Fluorescent Lighting For Seedlings - No Longer In "DENIAL" (pics)

rnewste · February 11, 2012

For years (actually Decades), I have always started seeds, then when about 4 weeks old, potted them up and sat them in the kitchen window, then transplanted them outside a few weeks later. They were always spindly, but struggled through.

But, after seeing Worth's photos in his "25 Days" thread, I finally bit the bullet and bought a T5 light. As I was limited to a grow table measuring 24" by 44", my options were restricted. I settled on one Hydrofarm "Jump-Start" 24 inch light. These were the seedlings when I set up the light on Jan 21:

But, the plants developed a sharp "lean" toward the single 23W fluorescent bulb:

I then adapted a second Jump-Start onto the base unit:

But again, the seedlings were quite distorted in their growth habit (Jan 28):

So, I then ganged 3 of the JumpStart lights together now totaling 72W at 6400 degrees Kelvin on Feb 4:

Today (Feb 11), the plants are between 10" to 12" tall, and doing pretty well:

The "moral" of the saga is that years (no, Decades) ago, I should have taken the advice of others and used fluorescent lighting on my seedlings.

Raybo

February 11, 2012	#1
rnewste Tomatovillian™ Join Date: Apr 2007 Location: Campbell, CA Posts: 4,064	Fluorescent Lighting For Seedlings - No Longer In "DENIAL" (pics) For years (actually Decades), I have always started seeds, then when about 4 weeks old, potted them up and sat them in the kitchen window, then transplanted them outside a few weeks later. They were always spindly, but struggled through. But, after seeing Worth's photos in his "25 Days" thread, I finally bit the bullet and bought a T5 light. As I was limited to a grow table measuring 24" by 44", my options were restricted. I settled on one Hydrofarm "Jump-Start" 24 inch light. These were the seedlings when I set up the light on Jan 21: But, the plants developed a sharp "lean" toward the single 23W fluorescent bulb: I then adapted a second Jump-Start onto the base unit: But again, the seedlings were quite distorted in their growth habit (Jan 28): So, I then ganged 3 of the JumpStart lights together now totaling 72W at 6400 degrees Kelvin on Feb 4: Today (Feb 11), the plants are between 10" to 12" tall, and doing pretty well: The "moral" of the saga is that years (no, Decades) ago, I should have taken the advice of others and used fluorescent lighting on my seedlings. Raybo