At the age when every grower is counting down on each of the inputs, in order to reduce the cost, hydroponics systems are a revelation. Light, the ultimate source of energy for every green plant on this planet is going through its own reincarnation.

Using artificial grow light is nowadays a pretty common phenomenon in case of indoor farming, but it comes with its own baggage. This is particularly true in case of the conventional �High Intensity Discharge’ (HID) lights, which apart from emitting a rather broad spectrum of light; produce a lot of heat as well.

Green plants in general have a requirement of specific spectrum of light, when it comes to absorbing light energy. The photosynthetic pigments primarily chlorophyll a show maximum absorption at 400 nm (blue) during vegetative phase and around 600 nm (red) during flowering stage. So, rest of the light wavelengths in the natural visible light goes to waste, particularly green spectrum which is reflected back entirely.

Enter the scene, the light emitting diodes or LED lights, which are basically a semiconductor emitting, light when electricity is passed through it. The novelty in this case is the control over the emission, in order to get a narrow spectrum of light. Apart from colors of the visible spectrum, LED lights are capable of emitting ultraviolet and infrared wavelengths as well.
As the LED light uses an amount of electricity as low as 6-9 watts, the heat being dissipated from it is incredibly low compared to HID lights. This fact also reflects on the electricity use which stays a lot less than any conventional light source.

Lesser illumination with minimum heat, contributes to decreased requirement when it comes to water and nutrients. Plants being grown under LED lights need around 30% less water and nutrients.
With 50,000 hrs of burning life, LED have proven to be long lasting alternative, making monitoring equipments such as a ballast completely redundant. Low electricity usage makes them safer to use, as they are less fragile compared to their HID counterparts.

However, the LED light lacks the illumination intensity that of the HID light, thus making them quite insufficient for large scale indoor projects. Generally used in combination with HID grow lights, LED have found a perfect place in case of tending of houseplants. Absence of the white glare which generally impart the restriction on placement of houseplants, the variety of colorful display of LED lights add on to the aesthetic character of any room.

However, LED lights using electricity up to 600 nm are in developmental line, which are proposed to provide enough illumination to compete with that of the HID lights.
Proper use of LED lights for an indoor garden

Use of LED lights for indoor plants, should be accompanied with proper follow up of instructions directed to procure the best results and to avoid unfavorable events.

Position of LED lights from the canopy is crucial. The intensity is the main factor to consider with proper distance of light from canopy is recommended as; 18-24 inch for 120 watt, 24-30 inch for 240 watt, 30-36 inch for 450 watt and up to 36-42 inch in case of 600-900 watts lights.

As LED light emits considerably less heat, temperature of grow room need to be regulated when switching from use of HID lights. The optimal temperature needed for growth should be maintained employing air conditioning units.

Even if Led lights permits you to maintain a light cycle up to 24 hrs, the dark time should be infused in the program to give the plants much needed rest. Water and nutrient requirement should be adjusted in relation to light source as well.

Plants with vegetative phase could use the blue version of LED lights, with a light cycle up to 18 hrs. The respective change as in introduction of red LED lights is recommended in flowering phase, for much shorter light cycle of 12 hrs.

Led lights have been found particularly useful for cloning processes, as first 2-3 weeks should see a light cycle of 18-20 hrs. In such scenario, the LED lights are positioned directly above the plants separated by few inches at most.

With proper implementation of recommended protocol, the LED lights could prove to the ideal light source for an indoor gardening project.

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