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market-farming - Re: [Market-farming] Growing lights

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  • From: "Beth Spaugh" <lists AT rhomestead.com>
  • To: "'Market Farming'" <market-farming AT lists.ibiblio.org>
  • Subject: Re: [Market-farming] Growing lights
  • Date: Sun, 9 May 2010 15:03:29 -0400

After years of screwing flourescent lights to the bottom of old closet doors and stacking the doors with various spacers, I realized last year that the new metal shelves (like http://shelving.com/Merchant2/merchant.mvc?page=WSS/CTGY/WS-S) I got are a wonderful size for 4 foot flourescent fixtures. I cut about 4 inches on one end of the flared hood to get them to really fit, but much less messy. In fact, I moved seed starting up into the dining room. I hang 3 fixtures from each shelf, then put flats crosswise. You could do two fixtures and put two flats in lengthwise. Little metal shower curtain hooks work well for hanging the chains that suspend the lights.
 
Though we think of flourescent lights as being "cool", the ballasts actually give off heat and I put seeded flats on top of the ballasts for warmth. Works well.
 
Last year I also splurged on high end UltraSun metal halide lamp. Don't waste your money. The instructions that came with it were much less optomistic about the area it would cover than the sales description had been. The plants didn't do particularly well under it. I didn't bother to set it up this year.
 
Beth Spaugh
Rehoboth Homestead, Peru, NY
Farm Fresh Food Club CSA - http://rhomestead.com 
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Garden fresh vegetables, organically grown, and pastured chicken, duck, and geese
 
"How we eat determines, to a considerable extent, how the world is used." - Wendell Berry
 
"Without power over our food, any notion of democracy is empty." - Frances Moore Lappe
 


From: market-farming-bounces AT lists.ibiblio.org [mailto:market-farming-bounces AT lists.ibiblio.org] On Behalf Of Marty Kraft
Sent: Sunday, May 09, 2010 12:56 AM
To: Market Farming
Subject: Re: [Market-farming] Growing lights

Here's one idea.
Marty
On May 8, 2010, at 9:27 PM, Michael Libsch wrote:

Hello All,

I am working on my supplies list for next year- I hope to lease some land and start a small farm. I would like to ask for recommendations about how to set up growing lights for vegetable starts- what types have you had success with? I would also be interested in any heat mat recommendations.

Thanks,

Mike


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