Growing lights

[Baldy]

Not entirely sure this is DIY but... treated myself to some for Christmas.
I guess the answer to my forthcoming question may vary - depending on what one is growing...

I'm assuming that growlights simulate the longer daylight of spring/summer - so you wouldn't leave them on all the time - or would you?
I need to decide whether to get a mechanical plug/timer thingamewhatsit...

Cheers,
Balders

[Bigmallly]

I run mine 12hrs on 12hrs off.

[Baldy]

Cheers... plug-timer thingamewhatsit to be ordered then...

[Alison]

[QUOTE=Baldy;1505022]Cheers... plug

Or you could just turn it on in the morning and off at night

[Alison]

[QUOTE=Alison;1505024]

Cheers... plug

Or you could just turn it on in the morning and off at night

Grrrr, quotes still not working properly on the laptop - forgotten about that as not been using it while I've been off and yes I know that this is the wrong thread for this but I'm here now.....

[Baldy]

Work away a lot Alison and dear Mrs Balders has got too much on her plate to bother with such trifles as watering or growlights (apparently)

[Cadalot]

I read that you are better off giving them more light and less night so to speak and that as a general rule of thumb, most vegetables and flowering plants need 12 to 16 hours of light per day, with flowering plants at the top end of that range. Plan on giving most plants at least 8 hours of darkness per day.

So to me that suggests 14 hours on and 10 hours off as a optimum. I've bought a timer switch for the lighting on my grow station, but intend to leave the heat mat on 24/7

I'm working on the principal of a light disbursement of 45 degrees and with my panel being 300 x 300 it will need to be 100mm off the top of the trays in order to cover the 500x500 heat mat area.

[Bigmallly]

Mine run from 12pm to 12am so they get daylight in the morning then growlight the rest of the day.

[jacks10]

Mine is only for 8 hours ��

[Mitzi]

Mine is on 7 am to 11 pm, but on a sunny day I turn it off and put them in the window for a few hours.

[mothhawk]

I read that you are better off giving them more light and less night so to speak and that as a general rule of thumb, most vegetables and flowering plants need 12 to 16 hours of light per day, with flowering plants at the top end of that range. Plan on giving most plants at least 8 hours of darkness per day.

Yes, well, it depends.... ever heard of short day plants and long day plants? Or to put it another way, photoperiodism?

For example, plants like lettuce and radish are long day plants, that flower when the length of night drops below a critical period, while chrysanthemums and poinsettias for example, are short day plants, that only flower when the nights are above their critical length. It's the amount of dark hours that are critical to initiate or prevent flowering, not the day length. That's why lettuce and radish "bolt" in midsummer and why chrysanthemums are autumn flowering.

Of course, some plants don't care either way

[jonny the plant pot]

Mine are solar powered so with the light we are getting at the moment I reckon Im probably around 20 mins

[Alison]

Mine run from 12pm to 12am so they get daylight in the morning then growlight the rest of the day.

Is 12am midnight or lunchtime?

[Scarlet]

I think midnight. They get morning light, then the lights get turned on at lunchtime and off at midnight.

[Bigmallly]

Yes, sorry........They are on Midday to Midnight.