This may seem like an easy task,
but hear me out . . .
My goal is to plant vegetables and flowers from seed, to fill my garden and occasionally give as gifts to my neighbors and friends. Last
It
is important to know that I live in wheat-growing country, in the
Palouse on the Washington/Idaho border. Tomatoes seldom can go in the
ground before June here. And . . . I generally keep my house at 71
degrees during the day, which is not ideal greenhouse temperature.
I
asked a garden expert, a friend at church who has been growing plots of
vegetables in the country for years. "Start your seeds early indoors at
the end of February," she advised. She also pointed out she has been
doing this for twenty years . . . and uses three fluorescent grow
lights.
Aha! The secret, I thought to myself. And here's the key, she added. "Don't place them in a window at first. The seedlings will get too leggy."
Aha! The secret, I thought to myself. And here's the key, she added. "Don't place them in a window at first. The seedlings will get too leggy."
Well . . . of course :)
So
I did some grow light research online and learned about red and blue
light spectrum . . . and frankly, more than I cared to learn. But in a
nutshell, here's what I now know: red light is needed to produce fruit
and flowers and blue light is needed for germination. HID and LED grow
lights are full spectrum lights (red and blue) and manufacturers make
some extraordinary claims for being the better way to go.
However,
here is what I didn't like about HID and LED lighting. HID and its
variants (there are several) put out a lot of heat and require a fan
(conclusion: not energy efficient). For someone with an indoor green
house, the heat may actually be a good thing. LED lights are still being
tested by NASA for growing plants in outer space, which is pretty cool,
but they appear to be in the experimental stage and also are very
expensive.
The
winner was my friend's suggestion: fluorescent grow lights. I was
pleased to discover both full spectrum and energy efficient fluorescent
lights are available. Just buy T-5 fluorescent bulbs (or larger) and you
will have bright, full-spectrum lighting at a savings in electricity. I
purchased two grow light kits at a local store, $45 each on sale. Not
bad, considering the same kit was $69 online.
The
next challenge was where to place the grow light assembly. We had a
portable clothes hanger on rollers we no longer used that my husband
converted to a plant stand. He added shelving, and a timer we already
had (set to 12 hours of light). I love it!
Total
cost: $110 plus seeds, soil and tax. Stay tuned for more gardening
challenges. I'll let you know how the seeds turn out . . .
Copyright 2013 © Sharon Himsl
Sweet setup! One thing I remember from doing something similar many years ago, was that you'll probably need to mist the seedlings for a while, once they start showing significant growth, and you get rid of the plastic over the top. But that's easily and lovingly done. What a fun project ...
ReplyDeleteOh...a spray bottle would work for this. Great idea. Thanks, Cathy for the tip!
DeleteWonderful that you did the research. I've never been to your part of the country so can only imagine the growing conditions. I live in the hot and humid part of Virginia where white tail deer thrive. They love anything we plant--tomatoes, flowers, so that's a real problem. Good luck. I hope you don't have deer!
ReplyDeleteThanks for the follow!
Monti
Mary Montague Sikes
No, white tail deer aren't a problem here, except in the country (I live in town). We do get rabbits and wild pheasant (which I love), but my cat once brought a baby rabbit into the garage to play with--not good. Nice to meet you, Monti.
DeleteI've always wanted to plant a garden. This sounds like a fun adventure I am interested to see how it goes.
ReplyDeleteThere is still time :) Thanks for stopping by, Jai.
DeleteGood luck with your garden, Sharon! Your set-up looks terrific.
ReplyDeleteThanks, Kim. I'll save one for you:)
DeleteI'll hold you to it! ;)
DeleteI learned something about growing plants and vegetables, Sharon. My mother plants flowers when she visits me, and I take care of them, but they never seem to look as good as when she has her hands all over them. And nice to meet you. Look forward to coming back before and during the A to Z challenge. :)
ReplyDeleteThanks, Silvia. Some people seem to have a 'green' thumb. I've had my moments, but the seed challenge really got to me this year. Hope to see you back:)
DeleteThanks Sharon for the great gardening tips. I always seem to kill mine off. Hoping to get one going this spring, but it sounds like I should already be starting. Off to get my grow lights. God bless, Maria
ReplyDeleteGood for you, Maria! Let's hope for a bountiful crop this year. Happy gardening:)
ReplyDeleteWe start our seedlings off in a germinator, heat but no additional light, and they seem to do very well that way. We're in the UK so I'm not sure if you get less daylight than us at this time of year.
ReplyDeleteI'm not sure either. Interesting. I've never heard of a germinator before. It's possible the heat from my lights (some) is a factor, too. Thanks for stopping by, Rosalind!
ReplyDelete