|
Post by Apoplast on May 24, 2014 20:17:32 GMT -5
Hi Devon - Well, in some respects that's cheating. You take such amazing photographs, that I suspect you could make any plants look good even if they were dying. It makes it tough to compare. As always, dude, nice shots!
|
|
|
Post by Avery on May 25, 2014 4:25:21 GMT -5
Your plants are amazing. Very nice photography.
|
|
|
Post by Devon on May 25, 2014 23:23:19 GMT -5
Thanks Avery and Apoplast. Hi Devon - Well, in some respects that's cheating. You take such amazing photographs, that I suspect you could make any plants look good even if they were dying. It makes it tough to compare. As always, dude, nice shots! You've discovered my trick!
|
|
|
Post by daniella3d on Jul 28, 2014 0:57:00 GMT -5
I have one of these LED light in 180 watt and it's been doing very good for my nepenthes. Both my ventrata and mirabilis flowered this winter and produced a lot of pitchers. Also the mirabilis became very red as if it was under the sunlight, so that was very nice.
Now I am using this light for my paphiopedilum sanderianum and philipinensis and they are growing lots of new roots. I got them a month ago and they were growing in a greenhouse and had bearely any roots. So considering that I am very happy with the result so far. The light does look ugly with this red cast but it's the result that count for me.
I ordered my light from China from ebay, and paid around 99$. It's been a year and it's still working well. I will probably buy another one so that I have two of them for the winter. The one I have has red and blue LED, plus 2 green LED and they are 3 watt LED so quite powerful.
|
|
|
Post by Devon on Oct 5, 2014 13:55:57 GMT -5
Good to know that they work well for other genera! Unfortunately my sundews haven't grown well under the LED's since the last update. I think it is because there isn't enough blue light, so they flowered themselves almost to death. Or it was just too warm. Here's what they look like. A few D. burmannii are dead, but the others just formed hibernacula. Quite a difference in how well they were doing before! I stopped feeding them as well which must have contributed to this, but usually the absence of food doesn't have this effect.
|
|
|
Post by ng on Oct 5, 2014 14:02:06 GMT -5
Looks like cellular damage from sunburn maybe? How far from the plants was the light?
|
|
|
Post by Devon on Oct 5, 2014 14:13:23 GMT -5
Could be. They were one foot from the light.
|
|
|
Post by ontariotraps on Oct 6, 2014 0:57:58 GMT -5
Hi Lloyd what kelvin do you use for your bulbs ?
|
|
|
Post by ng on Oct 6, 2014 8:22:34 GMT -5
Kelvin is a measurement of colour temperature that the light reflects back. It has no bearing on growth. Just stick with the HO stuff in regards to fluorescents and you'll bee fine
|
|
|
Post by ilikewhatido on Oct 6, 2014 14:18:26 GMT -5
Good to know that they work well for other genera! Unfortunately my sundews haven't grown well under the LED's since the last update. I think it is because there isn't enough blue light, so they flowered themselves almost to death. Or it was just too warm. Here's what they look like. A few D. burmannii are dead, but the others just formed hibernacula. Same here. My dews under LED's flowered themselves almost to death as well and looked just like yours. For whatever reason some dews just don't like LED's.
|
|
|
Post by vraev on Oct 6, 2014 14:30:53 GMT -5
Sorry to see them go downhill Devon. But.. it is interesting observations nonetheless...I guess the difference is more profound as these drosera grow a lot more out in the open compared to other CPs which are used to growing amongst other vegetation and being accustomed to the extra reds in this light. Let it not put u off LED though... I personally love my white LED aquarium fixture...I am using the whites, but with the right addition of red and blue, they are indeed some fantastic lights. I am pretty happy with my current usa fixture. If only it was more powerful.
|
|
|
Post by Maiden on Oct 6, 2014 14:39:07 GMT -5
My plants definitely did not do well under the LED's. Also the colour was horrible and I didn't like looking at the plants. My wife hated the colour. The lights even gave me a headache if I looked at them more than 10 minutes. If you're buying LED fixtures, spend a lot of money to get good ones because replacing a light is only for an electronics expert or experienced amateur. Do not buy the cheap ones from China. They will fail quickly. Plasma/induction lights are interesting but again I had poor results. Again you have to buy top quality or the ballast will fail quickly. I think the T5HO's have a much more "natural" spectrum that the plants like. Even succulents do well under the T5HO's. If anybody wants my plasma/led fixtures to play with-come & get them. (Pick-up only) +5 Its exactly the way i think
|
|
|
Post by hal on Oct 6, 2014 15:04:50 GMT -5
We're designing some retail stores that are using LED lights to replace fluorescents. A little 30" strip of white LEDs replaces a 4' 3-bulb T5HO fixture. Uses 60W. Maybe I should get one and try it out on some plants.
Why are the LED plant lights always a combination of garish, headache-inducing colours? Do the white versions not provide the right colour temperature?
|
|
|
Post by lloyd on Oct 6, 2014 16:04:09 GMT -5
my T5HO's are 6400K. I am really happy with them. I am amazed that my succulents, which of course are generally hard core sun-lovers, do very well under them.
|
|
|
Post by canuk1w1 on Oct 6, 2014 17:30:25 GMT -5
We're designing some retail stores that are using LED lights to replace fluorescents. A little 30" strip of white LEDs replaces a 4' 3-bulb T5HO fixture. Uses 60W. Maybe I should get one and try it out on some plants. Why are the LED plant lights always a combination of garish, headache-inducing colours? Do the white versions not provide the right colour temperature? It's not the color temperature per se but the wavelengths required for photosynthesis. They're focusing on the active wavelengths for chlorophyll (420nm-440nm and 630nm-680nm). There are some other minor peaks but almost everything happens in narrow bands in the blue and red spectra - hence the efficiency of LED grow lights. If a T5HO and LED fixture both draw 100W, the T5HO is using a good bit of that to generate (mostly)"useless" wavelengths of light - useless to the plant that is. If they jack the white output on an LED so it is more pleasing for our eyes, there goes the efficiency advantage so you may as well go with T5HO, HPS or MH. Once you get over 250W output, both LED and T5H) fall behind MH/HPS bulbs. my T5HO's are 6400K. I am really happy with them. I am amazed that my succulents, which of course are generally hard core sun-lovers, do very well under them. So I guess there's no chance you'll take the lights back ;-) I was the recipient of both and it was a fun experiment. The early generation LEDs were not very reliable (you will need to replace at least one diode a week). The plasma light is very interesting and I was using it for orchids with decent results (a bit of a greenish tinge but still decent light). It too is new tech and the ballast went. I've had no issues with any of my 6 T5HO bulbs. I like messing around with new tech as well but I agree with Lloyd and Maiden - you cannot beat the bank/buck ratio of T5HO lights and the plants look great under them.
|
|