I'm curious, why do you want to add shade cloth?

Already replied to your message, but glad you made a thread. =)

Lux meters aren't the best for judging grow lights... PAR DLI is a much better method. But I do have several lux/light meters. So here are some rough measurements in my Haworthia grow area:

Edit: I think I was off by 10x factor, I'm used to FC not lux! Revised below.

• 5000 Lux = Establishing or stressed Haworthia.
• 10000 Lux = Minimum for healthy/normally growing Haworthia.
• 15000 Lux = Preferred for Haworthia.
• 20000 Lux = For well established and robust Haworthia.
• 23000 Lux = For large mature Haworthia that can handle higher light.

Each plant is different and I have lots of different Haworthia at different 'stages'. The trick is finding just the right amount of light for each plant. I am often shuffling pots around as some plants grow stronger and more robust.

For plants having trouble rooting or are under too much stress, I temporarily use one or two layers of black fiberglass windowscreen on top. They also get put at the ends of the tubes or edges of the grow area where the light intensity is lower.

For shade cloth when growing my Haworthia outside, I use white sports mesh from the fabric store. One or two layers, depending on the season and weather. Not sure what % shade cloth that works out to, but it doesn't make any sense for me to use it inside.

To reduce light, I lower my grow trays or raise my lights. I prefer to not change the duration, but that would also work. You can also keep plants that want less light on a far end of the tray and then raise only that side so the lights on a slant.

If the Haworthia can take more light, give them more light! Means you can get more growth, more compact, and hopefully more flowers too. Don't forget that ambient temperature, leaf temperatures, and watering also have a big impact on how much light Haworthia can handle.

There is variation in which plants are stressed/not stressed. I do put the plants that are stressed towards the edges, and that has helped a bit. I'm not noticing too many issues with roots, but I am having issues with the leaf shape/texture/fullness. I moved my lights up a few inches a month ago, and many are positively responding, but overall my plants are experiencing dehydration due to temperature from the lights / fans. Core temperature (via IR gauge) even 6" away is about 75-80 for those towards center of light; 70-75 for those on edge. I water every three to four days, and have a mix that is typically considered moisture retentive (akadama, pumice, coarse perlite) and I am considering adding coir. I have also contemplated decreasing the duration. Two fans are running 24/7. BTW, I've noticed that the plants that don't directly receive the fans get an extra day or two of moisture.

I would prefer that the lights are closer, and I think adding a shading material of some sort would allow me to put them 4-6" away without having leaf stress. They are currently 6-10" away depending on the height of the plant.

I don't have a physical gauge for lux measurement; was considering getting an ios app. How can I measure PAR DLI?

How long ago were the plants repotted? What I find is if the roots aren't as established then they can't take as much light and the leaves take time to fill up.

80F (26C) is okay for leaf temperatures. It's cooler at night, right?

If the airflow is too strong, you can use a lower setting or angle the fan so the stream cools the lights and barely touches the plants. Definitely don't turn it off - day/night flow is best for indoors.

You can use shade cloth but 70% is a lot no?

I don't think an IOS app is very good... I tried a free one on Android. It was off by 20% to start and then throughout the range it was probably off by another 10-20%.

PAR DLI meters are designed for plants. They can be quite expensive.

If you want a Lux meter, you can get one off Ebay for very cheap. Or Amazon. The cheap one I have is passable (good enough for growing). Commercial/industrial versions are better.

Is akadama+pumice+coarse perlite mix moisture retentive?

(..."have a mix that is typically considered moisture retentive"...)

Why do you want to add coir to it?

Hmmm I noticed you didnt post night time temperatures- which are very important. If the nights are higher than 60-61 F they are in "summer" which might be partly responsible for dehydration, stress and so on. Are they next to a heat source or drafty area?

Mayo that individual shading technique is something I've seen Japanese growers do, loop over a piece of plastic mesh to reduce exposure :). Lovely plants, good growing!

Ewwmayo, I really like the idea of providing individual pieces of screen and shade for my succulents. I don't understand what you mean by "Depending on the plant I may make a 'loop' so it didn't touch instead.".

Can you explain, please?

Thanks, Tyler

Tyler - Here is an example that I rigged up to show you:

This is a better method if your plants get wet from rain or above so you don't get water stuck to the mesh and leaves.

Minty - Yes, popular Japanese technique that works very well!

My current night temperature is 68F/20C and many of my Haworthia are flowering, signifying fall. My day temperature is around 77F/25C.

Mayo - majority of plants were re-potted a few months ago. I haven't measured night temperatures, but I think all plants are under 70F in the core.

70% cloth is all I have left over from when I moved in the summer. I'm open to buying a different brand / percentage. Any suggestions? Seedlings can't really handle the high output it seems, so I need something in between the light and them. I can't invest in par dli stuff, and it sounds like getting a lux meter isn't worth it?

I'd say about 70% of the three and four inch plants handle the light just fine. I had to raise the lights a few months in, since I was noticing stress on leaves. But, seedlings and the other 30% of plants need some sort of protection. in general, I need a shelf specifically for rehab / repotted / seedlings.

Minty, I haven't done a reading of the actual room temperature. I think it might be about 5-10 degrees colder in the evening. My GF prefers the apartment warm...I also focus on core plant temperature. Should I consider room temperature too? Which is more accurate/important?

Should I stop running fans during the day, and only run at night? I'm at max fan speed 24/7, so unless the apartment cools down, they are at same temperature.

BTW, I have plenty of stuff that's flowering and growing/offsetting as I'd expect. If anything, many of the plants show signs of receiving too much light - they have the characteristic 'hard' grown look. I'd like mine to be a little more plump. Since I'm already thoroughly watering every 3-4 days, and have a moisture retentive mix, I'm assuming it's a lighting issue.

Eh, might as well try the 70% shade cloth since you already have it. If it's not enough light you'll find out in a couple weeks.

It's worth spending $11 for one of the red light meters with the sensor at the end of the coiled cable on Ebay. I find them very helpful and they are reasonably accurate. If you have money to burn you can pay more on Amazon and get it faster than 2-3 months.

I think you need fans during the day? If not, then the temperatures go up and the plants will heat up more, which will make your problems worse.

Having a dedicated area for seedlings, offsets, and establishing plants is a good idea since they take much less light.

Ewwmayo, thank you for explaining and mocking one up for me.

Boy this is kinda scary. Guess I must've lucked out with the other 2 Hawortia that I have in that unbeknownst to me, they are simple to grow unpicky varieties. Reading all of this makes me realize how much I don't know and how much I have to learn. As with the current 2 varieties that I have ( I think an attenuata and maybe a cuspidata?) any others I get will also be outside. No room inside for grow room/lights and only so much room under the patio umbrella. I'm hoping that using the screen/shade cloth as you describe will be a viable option for me.

I asked for & was provided with some very helpful recommendations on easy plants for beginners to start with. Truncatas, maughanis, most non-windowed, muticas, retusas and most cooperis ( which I really like!), cymbiformis, cuspidata and attenuata. I also like the truncatas, maughanis and the crosses of those that I've seen. If those can do well outside, all the better. If not, then not much point in wasting time, money and being disappointed if they won't be able to thrive in the conditions that I can provide.

Tyler

A few is easy, but I'm up to a a 150+ different types/sizes. All seem to have their own needs that you eventually/hopefully figure out over time :)

I got the lights in late October, and they started showing sun stress within a few weeks. I eventually moved the lights up and inch or so, but that wasn't enough. That + dehydration due to fans/light was limiting their water intake. So...I raised again in late December. They started acclimating and slowwwllyyy began reverting to green and plumping up. I might have them up too high for the established items, but only recently have I made space for offsets/cuttings/seedlings that need less light.

I will look into the red light meter. I guess I'll have to wait/see how the plants respond to the cloth. I'm sure the smaller items will be fine. I have a shipment of 40+ plants coming from Taiwan, so I want to start with low light for those. I didn't properly acclimate a lot of newer purchases, and it overwhelmed some of them.

Tyler - No worries. Haworthia are actually easy to grow. There are just many additional ways to get the most out of your growing. =)

Lots of good weather in San Diego for Haworthia! Please take all our snow and give us your sun, thanks. No harm getting a bunch and seeing how they do for you - that's the only way to know, right?

SucculentCity - What plants did you get and from which vendor in Taiwan? I have also ordered many (much less than 40, haha) and am quite excited to get them when things warm up.

SucculentCity

I asked this before:

Is akadama+pumice+coarse perlite mix moisture retentive?

(..."have a mix that is typically considered moisture retentive"...)

Why do you want to add coir to it?

Maybe I misunderstood your post.

Kevin

That is much warmer than my plants get: about 15C at night, probably less than 20C during day.

Rina - No response from SucculentCity on your question but I would say it's fairly moisture rententive. Much more than what I use at least.

A lot of high end growers are using pumice and akadama for good reason with Haworthia. I think akadama is too much water for our zone though, in other places it looks very good. I do not see any of them using coir. I see coir as a more regional component.

I think your basement would be perfect for Haworthia with those winter temps. If you break the bank on some T5HOs.... =)

Mayo, I got them from Sun Love Nursery :)

Rina, sorry for not responding. Seemingly that mix without coir would hold enough water. But...for some reason, my smaller pots go dry way too fast and it causes the feeder roots to die. The more established 4" retain moisture about 4-5 days, but most two and three inch are only 3-4 days. I'm not sure what causes the moisture loss, and I'm not sure why I have to water so much more than other people who use a similar setup :\

SucculentCity - For reference my measurements:

1. Layer of black fiberglass window screen = 40% shade cloth
2. Layers of black fiberglass window screen = 65% shade cloth

I think for the second layer light blocking it depends on the orientation of the mesh and how it lines up below the other mesh.

I use the same exact screen in my haworthia house as well. In high summer when it is very hot, I put two extra layers so that my haworthias are in three layers of black fiberglass insect screen because the hawhouse gets six hours of direct sun daily.

I'd like to add that it will take an astronomical level of dedication to perfectly align every square of three layers of screen so that the grids will cancel each other out. That it even occurred to you, Kevin, is a little scary lol

Ahaha, I am having a good laugh over here.

I was going to mention that the mesh was on the plants as well but thought that would be TOO specific. It does affect the shade % though...

Still laughing. =)

Thanks Kevin and SucculentC...I was wondering why to add coir/peat to already water retentive mix.

I don't mind getting some T5HO - do you really think they are much better for haws than CFLs? If yes - why?

Yes!!

They are so much brighter than CFLs. Unless you have lots and lots of CFLs.

Homegrown hydroponics carries them for around $55 now I think. So maybe you could try just one or two 4' T5HO and see how you like it. Frame/suspending the fixture can be done DIY style and with low cost.

Two lights would be provide good coverage for a 150cm x 40cm space of Haworthia, Gasteria, smaller crassula, and the like. The very edges may be a little dark but probably you have smaller cuttings/propagations to put there.

Do Haworthia do okay in heat? As in zone 9b heat, with multiple months in the 90 F range. I know my cooperi do fine (one is one of my best growers actually) but I have a new limifolia variegata and truncata I'd like to move outside. I was already planning on full shade but they will still get hoooot.

In high heat they tend to go dormant or semi-dormant, so if they stop responding well to water you'll know what's going on. If you can grow cooperi then I would think truncata would be no issue.

Never grew limifolia variegata myself, but I'd imagine it's fairly robust (don't take my word for that).

Thanks ewwmayo! I got a little worried seeing the cooler temps you guys keep yours at.

Cooler just means you can get more growth during those periods. During your hottest seasons you will probably get more colourful and less plump looking Haworthia but I figure the rest of the time should be okay.

I burned a beautiful $40 haworthia this week, by placing it in the fire escape in spot where it got direct sun until about noon. I'm kicking myself

I am a little anxious myself because in a hurry I put a number of my plants outside and the sun intensity was a bit too much. Normally I trend my light readings/output for a few weeks and adjust but I just felt the need to put them outside. It was a bit irrational and hasty... should have known better!