Everything I’ve heard about special “full-spectrum” fluorescent grow lights makes me think they’re more expensive than they’re worth, for the same reason as above. I’ve also thought about upgrading to high-intensity grow lights, like metal-halide, where the intensity is much better. But really, I think all of this is only a big factor if you’re trying to mature plants in artificial light, like100% indoor plants or winter greenhouse growing. For seedlings that’ll be heading outside, on the small scale, cool white fluorescents seems to be the most inexpensively effective route.

Oh, yeah, get T-8 fixtures, not T-12. T-8 may be the standard now, but a couple of years ago, here in Canada, they weren’t. T-8′s are narrower, use less electricity, produce more light, AND they produce pretty even light for the length of the tube. The old T-12s are WAY hotter in the middle of the tube, even 2-3 weeks into seedling production, you can see significant growth difference between seedlings near the center and those near the ends of the tube. If you have T-12s, rotate!

Of course, there’s tons of stuff online, about fluorescents for plants, other light sources, T-8 vs T-12. There are some really good, brief, but detailed articles, if you want to delve deeper. I read a lot of ‘em at one point… :)

Hope that helps!

VP: Yes, hitting the lights feels good! I seriously disliked fluorescent lighting until it came to grow racks. Now, that kinda jittery, bluish glow is downright exciting! :)

It’s been a very springlike day here and I had a garden inspection with a fellow blogger today, so all in all, things are pretty great in this neck of the woods!

you can use the site to compare it to yours or any other location.

Our frost dates really aren’t too much different than yours. We’re generally safe May 1 but we don’t bet on it. And we have been frost free into October, but again don’t bet on it.

We’ll have to compare notes once we start planting in the field to see where things are at comparitively.

Cheers

Here, the last frost date is around mid-May and first frost is around the third week of September, but that doesn’t seem to mean much these recent years, what with global warming or whatever is causing the crazy weather. Frost has been coming easily a month late…

We hit 12-hour day length around mid-March and days get shorter than 12 hours in late September. So I’m considering the amount of sun as the main constant… Here, when you hit October, no matter how warm the weather, the days get short and growth starts grinding to a near full stop!

It’s been a warm winter here so far. We might get a bit of snow this week but nothing like what you have. I discovered a lone rocket plant when clearing one of the flower beds before Christmas and that is still producing well.

I’m off to buy my seed potatoes today along with some pink and some violet garlic.