Lights.

[Rich]

I have just planted some seeds which need to get a move on over winter so I can get some flowers next summer.

It seems to me that lights would be a good idea during the dark days of winter to extend the days, but I'm confused.

What do others do? I have a 2 ft and a 3 ft aquarium strip lights, but these only add up to 50 watts. Will these be enough to stop the seedlings going leggy?

Proper growing lights seem to be 400 - 600 watts and expensive to buy, even on ebay, and what is a ballast?

[decompost]

for many years, before the glasshouse was constructed,
the only place we had for our orchids and tropicals in winter, was the basement. <_<
(and i'm talking about a hole-in-the-ground sort of basement :ph34r: ) zero windows for natural light.
we wanted to provide the plants with as full a spectrum of light as we could, and as cheaply as possible ^_^
we found that a mixture of different types of lighting seemed to work well for us.
we used some standard (incandescent) bulbs, some fluorescent fixtures, and some gro-lights all scattered throughout.

my (girley) understanding of a "ballast", is that it is a mechanism which makes gas-filled lights (such as fluorescent, or neon)
function, it generally comes as a part of the fixture, (maybe, sorta, kinda, i think ^_^ ^_^ )

[donybee]

Most flouresent fixtures have built in ballast. I would use just regular flouresent lights rather than grow lights. I never tried starting seeds in winter in my greenhouse as it is usually not warm enough. My greenhouse is about down to 45 degrees when the outside temps hit below zero. I start most seeds after Feb.I would think if your greenhouse was warm enough, you could do it anytime without grow lights and still have good results.

[SilenceOfTheClams]

Rich.... for my winter lighting, I use 4 foot dual "shop lights"... one bulb is a "growlight" and the other a cool white flourescent. This combination works for ME.... as far as a "ballast" that's IMO the housing that the lights are in, they used to have a can shaped fuse but now are built for direct wire starts. I say hit the local shops that sell "shoplights"... and then buy 1/2 as many GROWLIGHTS, replace half of the fixtures with those and keep the "spares" for later use.

[Soilman]

For a "girlie" definition of a ballast... that is pretty darn good. Its just a fancy word for part of your fixture, and yes usually just comes as part of it already. Its a technical term. No worries.

lotsa love,
-the soilman

[buster]

Rich, I read somewhere that it makes a difference how far you keep the plants from the light, as far as legginess goes. I think maybe 2-3 inches to start and then as they grow you move the lights up a little.Connie

[Rich]

I bought a double 4' water resistant strip light, but the only tubes I could get were White, so I had to order a warm white and a cool white from an internet site. They arrived today.

Now all I need is a heater for the greenhouse and I'll be ready for some early start seeds.

[donybee]

Rich, I'm not sure you can get these over there, but I heat my greenhouse here in a cold zone 5 where temps go down occasionally to 20 below F. with an oil filled electric heater. Mine is a DeLonghi heater and it will keep it from going below 45 on the coldest days

[Rich]

I couldn't cope with the hassle of buying the oil, much easier to just plug it in to the electric.

[buster]

Rich, I think he's talking about the kind you don't have to fill. I have one myself. You just plug it in. Connie

[Rich]

Oops, read it wrongly, I'm very busy at work today and trying to be quick. Let's try again. ^_^ ^_^

They are selling 2Kw fan heaters in the garden centre with a low frost free setting, and other settings. They are made for greenhouses, and I'm going for one of those.