Sunlight is limited indoors, especially during winter's short days. Indoor gardeners use grow lights to give their plants enough of the blue and red wavelengths they need to thrive throughout their growth cycle. A variety of types of lighting exist that are suitable for growing plants indoors. Choose the best lighting for your indoor garden based on the size of the garden, what kinds of plants you are growing and the expense involved.
Incandescent
The advantages of regular incandescent light bulbs are that they are widely available and plug in to existing outlets. The disadvantages are that the bulbs are not efficient, do not last long and get hot. Incandescent bulbs supply a full spectrum of light. Plants use only the red and blue wavelengths. A string of 75- to 100-watt bulbs at 3-foot intervals 3 to 4 feet above the plants will nourish a 6-foot-wide area. A single clamp-on spot grow bulb will nourish a single plant or small grouping. The lights can be controlled by a timer to provide supplemental light when needed.
Fluorescent
The original lights used to grow plants indoors, long fluorescent tubes need a ballast, a component that limits the amount of electrical current running through the tubes. They are cooler than incandescents, so can be closer to plants, but may dehydrate plants if too close. They provide the red-blue spectrum needed by plants, but the expense of installing ballasts and the short life of the fluorescent tubes raise the cost of using them as grow lights. T-5 fluorescent bulbs are high-output lights with low heat and minimal energy consumption; they are best for short growth cycles and rooting cuttings indoors. Fluorescent bulbs are cheap to run, but expensive to install. They have a bluish tinge, which makes them less attractive for living areas and indoor commercial displays.
High-Intensity-Discharge (HID)
HID lighting is efficient, long-lasting and the best choice for large indoor gardens. The lights require an expensive ballast to operate and venting or air-cooled reflectors to reduce their heat. HIDs produce 500 percent more light than incandescent bulbs. They are suited for germinating seeds and lighting indoor vegetable gardens and for starting vegetable plants and flowering plants indoors. They produce high heat, so must be placed well away from plants. High-pressure sodium-vapor bulbs have an orange-red spectrum ideal for flowering or fruiting plants. Metal halide lights provide a blue-green spectrum for the vegetative/growth stage. They can be combined to give ideal lighting at different stages in a plant's growth cycle.
Light-Emitting Diodes
LEDs are more expensive to buy than incandescent bulbs, but are long-lasting, energy-efficient and cool. They plug into existing outlets. LEDs come in colors that can be mixed to suit each growth stage. Purple LEDs combine reds and blues that support plants from germination to flowering and reproduction. LEDs are small and lightweight, so can be used in plant groupings for dramatic effects in home and indoor commercial settings.
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