Although sunlight is a primary need of garden plants sometimes grow lights provide the better option when growing the plants indoors.
Artificial light vs sunlight plant growth.
Plants should receive 16 to 18 hours of artificial light each day.
Unfortunately many artificial light sources produce more of the green and yellow wavelengths which provide very little energy for plants.
As with sunlight the plant might reach for the light bulb.
Technological advances in plant lighting make it possible to extend growing seasons and even grow species in zones that won t support them naturally.
Even if you keep your house lights on every day the light will be diffused throughout the room and the lack of intensity will make your seedling plants get leggy.
Plants using only artificial light should have the tips of their leaves placed six to 12 inches from the light.
Understanding sunlight vs artificial light in plant growth.
There are many different types of grow lights for plants.
Rotate the plant or place it directly under the light source.
Others emit red or blue light but not both.
Sunlight is rich in red and blue hues both of which are extremely important to plant growth.
But the light from the sun is different from a street lamp another way.
Most artificial light doesn t emit as much energy in the red and blue region of the light spectrum as sunlight does.
Sunlight if you re starting your seeds in march or february the length and intensity of the sunlight is not going to be enough to make your seedlings grow.
Plants grow better in sunlight than in artificial light although both sunlight and artificial light provide the energy required for plants to grow.