Growing Veggies Indoors - Light Advice Needed Please

Hi there,

Due to the nasty weather where I live I am turning my spare room at home into an indoor greenhouse, the room is 2.5m x 3m. Obviously I will be providing all the lighting.

I know space and using the available light will be top priorities so I will have crops on tables in the middle of the room and vertical systems around the walls.

All growing will be hydroponic.

As I see it there are four main options -

• hang large wattage HPS/MH bulbs from the ceiling to create an even spread of light around the room.
• have lower wattage HPS/MH bulbs with reflectors using a more 'aimed' approach.
• hang loads of CFLs at various levels around the room.
• use CFLs, probably tubes in a reflector unit, and have them aimed.

The crops I will be growing will be: spinach, Swiss chard, watercress, bok choi (spelling*), one type of tomato, cucumber, aubergine, courgette (can you image those last three in a bubbler bucket each and some good lighting ... they'd take over the room!) and strawberries.

Also ... something got me wondering about length of light/darkness for each plant, considering they are all in one room.

I'd love some feedback as my Swiss chard, spinach, watercress and bok choi have sprouted already.

Thanks.

(I know this is all going to be quite expensive with regards to the electricity bill ... not to worry, I am making a wind turbine as well)

why not try several lighting options all wrapped into one convenient plan? you could do a vertical grow in a corner, get some CFL tubes going along the walls and hang some MH/HPS from ceiling. probably would be costly though lol.

have you considered t5's as an option?
i was recently promo-ed a fixture+reflector from sunblaster --they make single-tube units in various lengths that you can hook together with more for customisability.... up to 8 units i think?
much more versatile than the 4/8/12/16 tube units on the market (of which i have several and love).

Is there a reason you are not including LED as an option? Wondering, since you said electricity may be coming form a turbine and they are definitely efficient.

I like T5's and CFL's. There's less heat

HID lighting is the best light for growing any kinds of plants..I have used a 400w and grown some monster tomato plants...so...

missnu said:

HID lighting is the best light for growing any kinds of plants..I have used a 400w and grown some monster tomato plants...so...

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indeed, i agree. if you have the resources, definitely go HID.

but, i will add that my best plants receive light from both light sources (main=HID, supplemental=T5)

pathfinder05 said:

The crops I will be growing will be: spinach, Swiss chard, watercress, bok choi (spelling*), one type of tomato, cucumber, aubergine, courgette (can you image those last three in a bubbler bucket each and some good lighting ... they'd take over the room!) and strawberries.

Also ... something got me wondering about length of light/darkness for each plant, considering they are all in one room.

Click to expand...

they should all do fine under the same light cycle; temperature, on the other hand, may vary (hence why different things thrive at different times of the season)... you probably want to figure out where the warmest spots in the room are and prioritise those spots for the fruits/veggies over the leafies.

Here's one of my t5 indoor set-ups!! There's 6 2ft tubes and 4 1ft tubes.. Total initial lumens is around 12,500. Maybe this can give you some ideas?! It has a seedling tray on the left! I have no heat issue with this set-up. My last one needed a fan on + the A/C had to be lower to compensate for heat. This is where fluro's shine -temp control!

Guys, how awesome are you all?????

Many many thanks for all that kick ass info.

I will take your info into account and have a good read up on stuff.

I will also look into LEDs ... they might work better on leafy veg than a weed grown by extremely dedicated and passionate connoisseurs.

TexRx .... what is that you are growing?

I'll keep you all updated with the progress.

pathfinder05 said:

TexRx .... what is that you are growing?

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^^^ It's called a Snake Plant. It's a very durable indoor plant that can deal with low light and neglect. I've got mine in some good soil, under some light and they are properly water It's doing well. My growth is pretty fast considering this is typically a slow growing plant

pathfinder05 said:

Guys, how awesome are you all?????

I will also look into LEDs ... they might work better on leafy veg than a weed grown by extremely dedicated and passionate connoisseurs.

Click to expand...

This is a video I saw specifically with lettuce and LED for something like 30 days on stop motion. Fun to watch, especially when it looks like their roots set and they take off.

Good luck with your project.