How to illuminate our cannabis cultivation space?

When we set out to set up an indoor marijuana self-cultivation space at home. There are many factors to take into account to achieve the best results. The type of quantum LED horticulture lighting and its power is one of the most important.

Depending on the type of light we use, we will have different advantages and disadvantages, facilitating possible errors in cannabis cultivation.

Certain types of bulbs will give us the best performance (lumen x watt ratio) but they also represent a source of heat that can cause problems for many growers, especially those who can only grow cannabis in small spaces or in particularly hot areas.

The right light spectrum for cannabis

When it comes to the color of the light spectrum, marijuana plants basically need blue light (450-500nm) during their growth stage and red light (610-750nm) during flowering.

During clone rooting and seedling growth, most growers use simple quantum LED horticulture lighting blue light bulbs. For plant growth and pre-flowering, some switch to lights with the same spectrum but higher power, such as HM bulbs. In this way the structure of the plant becomes stronger and more robust, preparing for abundant flowering.

Importance of color temperature for indoor plants

As we have said before, the ideal for growing plants indoors is to have access to all the colors of the light spectrum. However, not all plants or under all circumstances use the full spectrum; where the color red and blue are two of the most important.

• Blue uses to promote bushy plant growth, vegetation, and seed germination in the “growth stage”.
• Red quantum LED horticulture lighting serves to encourage budding, flowering and fruiting.

What happens if we do not have access to broad spectrum lights? What is the alternative to these expensive lights? We can make a combination of lights to get the right spectrum for our indoor plants.

White LED manufacturers make the LED chips so they can “dial in” the highest lumen rating (the light your eyes can see). Green and yellow “boost” to achieve maximum brightness in lumens.

Additionally, white LEDs are specifically designed to reduce the colors that plants want most for growth: red and infrared light.

Quantum LED horticulture lighting: an energy-saving light bulb or CFL

Red spectrum lights are used to flower plants, as it is the color that best mimics the natural spectrum outdoors during the fall months when cannabis flowers naturally.

The most used in this case HPS lamps, follow increasingly closely by LED systems due to their good results, lower consumption and low heat emission, which is the main drawback of high-pressure sodium (HPS) systems.

On the other hand, green light and marijuana do not conflict, it does not affect the plants, so it is the spectrum color chosen by those growers who want to work on the crop when the lights are off, without causing any stress to the plants. your flowering plants.

Quantum LED horticulture lighting for marijuana

As we have mentioned, they are the ideal type of light to root cuttings and start seeds. The low power needed during these phases, their low consumption and the little heat they emit make them perfect for this purpose.

We can find the classic lighting systems with fluorescent tubes or CFL (Compact fluorescent light) low-consumption light bulbs, which are still fluorescent tubes in light bulb format, with the typical socket for lamp holders.

The CFLs have a built-in ballast, so you just have to screw them into the reflector and connect. Fluorescents typically range from 18 to 55W per tube, while quantum LED horticulture lighting is typically found in 100, 150, 200 and 240W, 320W, 480W (also available with red spectrum, to minimize heat during flowering).

With a low consumption light bulb, fluorescent or HM lamps, we can easily maintain different genetics in a vegetative state.

LED horticulture lighting: Metal halide or HM lamps

If what we want is an explosive growth of plants during their growth phase, HM bulbs are the best option. Its spectrum is perfect for this stage and we can find lamps with a much higher power than fluorescent and CFLs.

These types of quantum LED horticulture lighting need a ballast to turn on, which are usually compatible with both HM bulbs and high-pressure sodium or HPS bulbs, normally used for flowering.

If we are going to use the same ballast for growth and flowering. We must take into account the watts, since we will have to use them. For example, 400w or 600w bulbs and ballasts, etc. The most common is to find them of 250, 400 and 600W.

A more compact and bushy structure, perfect for an abundant flowering

These bulbs offer excellent results also during the pre-flowering phase (first 2-3 weeks of flowering). In which the plants will not stretch as much as with quantum LED horticulture lighting. In addition to creating a more compact and bushy structure, perfect for abundant flowering.

The use of artificial lighting or “grow lights” is crucial and necessary to achieve the desired results with certain types of houseplants. All plants need light for photosynthesis to occur, however, the amount of light for each species, genus or type can differ drastically from one another.

In addition, the amount of light needed differs at each time of year. Many indoor plants have a period of inactivity or rest, so an excess of light would be exhausting and unhealthy for them.

To choose the quantum LED horticulture lighting for indoor cultivation or gardening, several factors must be considered, such as: what use will be given to the light, the type of indoor plant, the intensity of the light, lumens, the color of the light, the space where the plants will be, and the type of lighting you want to use.

Light intensity and spectrum for indoor plants

Before discussing what type of grow lights are suitable for each case and each plant, it is useful to understand the basics of light intensity and spectrum.

The spectrum of the different types of light bulbs

The best light for plants is sunlight, which contains all colors, also known as ” the full spectrum.” Different species need different amounts of light to thrive, and quantum LED horticulture lighting mimics these ranges of sunlight much better and on a broader scale than bright white light.