Red light

[Lamie]

Would it help my plants to grow if I got a red light?
I have found since I have had an extra light the java Fern is growing very well. No other plants are growing so I think that there is not enough light. How will it benefit to get a red light? I like growing plants just have not been successful at it. Java Fern is growing a lot.

 

[Fishies4Ever]

Do you use plant fertilizer? Red and blue lighting does help plants grow faster. What light do you currently have?

 

[Back in the fold]

This brings up something I have been wondering about. In the time that fluorescent lighting was the latest greatest thing manufacturers sold a large selection of bulbs that contained gases said to mimic the entire ultraviolet light spectrum. Some were even special formulas unique to the manufacturer that were said to produce certain results .
Do LED bulbs have any such properties and , if so , how is this achieved ? Sometimes a bulb is just light that is tinted through a filter to appear a certain color but isn’t anything remarkable.

 

[Colin_T]

Different coloured LEDs produce different coloured light. Red LEDs produce red light, blue make blue light, etc. Plants use mostly red and blue light but also need bright light to photosynthesise and white LEDs help with this.

A good quality liquid aquarium plant fertiliser will make a big improvement in plant growth if you aren't using one. There is no point increasing light unless you add a fertiliser.

 

[Lamie]

I do use fertilizer occasionally. It ambulia. It's so easy to grow for some people but hard for me maybe there is not enough light. I even bought an extra light for my fish tank. Still no good.

 

[Lamie]

Can u suggest a good fertilizer. I have been using flourish.

 

[Colin_T]

I used Sera Florena and my Ambulia went nuts. But you need a steady supply of fertiliser in the tank. Sera Florena is an iron based aquarium plant fertiliser and I monitored the iron level and kept it at 1mg/L (1ppm). Other fertilisers work too but you should dose them once or twice a week and do a big water change before redosing them.

 

[seangee]

Can u suggest a good fertilizer. I have been using flourish.

Is that flourish comprehensive? If you mean exel that is not a fertiliser. Flourish comprehensive works well for me. Some tanks get the recommended dose once a week and some only half of that. But it is important to use it every week. I add it immediately after water changes.

 

[Byron]

You want a light that has high red, blue and green wavelengths. The easiest way to have this is look for the spectrum or colour temperature. A Kelvin rating in the 4000K to 6500K should work, I prefer 6500K. This is close to the sun under which plants evolved, so not surprising it works.