Looking for the best lights to use to start your seeds indoors? Believe it or not, you don’t have to buy fancy and expensive grow lights to grow amazing transplants!
As it turns out, there really is a simple, affordable, and highly effective way to start vegetable and flower seeds indoors. And all it takes is using ordinary LED shop lights. Not only do they make it easy to grow strong, healthy plants for your garden or flowerbeds – they do it all without costing you a fortune!
Many people avoid starting seeds indoors because they’ve had bad experiences in the past. Often times, gardeners watch their seedlings struggle as they try to grow in a window. Others think it simply takes too much time or will require costly equipment to do so successfully.
However, regular LED shop lights are all you really need! They’re affordable to buy, cheap to run, and can produce sturdy, healthy seedlings – all without much effort or expense.
The Best Lights To Use To Start Seeds Indoors
Why LED Shop Lights Are The Best Option For Starting Seeds Indoors
So you might be wondering – what is wrong with growing seedlings in a sunny windowsill? Isn’t that what everyone usually does? Unfortunately, this just isn’t a good choice for growing seedlings. See: Why Not To Start Your Seeds In Windows – And Where You Should!
The sunlight coming through a window is filtered and limited. Unlike in a garden, where seedlings get full-spectrum sunlight from dawn to dusk, window-grown seedlings only receive light from one direction. This limited light causes seedlings to grow weak and stretched as they reach for the far-away sunlight.
That’s exactly why seedlings grown on a windowsill often end up thin, spindly, and bent toward the light. But here is the good news – you simply don’t need expensive equipment to grow seeds indoors.
While grow lights can work, they’re completely unnecessary. And even more, they can cost more money upfront, and long-term when it comes to energy use. But LED shop lights are a practical and efficient alternative!
Indoor grow lights and systems can be expensive, often costing $100 to $200 or more. On top of that, they can use a lot of electricity, making them a pricey option for starting seeds indoors. And they can also be difficult to set up and operate as well.
Where LED Shop Lights Excel – The Best Lights To Use To Start Seeds Indoors
Why are LED shop lights such a great solution? The bright light from LED shop lights provides exactly what seedlings need. Placed close to the top of the seedlings, the strong, even light helps them grow sturdy and healthy, producing plants that are more than ready for the garden.
LED lights also stay cool, so there’s no risk of burning your plants. In addition, they’re quiet, unlike fluorescent lights that can have an annoying hum. Plus, most LED lights last an impressive 40,000 to 50,000 hours, meaning you can use them for many growing seasons without worrying about having to replace the bulbs or fixtures.
In fact, one of the best things about LED lights is how energy-efficient and long-lasting they are. They cost only pennies a day to run and can last over 10 growing seasons.
Unlike expensive grow lights, basic LED shop lights are affordable, often priced between $15 and $20 for a 4′ long double light – and even less for multiple sets. Affiliate Product Link: BOUNDER 4 Pack Linkable LED Utility Shop Light, 4400 LM, Super Bright
How To Use LED Lights Effectively – The Best Lights To Use To Start Seeds Indoors
Perhaps best of all, LED shop lights are easy to use. To grow strong seedlings, all you need to do is keep the lights close to the plants as they grow. This ensures they develop slow and steady, leading to strong roots and thick, healthy stems.
Listen To Our Podcast Below On How To Start Seeds Indoors Like A Pro!
To do this, position the lights about 1 to 1.5 inches above the tops of the seedlings. It may seem close, but with the cool light from LED’s – there is no worry of burning the foliage of the plants. And all you need to do is adjust the lights up as they grow taller.
LED lights are simple to set up. You can hang them on a shelving unit, build a DIY frame for seed starting, or even use bricks or other supports to keep the lights directly above your plants.
A Few Extra Tips – The Best Lights To Use To Start Seeds Indoors
One of the biggest questions when using lights is how long to keep them on. Surprisingly, when you first plant seeds, there’s no need to use lights at all. Seeds don’t need light to germinate. In fact, leaving the lights on too soon can dry out the soil, which isn’t helpful for sprouting.
What seeds do need early on is warmth and moisture. Place your seed trays in a warm spot to help them sprout faster. To keep moisture in, cover your trays loosely with plastic wrap or use a plastic dome if your seed tray comes with one.
Doing this helps to create a more humid environment for better germination. Once the seeds sprout, it’s time to turn on the lights. Seedlings need 10 to 12 hours of light each day. Position the lights just 1 to 2 inches above the seedlings and adjust them as the plants grow taller.
Preparing Seedlings For Outdoors – The Best Lights To Use To Start Seeds Indoors
As the weather gets warmer, you will need to start transitioning your seedlings outdoors for part of the day to get them used to outdoor conditions. This process, called hardening off, should begin when the plants are about 4 to 5 weeks old.
During this time, if your seedlings spend most of the day outside in natural sunlight, there’s no need to use LED lights. If you bring them inside at night or during bad weather, turn the lights back on to give them the light they need.
Once your plants are spending nearly all their time outside, you can stop using the LED lights. The natural sunlight will prepare them for planting in your garden – and your plants will be strong and ready to grow come planting day.
Simple Garden Life
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Simple Garden Life is a website dedicated to keeping gardening fun, simple and enjoyable! We publish two new articles each week along with a new garden podcast episode every two weeks. This article may contain affiliate links.