What You Didn't Know About Your Plants - LED Grow Lights for Better Plant Growth

LED grow lights can be a good switch from HID lights for gardeners, botanists, and vegetable growers. LED stands for a light-emitting diode. A diode is a semiconductor because it can only transmit electricity in one direction, which is why it is considered "forward biased". As it is light-emitting its essential characteristic is its ability to produce light. Such principle is called, "electroluminescence." So before, LEDs were mainly used as light indicators in devices to show their different types and levels of operation.

So, how do LEDs influence the growth of plants? The basis of LEDs' effectivity is based on a study of plants' photosynthetic response to different parts of light. As you know, white light is composed of a spectrum of colors which you can observe from a rainbow, wherein light is refracted.

What you may not know is that plants have different levels of response to certain parts of light. Data shows that plants have a high response to blue and red light. Observing the intensity of their absorption throughout the whole spectrum of light, you can see that it reaches its peak in the red area, plus an upward spike in the blue area. So, when you expose plants or mere seeds to these colors, you can increase photosynthetic response. The stronger the activity of the chlorophyll, the more energy builds up, which is then utilized by your plants to make them grow faster and healthier.

LED grow lights can be easily set up. You just have to suspend them in strategic places to get the most use out of them. It's just like installing an additional lighting in your kitchen or garage. You just have to make sure to plug these fixtures in waterproof sockets to prevent any hazard, as you would be working in a moist environment. And if you've ever been electrocuted, you know that these two ought to be separated from each other. The bulbs can also vary in size so you can place them in an expansive greenhouse or just a small corner in your house or apartment.

Using LED grow lights is, however, not simply placing your plants under red light and waiting for them to bloom or yield harvest. You can get good results, but for the tool's optimal use, you need to control the ratio of the blue and red light that is being emitted. The device allows you to manipulate the blue/red ratio according to the stage of growth of your plant. For example, to increase vegetation in lettuces there should be 100% red light and thus, 0% blue light.

Using LED grow lights in a matter of months, you may have African Violets in full bloom or big juicy tomatoes that are ready for plucking. So, this is very ideal if you want to grow a small patch of vegetable garden. In a way, you can be sure that you're eating only organic food, while saving you the trip to the store for some missing ingredients.