lights. Those are way too expensive for my current one-plant hobby. Maybe next year if I have 5 or 6 plants I want to keep going... :)

Lookin' nice, y'all! Just you wait until I get my greenhouse for Christmas! ;-)

pizzaburgers,

Don't get discouraged. In spite of all the helpefull folks we encounter here and other places, we all have stumbled a few times when we start out. Hell, I've been growing peppers for years and still stumble over something every year. That's what keeps it interesting. $30 on flo lights is not a major disaster and some folks have had good success overwintering (keeping plants alive, not fruiting) till next season. Heck, for proof check out Ravi's (trfanatic's) post below.

I currently have six double bulb 4' flo lights (I paid way too much for) for seed starting. I'm miserable at overwintering so I start fresh seed each year.

You could probably improve your chances of success by adding another light and lining the area in Mylar (you know that space blanket foil stuff).

Keep at it. If nothing else you (and us) can learn from your experience.

Bill

Here is a link that might be useful: Ravi's Bhuts

I second that PB ...... when I wanted to grow all those plants under a single HPS in the bathroom, everyone told me I couldnt do it... it wouldnt work, wasnt enough light, not enough lumens, they would grow but not produce... funny ... I guess the plants didnt get the memo eh??

Also, get this ... according to EVERYTHING Ive ever heard people say about determinat tomatoes, or ever read ..... it always says they grow, produce all their fruit in a huge load .. and then die off..

Well those determinat plants produced continously for over a year ... I guess they didnt get the memo either ;)

My point is, I learned a ton .. so will you ... have fun with your pepper plant .. and it might just decide it doesnt want to play by the rules either and give you a pepper or two .. in fact Im betting thats the route it will probably go. You might not break any records, but a habanero is a habanero .. eat that thing raw just because you can ;)

Here's something you can do for cheap. Have a look at the clip below but instead of using the fixture that the guy is using you can go to your hardware store and buy porcelain bases and clamps to hold them in place. I already have a 4 foot Sunblaze T5 set but im making a second fixture based on this video using four (2 each) 42 watt 2700k & 6500k cfl bulbs. I have a good idea how to improve upon this and will take pics to post them when Im done. With 4 bulbs you can get over 10,000 lumens.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Rs_QRorECvo

Here is a link that might be useful: Cheap CFL Fixture

We have a very primitive set up of lights to grow peppers in the winter but it works. 6 shop lights with assorted warm and cool bulbs..the long ones. Shelves, some plastic, some metal, whichever is on sale. We use chains on the top of the fixtures to be able to raise and lower the lights themselves as the seedlings grow. We start the seeds in 72 cell or whatever we have with plastic lids. They go under the lights as they develop sprouts and leaves. We hang lights from each shelf and cross space gaps at end of shelves with plywood to use every bit of light. The plants grow well with this setup and get moved as they grow to bigger pots until they are ready to go outside. Not everyone needs to spend a lot of money or get fancy lights. I have nothing against expensive lights, just it's not in our budget so simple works best for us. I think we got most of the lights at walmart for about $8.00 a fixture, bulbs a dollar or two at most. This will be our third year with the lights and have not had to replace a bulb yet.

Also have one 7 pod in a hydro deep bucket with one cfl and a reflector. That is working great, plant is growing awesome but we haven't got blooms and peppers yet, soon I hope.

You can spend as much as you want and some will say top of the line is necessary but you can do it cheap too and the peppers don't really care. All they want to do is grow. JMO

Jackie

I will disagree with people when they say you cannot get a plant to produce under flourescents. There are many people that do it all the time, as I have done it also and got better harvest off those under lights than outdoor plants getting natural sunlight. It takes some work to get it setup right, and quite a bit of research, but it will work. I run my flourescents by overdriving the ballasts, which takes 2 ballasts to run 2 bulbs, but it works, but cuts the life of the bulbs down quite a bit.

For growing only one plant, you might try putting several shoplights VERTICALLY around the plant. About 15 years ago, I saw an advertisement for a growth chamber with vertically arranged tubes for growing just one cannabis plant. Seemed like a good idea to me.

The tomatoe plants did well because of the sodium bulb. Sodium bulb (spectrum similar to the sun in the fall) is different than halide (spectrum similar to spring/early summer), so sodium better for flowering than growing.

I have had success in a small closet 3x3 with four shop lights vertically. But I still think to get anything to flower you need more lumens and mylar for reflecting the light. I don't like to plug websites...
175 Metal Halide $119 is a deal.
http://www.yescomusa.com/home.php?cat=128

I have lost the bubble on this one. Are we trying to grow peppers during the winter? Trying to get a jump on next spring? Or trying to keep this plant over the winter?

flourescents should work. Here is a thread on a different forums with a guy growing pretty big plants using compact flourescents:

http://www.chillisgalore.co.uk/phpBB3/viewtopic.php?f=2&t=7443

If you go through towards the end he even had a bunch of plants flowering under flourescents.

If i was you I would just leave it under that light and then see how the plant does after a while. If the plant isnt doing good, then add some more lighting or change the light altogether. I am using LED grow lamps to start some plants early for next year and so far everything looks great. HID wasnt an option for me so I had to explore other alternatives (including building an LED grow lamp myself).

Having read alot about grow lights and growing indoors in general, it seems that most information is coming from cannabis growers with a very specific yield requirements. There is not as much info/experimentaton from those crazy enough to grow legal plants indoors.

Just for the record, that 400w HPS was $119 at HTG supply, oddly enough, my 250 was also $119 from HTG supply as well..... you can choose between MH or HPS for the same price.

Thanks for all the advice everyone! This forum has really been superb in helping me out.

The vertical idea sounds interesting. If my light starts to really struggle, I'll give it a shot.

I'm trying to stay away from HID due to initial and wattage costs. LED looks fantastic (low heat, low wattage), but again, initial costs are too high.

I think if my plant suffers I will spring for one more group of lights (perhaps vertically).

The goal here is to keep the plant alive, but it looks like it's starting to try and bud again. I'll send out updates.

What are the symptoms of a plant that is getting insufficient light? Are there tell-tale early indicator signs that I can watch out for?

Thanks,
Pizzaburgers

2 week update.

The plant looks ok and is budding, but appears to be suffering a bit. Most of the leaves are fine, but some of the leaves are starting to turn light green from the rim inward. The plant has dropped 3 leaves that were previously damaged, and some of the leaves are curling in from the tip. Any thoughts? I'm thinking I may need more light to sustain the plant.

I have watered and fed the plant a teaspoon of Tomato Tone once on 11/8. I plan to water again on 11/15 and feed again on 11/22.

I'll keep posting updates if anyone is interested.

Pics!

Buds

Hey pizzab,

He/She is looking a lot better. Great job!

From your pictures, IÂm not sure if itÂs the plant; my monitor; or your camera, but it looks like your plant is suffering from some nutrient deficiencies? I see lighter green patches around the leaf edges and in the leafs.

Forget the packaged chemical batches sold in stores. Get some good quality compost from a garden center and layer an inch on. Your plant knows what it needs.

Bill

ps. Great to see you stuck with it!

Ottawa - I am sticking with this pepper till it produces or dies! My girlfriend thinks I'm crazy with all the attention and time I've put into it. I've definitely caught the bug.

At the recommendation of this forum, I got a bag of Tomato Tone from the garden center. It is organic and has a composition of 3-4-6. I haven't fed it much, and looking at the bag it actually recommends 1.25 cups per 8qts of soil. I think I actually have close to 16qts of potting mix so next feeding I'll add more. I'm thinking a cup should be plenty. It also recommends watering immediately after so I need to wait until 11/15 since I don't want to overwater the plant.

Oh, and I have the lights on a 13 hour timer. It goes on at 7AM, and turns off at 8PM.

Any words of advice on feeding or watering frequency?

Thanks,
Pizzaburgers

Watch for aphids too. They could silently kill the plant while you are concerned over the lighting etc.

I would go kind of easy on the ferts. Most are meant for plants in the ground where the ferts get washed away. I only use have the recommended dosage of ferts on my peppers grown in a water farm. Plants in pots are very sensitive to ferts. I would only use half the recommended dose every 4 weeks, and make sure you are flushing the pot ever so often or you can end up with salt buildup. I run my lights for 18 hrs a day, but seeing as though you have yours in a closet that might not be feasible.

I don't think I have an aphid problem since there are no white bugs on the plant. There are some gnats that fly and walk around, but they don't seem to be doing any harm. I'd rather them not be there, but since they seem to just be minding their own business, I'm not too worried.

I am really confused about the dosage of the fertilizer. The recommendation of 1.25 cups per 8qt of soil is for potted plants, but pretty much everywhere I read online states that you should go easy and reduce the dosage when overwintering as well.

18 hrs a day wouldn't be a problem, but are there diminishing returns after a certain point? Is there a such thing as too much light? I wish I had more data to work with!

Next year it may be time for some experiments!

-Pizzaburgers

Im new too ... but definately dont use a cup in that pot ... as mentioned above that amount is only for plants in the ground.

Some people only use a tablespoon or two every few weeks or once a month.

Probably better to use a heaping tablespoon once a month to be safe ... make sure to water it in good.

Also, use less fertilizer because it won't grow as fast as an outdoor plant.

Aphids are green and are under the leaves. They almost always attack plants indoors. Not saying that is what's causing your problems, just telling you you be careful all winter.

I'm remaining vigilant! The undersides of the leaves look clean. No bugs except for the gnats that fly around. They don't appear to be eating the plant or anything sothe coast is clear for now. The plant is in my closet, so I look at it pretty much every day when I leave for work and come back.

I have no clue at all what the prob is PB ... but maybe a magnesium def.???

Let someone else say for sure its just a shot in the dark ...

at least in the Chicago area. This is a public service message.

I'm not sure about the leaves. All I know is, I was able to get some jalapenos to start fruiting under flouros before I set them out this spring. Also, (Just to experiment) I have 2 Thai pepper plants I planted in Oct that are putting out buds. I hope I can get them to flower and produce like the jals from last year. If not then I at least have several weeks head start on the very short grow season up here.

Peppers really do need a good dose of magnesium both outside and inside. I've had excellent results by amending my inside soil with a little magnesium sulfate. However, since I always use well-aged compost in my potting soil it might be a specific combination of the additional Mg with another micronutrient that has allowed me to get some pretty impressive hot peppers over the years.

Wow, that Menards place looks like it has some good deals... too bad I went to see where there stores were and they're only in the middle of America. No love for us East Coasters.

I went ahead and gave the plant 4 teaspoons of Tomato Tone in a ring around the main stalk. Then I gave it a good watering. I'll keep everyone posted on the progress!

-PB

Wow, that Menards place looks like it has some good deals

I'll trade my Menards and sales tax rate (10.25%) for just your sale tax rate.