Terry Coombs wrote:

As mentioned in my last post , I don't believe my seedlings get enough
light due to the type of insulated glass in the window . I have a 250 watt
halogen work light and wonder if that will work as a supplemental light
source . I can hang it from the ceiling above the shelf so that I can adjust
the height - these lights do put out quite a bit of heat , which may be
beneficial for the sprouting phase .

not really, top heat isn't as good as a little
heat from below.

spindly tomatoes should not be a problem. plant them
deeper anyways so they will root out from the leaf nodes.

other plants you may want to time better so they are not
quite so tall. or are plants getting too much N to start
with?

if you want sturdier taller stems then the plants need
a bit of challenge to do that. an oscillating fan can
work (shift it around or rotate the plants so it comes from
different directions) but you do have to watch your moisture
levels closely when using one.

for the price of the electricity you'll be burning up
i'd look into LEDs. also, i'm not 100% sure but i think
that halogen puts out UV (can damage eyes and increase skin
cancer risks).


Just an idea to use what I have instead of spending money for a
single-purpose device . We also have several house plants that seem to be
doing fine with just the usual room lighting , none of them are near a
window ... but I don't have a fixture suitable for hanging CFL's above the
seedling shelf .

house plants are often shade plants adapted from tropical
places (and are not too likely to be fast growers either) so
i wouldn't compare them very directly to the needs of a
veggie plant (often selected for fast growth in full sun).

you may need to rig up a holder of some kind. clamps, few
extention cords, old drying rack or old lamp or ...


songbird