Best Light for Cuttings/Seedlings

[NorthofEngland]

I want a light that is suitable for keeping Mother Donor's healthy
and in a vegetative state - only needed for cuttings.
And suitable for rooting cuttings
in rockwool cubes, within a propagator.
Also for germinating seeds (which may not actually need light...?)
and helping very young seedlings become established Vegetative plants.

T5HO's or CFL's
Will a few 24w Flouro's be sufficient
or will a more powerful CFL be better?

This light will NEVER be needed for flowering
or additional lighting.
It's only objective will be Donor Mothers,
Clone Cuttings and Seeds/Seedlings
ALL VEGETATIVE (Blue Light Spectrum - 6400k).

 

[charface]

I have root and veg no problem
under a small 4 bulb t5.
Works great.

I just got A 125w cfl multi spec and hood
with clones thriving under it.

I like the clean low profile T5
if headspace is a concern.
I also think it gives more uniform
light distribution.

 

[Slipon]

best light = sun light

on a more seriously note, seedlings and cuttings aso don't need much light to thrive, sounds like you don't actually want to grow anything under em, just to get em started, so any low watt fluorescent would work great what ever works for you and is cheap I would say, even some T8 5000K will work great, some normal T5s (not the HO) or some +20W CFLs

 

[GroErr]

Hey North, have you considered LED's, particular brands with the veg/bloom switches? I've run a couple of rounds and like them now for exactly the purpose you're mentioning. Use the veg switch (heavy on the blues) which draws less power, but vegges well, @30" for seeds/clones, @20-24" for vegging. Just had this conversation with my son this morning for his mothers and suggested he grab one...

 

[SunnyJim]

Hey North, have you considered LED's, particular brands with the veg/bloom switches? I've run a couple of rounds and like them now for exactly the purpose you're mentioning. Use the veg switch (heavy on the blues) which draws less power, but vegges well, @30" for seeds/clones, @20-24" for vegging. Just had this conversation with my son this morning for his mothers and suggested he grab one...

Are LEDs still prohibitively expensive? I've always been intrigued by them.

 

[GroErr]

Hey North, have you considered LED's, particular brands with the veg/bloom switches? I've run a couple of rounds and like them now for exactly the purpose you're mentioning. Use the veg switch (heavy on the blues) which draws less power, but vegges well, @30" for seeds/clones, @20-24" for vegging. Just had this conversation with my son this morning for his mothers and suggested he grab one...

It depends how you look at it I suppose. When you consider in maintenance of replacement bulbs and the like, power consumption, and (supposed) life of LED's imo they're cheaper overall than many alternatives. I particularly like how they veg and have successfully and now consistently figured out how to use them for seeds and clones. There are some inexpensive chinese panels that veg and have the features I mentioned. There's also a highly recommended Hans panel which would fit into almost any budget and do a nice job for this at a reasonable cost.

 

[GroErr]

lol sorry sunny, thought I had quoted your question and ended up quoting myself

 

[Slipon]

nahh you can get a quality panel for about 500$ that can flower like a +400W HPS



for Veg you don't need as strong light and I actually believe you could grow seedlings and clones using them house hold LED bulbs



can also get em with E14 and E27 fittings, cost less then 10$ a pics depending where you buy em and how many aso

 

[SunnyJim]

Food for thought. Thanks guys.

So maybe some cheap LEDs would suit OP's needs?

 

[Slipon]

Food for thought. Thanks guys.

So maybe some cheap LEDs would suit OP's needs?

yea believe so, if I was in his shoes I would probably try to find a 10 pack of them house hold LED bulbs in 5000K the 9W or 12W type (witch probably run on 6-8W each) and make a small panel out of some metal sheets or plywood Etc, would be kind a perfect to start seedlings or root clones, keep a mother and with all 10 even Veg a few plants to maturity, more food for thoughts, maybe I should swap the T5HOs for Veg. now that I did it with the HPS for flowering

 

[NorthofEngland]

I had not considered LED's because I equate them with expense.
Even though they are far less than I expected, I still don't understand them enough to feel comfortable with them.

I like the genetics I have now but I perpetuate through cloning.
I want to grow some new strains, from seed, but keep a few Donor Mothers in a vegetative state.

That and starting seeds (if necessary) and rooting cuttings.

I think I'll opt for a T5.

T5....
Why not T5HO ???

 

[GroErr]

T5HO is a good choice, my son's been using that for seedlings, clones, and keeping mothers going, works and efficient for the money. I just prefer the convenience and flexibility of these LED's with switches, convenient to turn them up/down as needed for different stages/purposes.