Can we use regular LED lights as grow lights? Let me tell you what I’ve learned. First, I wanted to let you know that this
video is part 2 of a series on grow lights for houseplants. So if you would like to learn more about grow
lights, how to pick the right one for you, how to even use it with your plants, Make sure to check out this playlist right
here where you will find all of the episodes. But now, let’s get to our question.
Can we use regular LED light bulbs as grow
lights? And the answer is yes and no, and this is
because it depends. It depend on the type of plant that you have. For example, foliage vs. flowering plants. Where your plant is in terms of the growth
cycle. And how you want to help her with this lighting. So in order to decide which one is best for
you and your plant, lets look at the main differences between regular LED light bulbs
and full spectrum LED grow lights. The first main difference between the two
of them is their purpose. Regular LED lights have the purpose to illuminate
a space. So to bring light to our spaces, and this
is for example our homes, our offices, where we eat, where we live, etc. On the other hand, LED grow lights’ purpose
is to encourage plant growth.
So we already see a key difference here, regular
LED light bulbs are made with the purpose of bringing light to humans. And full spectrum LED grow lights are made
with the purpose to encourage plant growth. So they are made with the plants in mind. So one is for humans and the other one is
for plants. This is very important when it comes to the
second biggest difference, which is colour. So let’s remember, light powers photosynthesis
in plants. And photosynthesis is the process that plants
use to produce carbohydrates to grow. So light is very important when it comes to
plant growth. Now, in the light spectrum there are specific
colours that will be used by the plant more efficiently when it comes to photosynthesis.
And these colours fall in the PAR spectrum,
which is the Photosynthetic Active Radiation Spectrum. Depending on where your plants are in their
growth cycle, each colour in the PAR spectrum will affect them differently. For example, orange colour in light has been
proven to have an impact on the taste of basil. Also, within the PAR spectrum, the colours
blue and red are the ones that are most efficiently used by a plant when it comes to photosynthesis
and growth. And this is why we see grow lights that come
only in blue and red light. Because these two colours will be efficiently
used by the plant when it comes to photosynthesis and growth. Generally, blue light will help with vegetative
and foliage growth, and red light will generally help with flowering. Now, lets look at both types of LED lights
and see which colour they actually provide to our plants. It is true that both regular LED light bulbs
and full spectrum LED grow lights provide a white colour light. But within this white light we have other
colours in the spectrum that are not visible to the human eye.
While full spectrum LED grow lights provide
a percentage of all colours in the PAR spectrum, regular LED lights do not, and this is because
again the purpose of each one of them and how they are made. There are two common methods to produce white
light in LED lamps. The first one is very commonly used by manifacturers
of regular LED light bulbs. And the way that they do it is that they use
a yellow phosphorus over a blue LED light to produce white colour. This works because a big amount of yellow
light will stimulate the red and green cone in our eye, and this will trick us into seeing
white.
This is greta for lighting, but misses to
provide the red light spectrum that is needed by plants to grow, especially flowering plants. On the other hand, the method to create white
light in full spectrum led grow lights is very different because first, the mafacturers
have to make sure that they have all the colours in the PAR spectrum that our plants need,
especially blue and red. Once they get the spectrum right for our plants,
they adjust the spectrum so it seems white to the human eye. So here we can see that full spectrum LED
grow lights will have that adavantage. We will make sure that we provide all colours
needed within the PAR spectrum to our plants. However, there are some scenarios when we
can actually use regular LED lights for our plants. So let’s talk about these.
Let’s remember, regular led lights will provide
blue light to our plants. Even though it seems white to the human eye,
it is within the blue light spectrum. And in order to make sure that you are providing
that spectrum to your plant, just check the box and make sure that you get the cool white
light. As we said before, blue light helps our plants
with vegetative growth and foliage growth. So if you have a plant that is full of leaves
and is not going to flower, that plant is not going to need as much red light as blue
light.
And in this case, a regular LED light will
be helpful to your plant. Of course, keep in mind that this light is
not going to provide all colours in the PAR spectrum, which can also be beneficial to
your plant in other ways. But it will be useful in providing the blue
light for your plant so she can grow. I have also read that blue light is very good
for seedlings. So if you are growing seedlings, you can also
use a regular LED light for this stage of the growth cycle of your plant. Now, very very important, whether you use
a regular LED light bulb or a full spectrum LED grow light, make sure to always observe
your plant. If you see that your plant, or your seedlings
are growing really leggy, that means that she is not getting enough light or the light
intensity is not enough. In this case, just move your light a little
bit closer to your plant and observe it again.
If you see on the other hand that the foliage
is getting burned, that may be too much light intense light. So move your plant a little bit farther away
from the light source. I can also say, if you do have the means to
invest in a full spectrum LED grow light, I totally recommend doing it. And this is because, as a plant beginner,
having full spectrum led grow lights for my plants has made it way easier for me to provide
all of the colours in the PAR spectrum that they need, and I can see that they are thriving
and they are very happy. So yeah, I would totally recommend that, if
you can do it. If you want to learn more about specifically
LED grow lights,make sure to check out this video right here, and yeah, let me know if you have any questions
and comments down below, and as always, I will see you in the next
one. Ok, adios!.
