Thank you Laura. I had a shop light the last years but this year probably need to distribute all threes throughout the house and need more lights. Still need thinking and figure out how to manage.

Susanne, the IKEA lamps are $15 and the bulbs very inexpensive. Considering the low cost, it is fairly effective.

Wow, so just out of curiosity, how much sunlight do you get midwinter? I am constantly amazed by how much variation you get within a few latitudes! I have my weather app show me temp as well as daylight hours just for fun for all the various cities I follow!

Awesome! Thanks Laura!

kcandmilo, I do not know exactly. I guess I can see that on the weather app I have also. In the dead of winter, the sun is going down by 4:30...not sure about sunrise..definitely near 7am though if not later.

Amanda, would you believe that my Hibiscus is just starting to open!! I will post a pic for you real soon))

Hey Amanda! I just saw your post. I know you already have some of those bulbs :-). Mike, thank you. I have only applied what I learned here from all of you. I think it would do you good to have a bright, happy room full of your trees. It is good for the soul on dreary winter days.

Laura, I went to Ikea this morning, about an hour from my home and was there before they opened. Had breakfast and when they opened that only had 4 left and a display one! I would of bought 8 or more. They almost did not let me have the display one since they were getting a new shipment tomorrow but I explained it was a long trip for me. So they gave me the display one! I couldn't believe how cheap they were compared the others. No wonder these ones were sold out!

Now, I just ordered the bulbs and I am waiting for those.

Instead on constantly heating my frigid porch 24 hours a day, I figure a few lights on timers in my spare sunnier room should save me quite a bunch of money this time around. That room will also have easy access to the backyard since the door is right there....I am so nervous about trying it out since they all did so well on the porch, while at the same time I am a bit excited to try it out.

Seems at this rate they will be coming in a heck of a lot earlier this year if temps keeps going down the way they have been. Half the state was in the 30's already this morning with parts hitting 34! Never saw temps like that for summer..It's weird. It was 43 here this morning...

Thanks again Laura. I am happy your method is tried and tested! Look at how nice your trees looked by the time spring came.

Amanda, I owe you a pic, don't I??? You should see my plant now! I will take one in the a.m for you......

Mike, Ikea is a good 40 mins away from me, but well worth the drive for those lamps. If I were you, I would go on Amazon and order some of those clamp lights so you can clamp them on the light pole and direct light towards the lower parts. I had as many as 2-3 clamp lights on the posts of those lights. If you balance it out pointing them in different directions, they will not topple over. You can also put a brick on the base of the lamp to weigh it down for additional stability. I think being in a room that is so bright with that end of the solar spectrum will be good for your mood during the long winter days as well. I turned mine on around 6:30 am and ran them till about 9:30-10pm. They are incredibly efficient and they also heat up enough to provide some heat. I hope you will like them.

Laura, thanks a million!

I will do as you said and in fact do you happen to have the link to where you got those clip lamps? I lobe the idea...I would of never thought of that if you had not reminded me...Wait until you see what I have done and I can't wait until I see how it all comes together...Good night for now and I hope you are your family are doing well,. I also hope you had a great time at Disney!

Laura what was the humidity in that room?

Mike, Rhode Island Job Lot carries those clamp on lights.

Laura, did you ever take pics of your light set up? I can't remember...If you did, can I see it? I did get lots of the clamor lights at Lowe's for 6 dollars a pop, and now I need to order more bulbs!

So far so goo. I am getting excited. It will be one bright room. You did use a timer, right?

Mike

Mike, I don't have anything set up now. Here they are from Amazon.

Woods 0151 18/2 SPT Clamp Lamp with 8.5 Inch Reflector, 150 Watt, 6 Foot Cord https://www.amazon.com/dp/B000HHQ94C/ref=cm_sw_r_cp_api_OfzRzbFWJGZVK

The only timer I used was my children ;-). I wake up early and just flipped the power strips on.

You guys got me out of lurking for so long to suggest also trying Walmart for the clamp-ons (similar to what Laura posted). I had bought mine at Amazon and Home Depot last year after seeing the threads here about them and then this year I needed some more to get ready for the big overwinter and found them for 1/2 the price (< $5) for the same model at my local Walmart and kicked myself many times. Walmart one - https://www.walmart.com/ip/Bayco-SL-300-8-5-Inch-Clamp-Light-with-Aluminum-Reflector/14003467

Also instead of the Ikea lamps, I used some telescoping photography stands that I could clamp the lamps to from Amazon - https://www.amazon.com/Photography-Stands-Studio-Shooting-Include/dp/B01A5CGV1Y/ref=sr_1_2?s=electronics&ie=UTF8&qid=1504548875&sr=1-2-spons&keywords=light+stand&psc=1

They fold up and can be stored away in a closet (they come with nylon storage bags).

Jenny, thank you for the W.M link. I just ordered 14 of the 8.5" Bayco clamp lights.. 150 watt with 6 foot cord..They were on sale for $4.53 each. The aluminum shade is a bit thin, but not cheap..Good quality but not the best quality..I read the reviews and it is a good deal for what I need to do the job. Free shipping to boot.

I ordered more bulbs (the ones Steve and Laura use linked above.. thanks so much :) !) And a few Tao Tronics LED grow lights.. The hubby said he can make/rig something up to clamp the lights too.. Still working on our underground converted root cellar/greenhouse every chance we get and hopefully with a lot of prayer, most of it will be enclosed and set up before we get a hard freeze.. You never know when that will be.. :D

Jenny, thanks for the links! I will go to WM to get more of the clamp lights or order them like Jinny did. Have you used the photography stands? They certainly sound promising (and stable). I have two concerns: 1. The width of the base (although making it stable) may take up space that I may need for trees since I have them pretty close together, and 2) have you tried clamping those lights to the tallest part of the stand (the thinnest)? I was wondering how well they stayed on depending on how thin the stand is. I may order a set of them to try them out. They are a great deal and I can certainly clamp a bunch of lights on to them. What a great idea!

Hi Laura - Yes I used them last year for my citrus and bought another set thanks to the enablers here (hint hint). lol The base leg spread is adjustable (you can lock the legs to splay to a narrower diameter as long as you check for stability) and since the legs are thin, you can actually position them so they tuck in between the pots (and doing that will give them more stability). The telescoping part goes up to 7ft but I kept them to about 5ft (i.e., didn't raise it up to the final height), which kept the clamps on the lower thicker portion. The poles have a groove on each side that you can clamp the lamps on too, and the lamps clamps were rubberized which help to keep them in place. Since these lamps are pretty lightweight, even with a bulb, they really didn't move unless knocked pretty hard and even then, they mainly just tilted (they didn't unclamp). I had 2 lamps on each pole - one at the very top resting on and against the base of the block for the final telescoping portion and another about a foot or two below that. Since the lamps are clamps, it would be a similar situation for clamping on any type of narrowish pole like those on a floor lamp. You could always tape them in place too if you are uncomfortable with them falling or if Enzo gets too close. ;-)

Thank you for the explanation Jenny! I really appreciate the details. Based on what you described, I am going to order a couple and try them out and can add more as I need them. I REALLY like the fact they are telescoping and can easily be put away. I have an interesting setup in my crawlspace with all those lamps laying down. I may need the height they allow for a few of my taller trees, so it is nice they go up to 7'. One thing I tried last year to help keep the clamps from sliding is I folded up paper towels and used them to cushion the area and make it a bit thicker. It helped them to grip and not slide down. Enzo....he tipped over another pot today...ugh. He is a citrus wrecking ball...;-)

Laura - I was thinking too (something I might try) - you could get a small piece of soft foam sheeting (like they sometimes use in packaging) to wrap around the pole to make it thicker and add more friction. I am going to have to measure my taller trees because a couple gained some height over the summer (they are in a growth spurt right now) and I had them under a 4ft wide Jumpstart 2-bulb T5 HO lamp fixture that I had propped up on some 3ft tall pedestal columns to give the T5s an effective height of about 5ft. over the trees. Now my Eureka and Thornless Mexican Lime are almost that tall in their pots so I may have to lift the Jumpstart up on some blocks to accommodate them. I had 4 clamp-on lights to provide supplemental lighting for the T5 setup and used Philips 100W LEDs in them (2 daylight 6500K and 2 soft white 2700K). I ordered the twister ones you linked to last month to try in my new setup in another location to see how those compare to the LEDs that I will run again this year.

Laura, is this the light:

Yes Kelley!

If you click on the 'stock prognosis' for a given ikea store, it shows the number of units in stock. I have not checked it myself, so cannot comment on accuracy.

Those telescoping stands look very clever, I think I will also try some. Thanks!

For a high color temperature CFL bulb you might as well be using a mercury vapor lamp, as far as the plants are concerned.