It is very important to choose the right bulbs for growing indoor, greenhouse and aquarium plants. If you make a mistake in your choice, further consequences can be disappointing: seedlings (or algae) may simply not have enough light, which can stop their growth or more serious problems- too bright lighting and the release of heat will burn the leaves, which will lead to the death of the plant world. To avoid various kinds of trouble, you need to know which lamps for plants are better to choose, buy and use in the future. Below we will provide you with a comparison of all the most popular types: from incandescent bulbs to LEDs.
Overview of existing bulbs
To make the information easier to perceive, we will simultaneously list all existing types lamps that are best suited for lighting and growing plants, and immediately talk about how rationally use each option.
So, today, to illuminate the plant world in the house, you can choose and use such light sources as:
- ... The cheapest and not recommended option for many reasons: have short term service, low light output (up to 17 lm / W) and significant heat generation. As a result, seedlings or indoor flowers in a pot will not receive required amount light, as a result of which this will negatively affect the growth rate and, accordingly, the correct cultivation. In addition, a light bulb that is too powerful can burn the leaves if it is placed next to the plant. Bottom line - this option in no case should be used at home, because it is best to choose the more modern and efficient types of lamps, which we will talk about below.
- Fluorescent (energy saving) lamps. It is much more advisable to choose this option and use it to illuminate vegetation in the house, greenhouse and directly in the aquarium. Energy efficient light sources have many advantages, such as high light output, low heat generation and economy, which makes them a good option for lighting indoor and aquarium plants. In addition, there are special fluorescent phytolamps that are intended only for growing seedlings and flowers.
- LED bulbs. LEDs are the youngest type of light bulbs, which in a short period of time managed to gain high interest in various fields of application. LED bulbs are better for plants due to the fact that they consume minimal amount electricity, practically do not emit heat and, moreover, there may be a different spectrum of light radiation, which allows you to choose suitable LED bulbs for your own type of plants in the house.
- Gas-charged (sodium, mercury, metal halide). It is necessary to dwell on this version of lighting products in more detail, because not all gas charging lamps are suitable for growing plants. Mercury lamps are among the worst options for plant growth in the home, greenhouse, and aquarium. This is due to the fact that they have a luminous flux almost 2 times less than sodium and metal halide light sources. In addition, the light spectrum of mercury products itself is not quite suitable for the development and further growth of seedlings, flowers, and algae. As for sodium lamps, they glow brightly yellow-orange, which is very much in line with natural sunlight. Expert review - it is better to choose and use mercury bulbs for growing flower plants... Well, the last option - metal halide lamps are the most expensive, but at the same time, the most suitable light sources for those representatives of the "green world" who prefer vegetative growth rather than flowering.
So we told you which lamps are suitable for lighting and growing indoor plants... We draw your attention to the fact that for the home the most best options in terms of price and efficiency, CFL fluorescent lamps will be, which have a luminous efficiency of 80 to 100 lm / W. If you can waste a little more, it is better to opt for LED plant bulbs, which still outperform the sodium bulbs previously used in greenhouses and greenhouses!
To learn more about which bulbs are best suited for growing seedlings (for example, tomatoes) or flowers, you can watch the video examples:
How to arrange lighting correctly?
You have familiarized yourself with what kind of lamps for growing plants are, and you probably already know which version of light sources to choose for your own conditions. Now we will briefly tell you how best to organize the backlight so as not to harm flora in the House. 
The first thing to consider is the height from the fixtures to the leaves. Minimum distance should be 15 cm if the plant is light-loving and 55 cm if shade-tolerant. In addition, the light should fall on flower pots or seedlings (or aquarium flora) strictly at right angles. Otherwise, the plants will reach for the light and take on an ugly shape.
Second, each specific species of flora requires its own specific light spectrum. Some flowers need a blue spectrum, some need a red one. First of all, you should ask florists or read on the Internet about the requirements for growing your favorite plant, and then choose the right lamps.
Third, if for some reason you did not find a light bulb with suitable characteristics light output and spectrum, you can organize combined lighting, for example with lamps daylight simultaneously with phytolamps, etc.
I do not like( 0 )Each of us has indoor plants in the house that help add a bit of comfort to our interior.
Available today whole line various types of living plants. They differ in their shape and size. Each type provides for certain conditions of detention.
Some need a lot of light, others, on the contrary, minimal.
Insufficient lighting can lead to the premature death of a cultivated species. Alternative solution this problem, there will be additional lighting for indoor flowers.
It should be noted that the lighting process should not be too intense. It is important to consider its normal flow here.
The main signs of insufficient lighting
With insufficient sunlight, the plant quickly begins to change its appearance... The leaves acquire a less saturated color, and sometimes they simply begin to crumble. In some cases, the appearance of round spots on the surface of the sheet plate is possible.
The flower increases markedly in height. The stem becomes thinner and lifeless.
If one of these symptoms is found, it is necessary to change its location on the window opening.
For quick plant recovery, you can install an additional light source. How to arrange lighting for indoor plants? Everything is simple enough.
For this you will need:
- LED Strip Light;
- table or stationary lamp designed for indoor plants.
To normalize the life process of plants, there are special varieties lamp lighting.
For each type, it is necessary to select the appropriate intensity artificial radiation... The photo of the backlighting of indoor flowers shows a variety of designs.
Tropical species need more powerful devices... As for indoor violets and orchids, a small stream of illumination is enough for them. These devices have several simulation modes. solar radiation.
How to choose?
The main thing in this matter is to choose the most suitable intensity of light rays for most species.
In specialized departments, represented huge selection LED strip with changing light beams. This is where the maximum imitation of solar radiation is created. The work of such a lamp can take quite a long period of time.
In the event of a malfunction of such a backlight, the inoperative element can be easily replaced. This applies to both the whole segment and its individual parts. The LED strip sticks tightly to any surface.
Fluorescent lamps have been developed to save electrical energy. They are lightweight and simple in design.
An incandescent lamp is also suitable for lighting indoor flowers. The only drawback of such a device is its excessive power consumption.
The most budget option there is still an LED strip or table lamp with an energy saving light bulb. These types of designs are able to maintain optimal light flow in the dark.
Installation
In the process of creating an artificial light source, you need to think about its location. Incorrect supply of light rays can cause serious problems for a houseplant.
At the time of fixing or installing the device, it is recommended to take into account the maximum distance from the pot to the lamp. In this case, you can stick to 30 cm.
If burns or light spots begin to appear on the surface of the leaves, then it is necessary to increase the distance of light. Uniform dispersion, helps indoor flowers maintain their beautiful appearance.
Photo lighting for indoor flowers
The issue of landscaping an apartment is simple in itself. There are more than 1000 types of indoor plants for sale. On this occasion, many books, articles in magazines, instructions, etc. have been published. But almost all of them consider finding indoor plants at natural light, even if in partial shade.
Why do plants need good lighting?
Plants need lighting for photosynthesis, after which special substances appear that are for them energy and base material... First of all, the formation of this substance will depend on the volume and quality of the illumination energy absorbed by the leaves. But chlorophyll, which directly transforms the luminous flux into organic compounds, has pronounced absorption maxima in the blue and red ranges of the spectrum. At the same time, it absorbs the yellow and orange spectrum rather weakly and does not absorb infrared and green rays at all.
In addition to chlorophyll, pigments such as carotenoids take part in the absorption of light. As a rule, they are invisible in the leaves due to the presence of chlorophyll, but in autumn time when it breaks down, the carotenoids give the foliage an orange and yellow... In the process of photosynthesis, they are of no small importance, since they absorb rays of light in the blue and violet spectrum, these colors prevail on cloudy days.
What does a houseplant need?
The need of plants for lighting largely depends on the temperature in the room, the warmer it is in the room, the more light the plant needs. Thus, the plants in winter time falls worst in a poorly heated and poorly illuminated room.
Light mode... The duration of daylight hours is not an important role in the life of any plants. For equatorial flowers, which are accustomed to almost constant natural light at 12 o'clock, most likely they will not like our geographical location, when the minimum daylight hours lasts up to 7 hours, and the maximum day is more than 15 hours.
Supplementary lighting and artificial lighting for plants
First, let us determine when it really is additional lighting of plants is required:
- During the keeping of plants in winter and autumn at temperatures above 22C in regions with very short daylight hours.
- When keeping plants on windowsills with direct sunlight less than 3.5 hours.
- During the maintenance of seedlings of plants in winter and autumn in regions where cloudy weather prevails.
In other cases, installing additional lighting is simply unjustified and, to some extent, will be a useless waste of money and effort.
During supplementary lighting of plants, it is necessary take into account such factors:
Artificial lighting for indoor plants
It is forbidden to use classic incandescent lamps alone: there is no violet in their spectrum and of blue color, and infrared radiation creates stretching of flowers, their strong heating, drying of leaves and useless electricity consumption.
Such special neodymium incandescent bulbs advertised today do not show significant improvement. These include Paulmann Phyto-lamps, OSRAM lamps, etc. Despite their high illumination due to reflective spraying and small angle light, their spectral indicators practically do not differ from simple incandescent lamps.
Slightly better effect can be achieved by using halogen bulbs. But, despite the more positive spectrum composition and increased light output, this type of lamp is hardly optimal, since the filament creates a large release of thermal energy.
You can maintain an attractive appearance of flowers and grow seedlings with the help of backlight white fluorescent lamps, they create cold light (their spectrum is as close as possible to the solar spectrum). Since these lamps are not very powerful, several of them are installed simultaneously in special reflectors that enhance the flow of light and prevent flickering lighting from entering the room.
As a rule, their disadvantages are reduced to the increased diffusion of the light flux (for sufficient light, many lamps are required) and to the quality of the lighting created. Fluorescent lamps have a lot of blue in their spectrum, so they only need to be installed in combination with others.
The purpose of fluorescent lamps is to illuminate shelves with flowers, supplementary lighting of plants on the window. It is almost impossible to fully grow flowers that are very demanding on lighting under fluorescent lamps.
Phyto-fluorescent lamps in the form of tubes are actually effective in the process of photosynthesis, economical, create uniform light on the surface and heat up slightly during operation, this makes it possible to install them close to flowers. But their pinkish backlighting is unnatural for people, irritates the mucous membranes and significantly changes the visual perception of the decorativeness of flowers.
Phyto-lamps with several peaks of light emission in the blue and red spectrum, specially made for flowers, they are also perfect for young shoots and growing seedlings. You can choose phytolamps with more natural lighting, but the efficiency of these lamps is slightly lower, due to the radiation in the unused spectrum of plants - green, which, at the same time, can be compensated by adding powerful lamps.
Sodium, metal-halogen and mercury lamps- these are the so-called gas-discharge bulbs high blood pressure... Their main purpose is to create powerful luminous flux... So, they are best suited for highlighting greenhouses, winter gardens, large single flowers, plants that are very demanding on light. They speak with caution about the possibility of installing these lamps in apartments - such lamps are quite expensive, use a large amount of electricity and heat up significantly, many work in the ultraviolet spectrum, which is dangerous for eyes.
Height and options for installing lamps above indoor flowers
The best position of the lamps is achieved with the condition that the illumination will fall on the flowers from above.
Highly high lamps in order to illuminate the maximum number of plants, as a result, nothing is highlighted, since the illumination decreases in proportion to the distance, for example, by setting the illumination height from 25 cm to a meter, the illumination will decrease 30 times. Optimal height for light-loving colors, the position of the lamp (fluorescent) is approximately 17-22 cm.
Most economical option- make the direction of the light flow perpendicular to the plant, that is, install the lamp directly above the flowers, and equip the light source with a reflector. You can purchase pre-made reflectors from aquarium stores. With the help of a reflector, you can remove the feeling of discomfort if light falls into the eyes, but the most important thing is to direct the main part of the light flow, which is often wasted, with almost no loss. Phyto-lamps have a full spectrum of rays required only by colors and therefore create light that irritates human vision. It is for this reason that phyto-lamps especially need reflectors.
It is advisable to hang a light bulb over the flowers: when illuminated from the side, the plants grow, stretching towards the light source. If the flowers are illuminated only by artificial lighting, then the lamps need to work at least 12 hours daily... If artificial light is used as an additional light, for example, in winter, then 4-6 hours are enough.
The height of the lamps installation is best made adjustable, so that when burns are detected on the flowers, you can change the height of the lamps. Tall stems and a pale color indicate that the light source is quite high. The smallest distance of a flower to an incandescent light bulb is 35 cm, to a luminescent light 7 cm, to a sodium light - half a meter.
How to calculate the number of fluorescent lamps?
Backlight power calculation and the choice of the type of light bulbs will completely depend on the needs of indoor flowers for lighting. All flowers, according to the degree of need for illumination, can be divided into:
- shade-tolerant;
- loving moderate lighting - tropical plants;
- light-loving - plants whose homeland is large solar spaces.
Lighting power must be selected in the proportion: 1 dm. sq. flower area should be:
- more than 2.5 W for light-loving;
- 1.5-2.5 W - for those who love moderate backlighting;
- 0.50-1.5 W - for shade-tolerant.
According to the degree of illumination, 1 Watt of power of a fluorescent lamp creates 70 lm, an incandescent lamp - 4 times less. Taking into account from this value, you can calculate the number and power of light bulbs for flowers. For example, the size of the windowsill where the plants are located is 100 dm. sq. Thus, the following total lamp wattage will be needed:
- 2.5W x 100dm. sq. = 250W.
This area will need approximately 2-3 bulbs with a power of 70 W... It must be said that this calculation is approximate and is considered only a guideline in choosing their number. It is desirable to use powerful and oblong lamps, since they have a high luminous efficiency. In other words, two 34W lamps are better than four 17W lamps.
Summing up, it must be said that the duration of artificial lighting will depend directly on natural lighting. As a rule, it is a couple of sutra hours and a few at night. That is, the lamps will be on in the morning, until the time you need to go to work, and in the evening until the time before bed.
But, in general, this time must be about 5-7 hours... In cloudy weather, up to 10 o'clock. If the day is sunny, 4 hours are enough. In addition, it has been proven that the backlight does not show positive effect, when it is irregular, because, turning on the lamps only "when you remember", you will only harm indoor flowers, knocking down their biorhythms.
The life of indoor plants depends not only on proper care and watering, but also largely from correct lighting... But if there is enough light in the summer, then what to do in the autumn winter period when the sky is overcast and the daylight hours are incredibly short.
Plants need lighting to carry out the process of photosynthesis, due to which substances are formed in the plant body that serve it. building material... Naturally, different types plants, the process of photosynthesis proceeds in different ways, which is why they need different amount Sveta. Generally speaking, all decorative flowering plants need more light than decorative deciduous. Plants that are demanding on lighting include all types of plants from hot countries that are accustomed to a large number light all year round.
In addition, plants should be distinguished not only by how much lighting they need, but also how bright it should be. Some plants prefer direct sunlight, others prefer soft diffused light, and still others like partial shade. The minimum recommended illumination at which plants normally assimilate carbon dioxide and other substances is 1000 lux, while for the full development of most plants an illumination of at least 300-4000 lux is required, but for plants requiring light, 10,000-12000 lux and more.
If you don't have a home special device to measure lighting - a luxmeter, you can try to determine whether the plants have enough light to the eye. The following signs can indicate a lack of illumination:
- Plants develop very slowly, stem and leaves are thin and weak
- New buds practically do not form and have a pale color, and after formation they disappear
- The leaves of the plant acquire a monochromatic color, sometimes they can turn yellow and fall off
What lamps to use for lighting
Choice correct lamp plays a critical role in organizing the right lighting for plants. For example, many people believe that a conventional tungsten incandescent lamp can provide enough light to plants. In fact, incandescent lamps are able to convert only 5% of the received electrical energy into visible light, converting the remaining energy into infrared (thermal) radiation, which causes overheating and drying out of plants. In addition to all of the above, the emission spectrum of an incandescent lamp consists mostly of red, while plants need both red and blue colors, as a result of which plants slow down in development.
More suitable lamps would be modern LED and energy-saving lamps that emit a sufficient amount of light, but the spectrum of light they emit is also of little use for plant illumination.
The most suitable in this case would be fluorescent fluorescent lamps
giving cold daylight or special sodium lamps high pressure, which are often used in the later stages of maturation and growth of plants. Lamps of these types have a spectrum of radiation consisting of red and blue flowers... In addition, they are economical and have a long service life.
In order to prevent the plants from getting burned, it is recommended to install lighting at a distance of at least 30-50 centimeters from the illuminated plants. It is also important to remember that plants are characterized by phototropism - a change in the direction of plant growth depending on the direction of the incident light. If you place lighting on the side of your plants, then they turn towards the light with leaves and lose their natural shape, so it is recommended to place the lighting directly with the plants.
Seedlings of any plants require additional lighting. Lamps emitting ultraviolet light come to the rescue. They are induction, halogen, sodium, and LED. In shape, these are pipes, tapes, searchlights. Read on for how to choose the right backlight.
Rules for choosing a lamp with ultraviolet radiation
Natural sunlight is essential for plant growth and development. Without it, future seedlings become pale, lethargic, susceptible to ailments and pests. To get strong healthy seedlings, you need to make up for the lighting deficit in time by choosing the appropriate lamp. Their assortment is large, and before you buy a suitable device, it is worth considering:
- the needs of young shoots;
- ergonomics of the lamp at home;
- the possibility of savings and energy efficiency.
Supplementation is very important for seedlings and young plants.
Replace the sun completely artificial lighting impossible. The task of the gardener in this case is to choose the color spectrum as close as possible to natural radiation. In nature, the following sequence of colors is distinguished:
- infrared, not visible to humans - has bactericidal properties, promotes the development of a lush green mass;
- red - optimizes the production of chlorophyll, stimulates germination, flowering, foliage development;
- orange - speeds up the ripening process;
- yellow and green are important as components of lighting, reflected from foliage;
- blue and blue - affect photosynthesis, root development, thanks to them the sprouts do not stretch;
- ultraviolet, indistinguishable by the human eye - helps to fight diseases, contributes to the development of the ground part of the seedlings.
Each of the colors visible to a person has its own temperature, which increases in an ascending manner. Minimum - for red, 1500 K, maximum - for violet, 8000 K. For good development seedlings need light with a temperature of 1500 and 6000-7000 K. Red and blue-blue correlate with these indicators. In the first few weeks, more blue is needed to securely root the shoots, after transplanting, an equal amount of both flowers is required.
Attention! It is definitely not recommended to take traditional incandescent lamps for seedlings - those that are most often used to illuminate the house. 95% of the energy in them is transformed into heat, which can lead to overheating of the sprouts, their clarification, as well as the occurrence of burns.
Characteristics of halogen, fluorescent and induction lamps
It is believed that halogen lamps are not the best way for highlighting seedlings. They are brighter than incandescent lamps, but they heat up less. Over time, their dedication decreases. At the same time, the use of halogen lamps is justified in those cases when it is necessary to add red color - its temperature here is 3000 K, i.e. twice as much as usual.
Fluorescent lamps are more suitable for illuminating seedlings. They are economical because they consume little electricity, do not heat the air, and at the same time give a lot of light. However, there is practically no red light in their spectrum. Therefore, their use is especially undesirable for the germination of tomatoes, cucumbers and citrus fruits.
Fluorescent lamps
At the same time, there are many blue and violet rays in fluorescent light sources, useful for the development of roots. Another advantage is that you can choose a light bulb with any spectrum: warm, cold or daylight. Each of them has its own characteristics:
- Warm - good during flowering.
- Cold - necessary in the phase of vegetative growth.
- Daytime - used at any time, sometimes - throughout the entire growing cycle of seedlings.
Advice. For the illumination of seedlings, there are special phytoluminescent lamps, which are distinguished by a long service life and economy. However, they emit an unnatural lilac-pink color, so their use in a living room - for example, on a windowsill - is undesirable.
Induction lamps also use little energy, thus saving on electricity costs. Moreover, they have a fairly high light output. The most advanced are bispectral luminaires emitting both red and blue colors. These lamps do not flicker and distribute the light evenly.
Pros and cons of sodium lamps for seedlings
Very often, such lighting devices are used in greenhouses. They emit a red-orange light that favorably affects mature plants in the flowering and fruiting stages. Sodium lamps do not irritate your eyes, so they can be used at home as well. But for this, you should choose a lamp with a power of up to 100 watts.
Sodium lamp
Additional advantages of sodium lamps:
- economical consumption of electricity;
- efficiency of use both in greenhouses and on small areas with seedlings;
- long service life.
The disadvantages include:
- relative bulkiness;
- lack of blue in the spectrum;
- complex connection;
- the need for additional use of a regulating device.
Advice. You can increase the energy efficiency of a sodium lamp by using a capacitor when connected.
Description of LED plant lamps
Today, this type of backlighting is perhaps the most common. For the human eye, such radiation seems gloomy, but for plants, its red-blue spectrum is optimal. LED lamps are more expensive than others, while they have a number of advantages:
- Profitability.
- Durability. Service life - up to 50 thousand hours.
- Ease of repair - a worn-out LED can be replaced.
- Fast turn-on and flicker-free light.
- Low heat - plants do not get burned.
- Possibility of installing LEDs of various spectrum and power. This allows you to select the most correct radiation required for seedlings in a particular period. For example, if you want to add blue or red.
- Small size.
LED lamp
It is worth giving preference to a specific model, taking into account where the lighting will be located, for which seedlings and at what distance from the tops of the shoots. Depending on the type of shelving and the number of seedlings, you can choose a lamp of any shape. In stores you will find these varieties:
- Pipe. Often used on a windowsill or in long, narrow rows.
- Tablet (also called phytopanel). It looks like a big square. Used by professional agronomists to illuminate seedlings on wide racks.
- Single lamp. Most suitable option for supplementary lighting of a small number of sprouts at home.
- Searchlight. Covers a wider area when compared to single lamps. At the same time, they work effectively at a great distance from the seedlings.
- Ribbon. She gathers in any order. Usually used for self-made illumination with your own hands.
Fitopanel
- The more the lamp heats up, the higher it should be placed above the seedling containers. You can find out the temperature of a working device from the description of its technical characteristics.
- Plants need different illumination at different stages of development. For example, immediately after sowing, you need to supplement the future seedlings around the clock. During this period, the blue-blue spectrum is useful. In the future, you need to add red.
- Don't forget about individual approach to each culture - take into account the shade tolerance of plants. The average length of daylight hours for vegetable sprouts is 12-13 hours. In this case, tomatoes need 14-16 hours, cucumbers - 13-15 hours, white cabbage- 16 hours, peppers - 9-10 hours.
- Reflectors and light screens, as well as reflectors help to efficiently illuminate while saving energy. You can make them yourself. The easiest way is to put a kind of shield on the windowsill. white- for example, made of matt cardboard. You can cover it with foil - everyone probably knows its reflectivity.
Monitor the behavior of plants in order to correct the position of the lamp in time
Also pay attention to how the sprouts develop under the influence of additional artificial lighting, and make adjustments in time:
- the appearance of burns on the leaves is a sign of a low phytolamp. Hang it higher;
- pallor of leaves, overly elongated stems are signals of a diametrically opposite problem: the lamp hangs too high / far. Lower it to give the seedlings a possible gain in strength;
- stems stretch to the side, become crooked, deformed - overdone with side lighting. Place the light source on top.
Regardless of which lamp you choose, it is important to use it correctly. Only in this case it will be possible to improve the quality of seedlings and reduce the number of weak plants.
How to choose a lamp for plants: video
Lamp for supplementary lighting of plants: photo
