Skip to main content

Starting Seeds Inside: Grow Lights

I live in New Jersey and am not a fan of the winter.  It is sooooooooooo cold and that make me stay inside, the plants and trees are no longer green, and that the days are dark by 4:30pm.  To help break up the winter months a bit, I began starting my plants that I use in my garden from seed inside my home.  I have started many different plants from seed including: basil, rosemary, dill, oregano, cilantro, bell peppers, varieties of hot peppers, varieties of tomatoes, cucumbers pickles, zucchini, pumpkins, watermelon, eggplant, johnny jump ups, pansies, petunias, calibrachoa, vinca, and marigolds.

There are so many different options for grow lights.  When I first bought a grow light, I bought a miniature one, forgetting how excessive I become when I really love something.  Fortunately I was able to exchange it for a bigger one and boy was I impressed.  I buy a lot of my gardening equipment and accessories from https://www.gardeners.com/  They have very high quality products, are so nice, and are so knowledgeable.    Below is a picture of my grow lights.

Here is the link to the grow lights that I personally own: https://www.gardeners.com/buy/t5-grow-light-stand-three-shelves/39-357.html  

I also have a light fixture that I hung from my basement ceiling.  What I love about this grow light is that you can set it up on a table like I did and then use the cords to lower it and raise it, just like with my other grow lights.  But... with this one, you have so much more room to raise and lower it for taller plants.  I use this one for when either my plants get to large and cannot fit under these lights (sometimes they grow quicker than I expected) or I use them for plants I order online that come earlier than I expect, despite the companies always saying that they ship out specific to our grow zones.  This year I had peonies and climbing rose bushes under this grow light..  Below is a picture of my ceiling grow light.


Here is the link for my ceiling light: https://www.gardeners.com/buy/high-intensity-grow-light-fixture/8587079.html  

There are so many different options for you to choose from, so choose what is best for you and if you get confused, you can always call them and explain what you are trying to do and they can give you some suggestions. My best recommendation for you when shopping for grow lights is to be realistic.  Think about what you plant outside, think about something you have always wanted to plant but did not and then base it on that.  It is basically thinking backwards so that you will buy something big enough to accommodate your needs. Thinking backwards sometimes helps with planning.  I will talk more about this concept when discussing how to set up your first veggie garden. 


Comments

  1. I am very grateful that I got some useful knowledge from this post. Thank you so much for posting it. Keep it up.Grow lights in canada

    ReplyDelete
  2. You have given great content here.Lighting Experts I am glad to discover this post as I found lots of valuable data in your article. Thanks for sharing an article like this.

    ReplyDelete

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

How to Make a Floral Arrangement

Just like my wreaths, I have made many floral arrangements, but have never sold them or really paid attention to technique.   I kind of just, made them.  When I started my wreath business, I began to really pay attention to the Do's and Don'ts of design and color theory.  My wreath business just celebrated its' three year anniversary of opening this past January and now I have begun selling floral arrangements. There are so many amazing books I have read that have helped me to learn more of the "technical side" of creating floral arrangements.  My first favorite book is  Floret Farm's A Year in Flowers .  I first learned of this farm when I visited the New York Botanical Gardens last year and purchased  Floret Farm's Cut Flower Garden .  I created my first, REAL cut flower garden last year and this book was beyond helpful.  My second favorite book for creating floral arrangements is  Flower Color Theory    Both of these bo...

How to Make a Fall Pumpkin Floral Arrangement

 One thing I have learned about floral design is that you can really use anything as a vessel to create an arrangement.  And one of my favorites for the fall is a pumpkin.  There are two types of pumpkin that you can use to make this: a foam pumpkin or a craft pumpkin. A craft pumpkin is awesome for carving because it is a hollow inside.  They are usually more expensive.  For this pumpkin, you cut a small hole on top, insert a plastic cup/container, then add flowers. A foam pumpkin is filled with foam.  So when you cut off the top, all you have to do is stick the flower stems into the foam and they will stay in place. For this pumpkin arrangement, I am using a foam pumpkin.  Below you will find a video and a link to youtube to see how I made this: https://youtube.com/shorts/PdDfUrcD6Ic?si=HPYAo6hpbeqLCRwV For this flower arrangement, I used a variety of sunflowers, berries, boxwood, and autumn fillers.  One of the most important things to do is to...

Different Ways to Preserve and Store a Wreath

 I have been asked so many times, how I store all of my wreaths.  Since I make wreaths and am fortunate to have a work space in my home, I have all of my wreaths either on wreath stands or hanging on the wall using thumbtacks.  Purchasing a high quality wreath can be costly, I know, but it is all worth it, especially if you learn how to store and preserve it.  To start, I always recommend my customers to try to keep their wreath in a protected location outside, avoiding full, direct sun.  If left in the elements, the wreath will not last long as rain and strong winds can be damaging.  The sun also fades the colors in the wreath.  Sometimes, this is unavoidable, but you must be prepared to most likely purchase a new wreath each year. If you are able to keep the wreath somewhat protected outside, then you will most likely be able to use it the following year if not years.  There are many different ways you can store a wreath and also many ways you s...