That time of year.

[jackb]

How quickly the summer went by. Today at only six p.m. I had to turn the supplemental lighting on. Although it appears they are using a lot of electricity, in total it is only slightly more than one hundred watts.
jackb

 

[ninnymary]

Well hello stranger, welcome back!

Mary

 

[jackb]

Hi Mary, I have been stopping by, just did not have much to add. We added another raised bed for Miss Ava, as she wants to grow garlic next year. There was a garlic fest in Bennington Vermont Labor Day weekend and Theresa and I bought several varieties of garlic for her to plant in October. We have about 150 good sized cloves for her to plant. Going to be a might smelly around here next summer but she loves garlic pickles.
Jack

 

[so lucky]

Jack, does Ava like pickled okra? I don't know if okra will grow in your zone, but if she likes garlic pickles, I bet she would love pickled okra. My son and grand daughters each could eat a whole jar at one setting.

 

[jackb]

Our season is much too short for okra, and I doubt she would ever try it. She is a "picky" eater and I am amazed she eats my pickles. She says: "they are better than bottled pickles." Theresa purchased a large fermenting crock for us to make the pickles and the smell of garlic is strong. Ava loves to get in the car and breathe on her dad, which usually gets him going.
Jack

 

[digitS']

It can't be wattage that makes a difference, @jackb . Lumens, yes?

Does that little wattage really make for enough lumens to encourage plant growth? These new lights are really a wonder!

The supplemental lighting that went into the rose greenhouses when I worked there was from 1,000 watt sodium vapor lights. I wish I'd paid more attention but I can't remember even how many square feet they were expected to cover ... just glad I wasn't expected to help with the installation .

It was several hundred square feet. They really did make a difference. Production leaped! They even made a difference in what varieties we grew.

Steve

 

[jackb]

Steve,
It is spectrum that makes the difference. These lights are tuned to only the spectrum plants need for photosynthesis. They use mostly red and blue, all of the other colors produced by bulbs are pretty much a waste of electricity. The average wattage is about 20 watts. I keep them close to the growing tips for maximum effect of the lights. They are good for overcast days, of which we get a lot this time of year. My objective is to get as much growth from the plants before the long winter indoors with lower light levels and reduced photoperiod. You could not grow a decent plant with just these. For growing indoors I use the same spectrum, but the lights range from 150 to 400 watts. The 400 watt light will far out produce a 1000 watt incandescent grow light. If you have an interest in the technical aspects of plant lighting then PAR value is what you should be looking at. Here is a helpful link:
'jackb

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Photosynthetically_active_radiation

 

[digitS']

Interesting!

Article helps make clear light colors ~ and ~ plant pigments.

"Degrading" in autumn ... because nitrogen is lost as ammonia and where would magnesium go?

I'll leave you alone @jackb . Twenty questions each time you show just shows we miss you.

Steve

 

[AMKuska]

That's so interesting! Thanks for sharing! This is something I want to study a little bit more, as I hope to experiment with indoor growing this year.

 

[canesisters]

Well Jackb is THE GO-TO GUY for indoor growing info!