Just my humble opinion here and I have no experience with AeroGrow lights at all but petunias require quite a bit of strong light/sun in order to grow and bloom. I grow them outside in full sun. If the AeroGrow works well enough for the petunias to bloom it seems to me this might be too much light for the violets. I personally would be very careful. Hopefully someone has experience, good luck :)

It has been about a month... did you take any before and after pictures to see any differences? It's hard to see changes when something is growing fairly slowly and there are lots of leaves to notice. Here is my AV (i took a lot of leaf cuttings from it, so it's regrowing). The first pic was the day I put it under lights, and the second pic is 16 days later... yes, there has been a color change, I guess from the different kind of light. It used to be in a south-west facing window. I use the Schultz AV food you describe everytime I water. I think it ends up being about 3-4 drops in a standard size water bottle. I mix it up and have that bottle on hand anytime I need to water.

I have four homemade lightstands for gessies. Two bulbs are just fine. I don't grow orchids so I can't comment on their needs. Debbie

uhhh WHAT???? I'm not Sheldon on Big Bang Theory. :) UPDATE: I JUST called AeroGrow and asked how many Lumens EACH bulb puts out NEW. Since I have 2 bulbs in each garden, it would be twice the amount per bulb. They put out 1,500 Lumens NEW. Then get weaker as they age,of course. So...right now I am working with 3K Lumens per garden. the light hood with the bulbs in them, are about 6-7in away from the tops of the violets, depending on the pot they are in. Some are a bit closer, some are a bit further away. The maximum the lights can be away is 12in. Some crowns are getting tighter/crowded, either from growing fast from getting stronger light, or they are to close to the lights? I have moved them up 1 notch in each garden, and like i said, they are about 6-7 in away from the top of the violets. Some violets are on the very edge of the garden tray area, some are right under the two bulbs. The pictures ended up here...not my plan! To show some of my set-ups, and the crowed crowns on some, the blooms i am getting, the pink/purple single bloom is 'Playful Spectrum'. Its leaves are very firm and it is in a 2 1/4 in pot. The crown pic. is of my 'Twinkle Twirl', this one is 'Heinz Starfish'. All the small ones I just got a week ago, and as you can see, I taped a 'foil square' to the side of one garden, there is so much light spilling over the sides, so I can put in two more violets it. The pics. i took of my other gardens/plants, to show the bloom stems growth, all came out either to dark,or WAY to bright. So they were not showing whats up. These were the best of the ones I took. so..any opinions of the light, and are they getting to much light now, or what? I am now getting a TON of bloom stems starting to pop up/out on my 'SILVER GLADES CINDERS', I mean like a dozen or more!! Getting more on my 'GEE PEE', and my, 'THE MARTIAN', a WASP variety. They were all in the 2 OZ Solo cups, till I potted them up 2 weeks ago, also the same time i got my new bulbs. There are (2) 26W AeroGarden GrowBulbs per garden. Less complicated opinions of my set-up, and the growths seen? I'm not that bright when it comes to light!!