The Importance Of Mixed Lighting

Chase1126

New Member
It is common knowledge that plants absorb warm and cool spectrum of light throughout its life. But I find that the importance of mixed lighting is understressed throughout the growing community.
During the flowering phase of a plants life. Warm light is better utilized to increase the size of a marijuana plants buds. As CFL growers we tend to pile up on 2700k bulbs to increase our yield. In most cases, growers assume that warm light not only grants us larger buds, but insures that those buds are of connoisseur quality as well. This is not to say that one can not achieve a very successful crop off of pure warm spectrum lighting. We see it all the time as members of the RIU community. But as CFL growers, almost all of us demand a higher efficiency for our dollar.
So what does this mean? Clearly I'm trying to emphasize the necessity of cool lighting during the flowering phase of a marijuana plants life. But why? Well thats simple. As many of you may have heard or read before, Cool lighting (6500k) introduces a UVB spectrum that benefits the potency of the buds our plants are producing.
" The writer's own experience allow for a more specific conclusion: If the UVB photon is missing from the light stream(a), or the intensity as expressed in µW/cm2 falls below a certain level(b), the phytochemical process will not be completely energized with only UVA photons which are more penetrating but less energetic, and the harvested resin spheres will have mostly precursor compounds and not fully realized THC(c). " (http://www.greenmanspage.com/guides/thc.html)
Now it would be completely unreasonable to ask a grower using a 1000watt HPS to switch out for MH lighting even though it produces quality of the weed. Sticking with blue spectrum lighting in a plants flowering phase would greatly decrease the size of the buds and the yield of the plant. People using high wattage systems tend to grow for cash crop. No single person really needs a pound of weed.
" “Metal halide produce the best potent weed less lumens for the money but better smoke. After years of testing with some friends who did want to keep THEIR recipe (more hps) i foung there weed to be harsh, full of CBD, make me eat and sleep, only good to sell to someone else taht you dislike. The blue spectrum will give you a final product that have everything included :taste without curing, potency and yield, To be effective a ratio of 2 MH for 1 hps at the most.(hps) Hps alone can produce a cash crop but not a connaisseur crop.
Et Voila...” " (https://www.rollitup.org/advanced-marijuana-cultivation/36368-trichomes-thc-uvb-light.html)
For lower wattage growers who grow for self use, and are not on a low budget, it would be beneficial to replace their HPS with an MH for the last week or two of budding. This is because the last weeks of a plants life before harvesting is dedicated to the ripening of the buds, and not the growth of the bud itself. It would not greatly impact the yield of the plant, but have a great effect on the quality. Interesting, but this only applies to a few amount of growers that fit this category.
As CFL growers, we would be fools to ignore such information. It is astonishing that so many fantastic growers to not utilize cool lighting even to a small supplemental degree. We owe it to our selfs to scrounge up a few bucks in change and take a drive to Home Depot. Buy a pack of 6500k bulbs (26watts tend to be popular) and set them somewhere not far off from your buds. Don't let your hard work return with unsatisfaction. Added quality with increased quantity(more light). Mixed lighting should be standard knowledge, not found in the advanced cultivation section.

Side Note: Reptile lighting found at pet stores is not ideal for UVB lighting. Yes they do emit a high % of UVB than regular CFLs but they output less light and emit over 12x more UVA light than UVB light which can harm your plant.
 

GrowTech

stays relevant.
most people dont jump to check out new threads of members that they dont know... once you offer up lots of guides, great information, etc you will get a lot more views of people interested in what you have to say :)
 

Chase1126

New Member
most people dont jump to check out new threads of members that they dont know... once you offer up lots of guides, great information, etc you will get a lot more views of people interested in what you have to say :)
I know. Thats why I backed up my information. Thanks for taking a look.
Everyone has to start somewhere. I'm just trying to give back to the community that taught me to grow.
 

v12xjs

Well-Known Member
Good info. I tend to agree that 10 - 15% blue spectrum makes a noticeable difference to health and potency of plants. I was considering a uvb bulb but I may reconsider if the uva output is counterproductive. Thanks for the post.
 

Chillums

Well-Known Member
I knew that blue lights helped in flower. But I did not know how much! I am going to go buy 100watts of 6500K rite now to suppletment my 400watts of 2700K. +rep for you. Happy growing.
 

Roseman

Elite Rolling Society
Excellent Post and Thread. I try and try to tell CFL growers about DUAL Spectrum, meaning TWO or BOTH kinds of rays or kevins are needed.

would you please copy and paste that first post to my CFL Tutorial Thread, so more will see it?

Here:

CFL Tutorial -
 

yeldarb

Well-Known Member
Cool man, thanks for the information. I am all 2700k 200w at the moment I may switch out two 30w 2700k for 2 42w 6500k.

later days
 

John400HPS

Well-Known Member
This sounds like some good information, but im not sure how it translates to cfl growers. I grow with one plant with 5 26 watt cfl's, each on a different bud. So if i was to replace 1 with a 6500k bulb id have 4 buds getting 2700k light and 1 bud getting 6500k light. How can changing a couple of bulbs affect the whole plant, when each bulb only effects a small part of the plant
 

LightFusion

Well-Known Member
awesome thread...i'm glad i stuck all my 6500k cfl's in my grow area when i started flowering, i initially did it to just add more light but now i see its gona make my weed more dank....and i'm thinkin bout switching for my mh bulb every few days as i'm nearing the end of my grow.
 

Chase1126

New Member
I knew that blue lights helped in flower. But I did not know how much! I am going to go buy 100watts of 6500K rite now to suppletment my 400watts of 2700K. +rep for you. Happy growing.
I'm glad I could help.

Excellent Post and Thread. I try and try to tell CFL growers about DUAL Spectrum, meaning TWO or BOTH kinds of rays or kevins are needed.

would you please copy and paste that first post to my CFL Tutorial Thread, so more will see it?

Here:

CFL Tutorial -
Sure, I would be happy to. Thanks for helping me spread the information.

This sounds like some good information, but im not sure how it translates to cfl growers. I grow with one plant with 5 26 watt cfl's, each on a different bud. So if i was to replace 1 with a 6500k bulb id have 4 buds getting 2700k light and 1 bud getting 6500k light. How can changing a couple of bulbs affect the whole plant, when each bulb only effects a small part of the plant
I'm glad you brought this up. A lot of CFL growers do use one bulb per one bud. I understand that growers using 26 watt bulbs are especially restricted this way. I did not give great emphasis to the use of blue spectrum lighting through supplimenting existing systems. A 26 watt 6500k bulb set in a central area of the plant where all bud sites would receive light equally would be ideal for your one plant setup. If your grow space can afford the added heat, and has enough space, cool lighting placed more distant from individual bud sites will still benefit the potency of your crop. Its not the perfect setup, but I'm not suggesting that people attempt to achieve the perfect balance of mixed lighting. The addition of blue lighting, even in small amounts, will benefit the quality of your bud enough to reflect visually, and when its time to light up. For people that grow multiple plants with CFLs, (with methods like SCOG ect.. especially) Lighting isn't quite as limited to one bulb per bud, and they would see a greater % of benefit.

awesome thread...i'm glad i stuck all my 6500k cfl's in my grow area when i started flowering, i initially did it to just add more light but now i see its gona make my weed more dank....and i'm thinkin bout switching for my mh bulb every few days as i'm nearing the end of my grow.
If you do, be sure to let me know how it works out. I would love to see how greatly it benefits your buds potency. I have not had the chance to get my hands on an MH yet.
 

NorthWest69

Active Member
Awesome Thread. Pretty much all information I already knew :cool:, but I was particulary interested in what you were saying about UVB bulbs. Maybe you can talk about them more. I was under the impression that the more UV light the better. I have a plant under 1 x repti-glo 2.0, 26 watts, 1 x 20 watt 3000K bulb and it's getting light from a 130 watt 2700K light. So I thought this plant was getting optimal lighting. It's flowering and looks very healthy but I expected more bud growth by now. Am I just growing smaller high quality nugs, or am I partly damaging my plant witht he UVA from my Repti-glo 2.0.

Now my reptiglo is on 12 hours, and is placed about 3 inches away from the plant. Maybe you can talk about the difference between repti-glo 1.0 and 2.0. And what it the best way to use repti bulbs, if at all? Or if you just be better using 6700k 26 watt cfls. <so they have UVB too?

thanks, peace
 

NorthWest69

Active Member
Awesome Thread. Pretty much all information I already knew :cool:, but I was particulary interested in what you were saying about UVB bulbs. Maybe you can talk about them more. I was under the impression that the more UV light the better. I have a plant under 1 x repti-glo 2.0, 26 watts, 1 x 20 watt 3000K bulb and it's getting light from a 130 watt 2700K light. So I thought this plant was getting optimal lighting. It's flowering(4 weeks, Indica) and looks very healthy but I expected more bud growth by now. Do you think I'm just growing smaller high quality nugs? Or am I partly damaging my plant with the UVA from my Repti-glo 2.0.

My reptiglo is on 12 hours, and is placed about 3 inches away from the plant. Maybe you can talk about the difference between repti-glo 1.0 and 2.0. And just what is the best way to use repti bulbs, if at all? Or if you'd just be better using 6700k 26 watt cfls. <so they have UVB too?

thanks, peace
 

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Chase1126

New Member
Awesome Thread. Pretty much all information I already knew :cool:, but I was particulary interested in what you were saying about UVB bulbs. Maybe you can talk about them more. I was under the impression that the more UV light the better. I have a plant under 1 x repti-glo 2.0, 26 watts, 1 x 20 watt 3000K bulb and it's getting light from a 130 watt 2700K light. So I thought this plant was getting optimal lighting. It's flowering and looks very healthy but I expected more bud growth by now. Am I just growing smaller high quality nugs, or am I partly damaging my plant witht he UVA from my Repti-glo 2.0.

Now my reptiglo is on 12 hours, and is placed about 3 inches away from the plant. Maybe you can talk about the difference between repti-glo 1.0 and 2.0. And what it the best way to use repti bulbs, if at all? Or if you just be better using 6700k 26 watt cfls. <so they have UVB too?

thanks, peace
I will do some research to try and give you the best answer. But from what I understand. UV light in large quantities can damage the DNA of a plant and in turn, hinder plant growth. I have read where people only turn on their UV lights for a portion of the plants light cycle. This may be due to UV damage. But I will have to do more research to back this up because there are not many people who use UV bulbs, and I can't give you a sure answer off hand. But if it gives you sun burn... what can it do to your plants. I wonder if the use of suntan lotion will allow maximum growth for plants in the future.:lol:

In your case, if you are worried about the size of plant growth, the addition of another warm bulb is never a bad choice. How close is your warm bulb from your buds?
I will get back to you with this soon.(My internet is about to go down to get fixed)

Edit: Your grow looks great! Congrats.
 

H2Blown

Member
I like to use both kinds, nice info by the way. I alternate the different types of lights each day. think it's a win win
 

NorthWest69

Active Member
You're stoned H2Blown:joint:, cause I have no idea what you're talking about.

Something else maybe you could expand on. Does the light in the blue spectrum range always mean there's UVB?
I know MH has way more UVB than HPS. For the CFL grower, does this mean the 6700K "blue light" bulbs can providing all the UVB required during flowering?
 

Chase1126

New Member
You're stoned H2Blown:joint:, cause I have no idea what you're talking about.

Something else maybe you could expand on. Does the light in the blue spectrum range always mean there's UVB?
I know MH has way more UVB than HPS. For the CFL grower, does this mean the 6700K "blue light" bulbs can providing all the UVB required during flowering?
Light in the blue spectrum range doesn't always mean there is UVB. I have a nice read I'll try to find for you. You are right about MH having way more uvb than HPS. Well technically speaking, no UVB is required during flowering. But plants will benefit from its existence. Can you achieve the maximum uvb coverage with CFLs? I don't know, is it even practical?

I'm still struggling with internet. The Verizon guy came today and fixed it for 30 min, but now pages are taking forever to to load again.
 
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