News,

Aesthetics are a tough challenge for most light systems. After all plant
lights don't lend themselves for mood lighting.

You could assemble a rather nice system yourself from off-the-shelf parts.
There are a series of shelves all based upon the same idea that are made of
wire and sold by Home Depot, Target, Container Stores, Lowes, and others.
It is made of four poles of lengths to 72 inches and shelves are 18 inches
by 36 or 18 x 48 inches.

They come in chrome (more expensive), white and black. They are often used
in restaurant kitchens and are very nice looking. One of the manufacturers
is InterMetro.

I have been using them for years and have constructed quite a set of them.
I use them in the house as well as the greenhouse. They are indestructable!
You can add wheels and make them mobile.

The four feet long shelving units are the perfect length for two standard
shop lights that happen to be 4 feet long. They can hang from chains from
the shelf above. This type of lighting is perfect for Phals, Paphs, and
Phrags. You would have difficulty blooming higher light plants with this
type of lighting unless you have some natural light to suppliment the setup.

If you wanted a "brighter" light you could move to Metal Halide. These
units are very bright. A 400W unit would light a plant area of about 4 x 4
feet with the light 4 feet above the plants. The problem is that they
generate a lot of heat and might be a bit difficult to live with in an
apartment.

To keep the water from dripping on the floor you may want to look at trays
available to sit a washing machine in. They sell for about $18-20 at Home
Depot. Add some nice stones to fill the tray and sit the plants on top and
you have a nice display that also adds humidity to the area when you allow
some water to remain among the stones. These trays are a bit large (30
inches x 28 inches) and may require two of the Intermetro shelf units bolted
together.

Of course for more money you could buy a nice Warden Case or a plant stand
from one of the major suppliers. I know Carter and Holmes offer some nice
"indoor greenhouses" but they get very expensive.
www.carterandholmes.com


I hope this gives you some ideas. Let us know how you make out.

Good Growing,
Gene






"news" wrote in message
...
Hi to all,

I live in NYC and I'm growing in my apartment a considerable number of
orchids. This hobby is becoming more and more intense for me. So I decided
that it is time to install an artificial lighting system. Could you
suggest
sources where to look for them? Because it would be placed in an
apartment,
an aesthetically pleasant design would be a plus.

Please share your expertise.

Thank you.