Smallish light for office growing? (Relatively self-contained?)

11 years ago

last modified: 11 years ago

I recently got a meyer lemon tree that I will be bringing to my office if all continues to go well with it. I've got a wall of windows facing southward and some fairly bright (at least by people standards) fluorescent lighting overhead, but I'm really worried that won't quite be enough and I don't want to hurt my little tree. Problem is, it seems like most lighting solutions are big and involve dangling open fixtures, and I need smallish, affordably, and fairly self contained. I was thinking of maybe getting one of those clamp on drafting lamps with a higher kelvin bulb but all the ones I'm seeing are such low wattage (100W, so what, 13w cfl?) that it doesn't seem that it would make much of a difference.

Can anyone provide advice or recommend a solution for me (or at least something that's better than my low intensity clamp on drafting lamp idea)? Maybe something that could take an led bulb so my space doesn't get too hot?

Featured Answer

aruzinsky

11 years ago

Why can't you use a true 105 watt (not "equivalent watt") CFL in whatever fixture you are thinking about? This is a popular fixture:

http://www.essentialhardware.com/power-zone-pz-300-clamp-light-8.5-202551.html?fee=16&fep=99198&utm_source=google&utm_medium=cpc&utm_campaign=google&gclid=CNnm0vKsv8YCFc-Cfgodh-AF1A

that you can buy at almost any hardware store.

If you don't dislike the aesthetics of purple light, there are plenty of red and blue LED spotlights available from Chinese Ebay stores. In that case, you wouldn't need a reflector.

In any event, it would be a waste of electricity to have the plant light on while your plant is receiving full sunlight through a window. You should consider only turning the light on while the plant receives less than full sunlight, i.e., during cloudy days and at night during the short day months.

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Comments (9)

andrew pruit
Original Author
11 years ago
Any thoughts on whether something like this would work (either placing it on a shelf above the plant or buying a model that comes with a stand)?

http://www.amazon.com/Snap-Worklight-Photography-Construction-Workshops/dp/B00OJOCDJO
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andrew pruit
Original Author
11 years ago
Yeah, that's what I was trying to describe when I mentioned a "clamp light". Thanks for the input!
pip313
11 years ago
I have something like this for my baby plants.

Totally different fixture but same short 2 bulb setup. Mine isn't a "grow light" but same bulbs, power. It is perfect for 1 plant.
andrew pruit
Original Author
11 years ago
Thanks pip! What do you have that hanging from? That's another part of the problem, suspending the lights if they don't come with their own rack or post or whatever.
pip313
11 years ago
last modified: 11 years ago
I just use a drywall anchor and a hook and chain.
aruzinsky
11 years ago
pip313, elsewhere you mentioned that you are supplementing light from a window with a northern exposure. If you examine this solar power spectral density chart,

you can see that light from a blue (clear) sky is deficient in wavelengths above 600 nm. Thus, it may behoove you to switch to warm white or red bulbs.
pip313
11 years ago
No
pip313
11 years ago
I prefer blue for a few reasons but there is no right answer.