Lighting questions for Phal

[rradovitch]

I am a new orchid owner and have been supplementing natural light with a grow light bulb but I'm not sure about all of the technical specs I have seen on lighting. I simply have a Sylvania Spot-Gro 60 watt light bulb that I have been putting in my track lighting. I do not have any idea how much light it is providing and all the numbers I have been reading are confusing. Is this helping the plant at all or is it useless?

Thanks-
Ryan



I'm not sure if this goes is the correct place to post this but if not i guess it will be moved.

[Brutal_Dreamer]

I am a new orchid owner and have been supplementing natural light with a grow light bulb but I'm not sure about all of the technical specs I have seen on lighting. I simply have a Sylvania Spot-Gro 60 watt light bulb that I have been putting in my track lighting. I do not have any idea how much light it is providing and all the numbers I have been reading are confusing. Is this helping the plant at all or is it useless?

It will depend on how close to the lamp you are growing the orchid. If the light is more than two feet away, it probably is not adding much light.

I'm not sure if this goes is the correct place to post this but if not i guess it will be moved.

No worries. Ask the Senior members is the best place for questions. Periodically, we move threads to other sections as they are answered. Have fun and keep asking questions!

[rradovitch]

It is around 20" from the blooms.

Thanks for your response.

[smartie2000]

If it is getting sunlight that is not far from the window, then that is fine as the phals will live well on window light.
If you want to maximize the light you can give then 20 inches from the blooms is not giving much light assmuning that you have tall spikes. I'd start measuring from the leaves. Maybe around 8 inches from the spikes can still be aestically pleasing while maximizing the light used...

As you increase the distance, you increase the amount of foot candles and the amount of light used by the plant. So I usually bring them as close as possible, unless they are metal halide.