From Light to Growth: Growing the Best Weed with Light

If you are planning on growing your Cannabis indoors, you most likely have already taken a look at the different lighting options available. Every grower has his or her personal preference for grow lights, and you have probably already received advice about setting up your own lighting system in one way or another. But how do you know that it is the best way for you?

Regular (photoperiod) cannabis plants require different spectrums of light to produce flowers. Blue spectrum light is needed during the vegetative stage, while red spectrum light is needed to transition to the flowering stage. However, if you start with autoflowering plants, you will not need to change the lighting to start the flowering stage, so the light spectrum is less of a concern. 

For all types of cannabis, it is usually a good idea to purchase lighting that has both blue and red light spectrums. With regular plants, it saves you from the hassles and costs associated with changing the lighting to induce flowering. LED lights have a full spectrum of light, so you can use the same lights from seedling to harvest.

Wattage refers to a light’s power rating. Pay attention to this number because it has a bearing on how many lights you will need. For example, if you have a smaller grow space, one light with high wattage may be enough. However, if the lighting you choose has low wattage, you will need additional lights to provide the proper coverage.

Wattage also helps determine how far away you should keep your plants. Generally speaking, higher wattage lights need to be positioned further away from your plants because they can burn them.  LED lights are an exception to this rule because they give off surprisingly less heat when compared to the other types of lighting with the same wattage.

Lumens is a measure of how much light a given light source emits during each second the light is on. Like the light spectrum, lumens are more relevant for photoperiod plants. “Regular” cannabis plants require varying amounts of lumens during the different stages of growth. For example, they need between 2,500 and 5,000 lumens per square foot in the vegetative phase, but it jumps to 10,000 lumens per square foot during the flowering phase.

That is why it is a good idea to assess the lumen measurement when considering lights for growing weed. Cannabis plants need lights that provide enough lumens intensity for their proper growth.

Kelvins refer to the warmth and color of the light being emitted. During the vegetative stage, cannabis thrives best when provided cool daytime blue light with approximately 6,400 kelvins. Conversely, flowering cannabis performs best with a warmer red light of 2,700 kelvins. 

As you can see, picking the best lights for growing weed is more than simply selecting the priciest model available. Especially if you are growing photoperiod plants, you should think about how many plants you are growing, where you will be growing them, and how much energy you can afford to spend. 

ECO Farm LM301B 220W Quantum Board with Daisy Chain

 Upgraded series growing lights have a dimming knob and light switch. A single light can be adjusted the light intensity at liberty. Multi-light Connection with unified dimming especially beneficial for large area of indoor growing and commercial planting.

Excellent full spectrum - white, blue, red and IR (3000K, 660nm and IR 760nm and UV 395nm). 3000K diodes providing more reddish light. The 660nm red and IR light is especially useful during bloom, where it speeds up flowering time and boost yields. Turn your seeds into your own supply. And the light looks fairly natural, so it's good for accurately monitoring plant health.

No Fan Noise Free. High Safety performance MEAN WELL Driver, Fair Waterproofing. Update aluminum board is thick and sturdy, doesn't put out a tremendous amount of heat, high-quality protective covers for cables; User-Friendly Packaging. Quality components mean the light lasts longer, but they also save you money. 

VIVOSUN VS1000 LED Grow Light

• LOWER COSTS & HIGH EFFICIENCY: VIVOSUN VS1000 LED grow lights use the latest LED plant light technology including Samsung LM301H Diodes, high-energy efficiency with 2.75 umol/J; Extremely high output but consumes only 100W of electricity, making it more efficient than traditional HID lamps and other plant lamps on the market


• DIMMABLE BALLAST: The VS1000 LED plant lamp has a dimming knob that makes it adaptable to different growing periods of your plant; It can adapt to the growing needs of plants in different periods. The first choice for beginners and professional growers alike


• SUNLIKE FULL-SPECTRUM LIGHTING: These VS 1000 full-spectrum LEDs deliver optimal light-spectrum coverage more power for your blooms and maximum PAR output at various distances, with super-bright lights that your plants will love; This LED light increases yield while decreasing costs, especially if you compare it to HPS/CMH combos


• LOW NOISE & LOW HEAT: The VS1000 LED has a unique appearance, with power supply and ventilation holes; No fans needed meaning low noise; Ambient heat is very low, so there is no need to worry about burns or damage to your plant; The heat is low enough so you can place the lamp directly above your plants


• WARRANTY: Super durable and reusable; Comes with a grow glasses & a pair of VIVOSUN the US-patented rope hanger & 3-Year after-sales service; If you face any problems with the item you receive, please do not hesitate to contact us

Mars Hydro SP 3000 LED Grow Light

• MAJOR UPDATED FROM SP250: MARS HYDRO SP3000 led grow light with Samsung lights & Mean Well driver & dimmable box, only consumes 300w, with high efficiency to save more energy and achieve greater yield. It's optimized for a 2x5 ft veg coverage , or 2x4 ft flowering coverage


• BEST SAMSUNG DIODES GROW LIGHT: MARS HYDRO SP3000 with brilliant 960 PCS Samsung LM301B diodes which can get max yield at 2.5g/W(power draw), 2.8μmol/J increase your yield 50% compare with other 3000W old led grow lights, uniform PAR value at average 999umol@19.5’’, provide higher lighter intensity and consume less energy


• DIMMING DAISY CHAIN DESIGN PERFECT FOR COMMERCIAL: SP3000 grow lights with dimmable box, just control the dimming knob to adjust the brightness. For commercial grow use, multiple lights connected together, just need to choose one light as main light to control all lights dimmable & turn on and off. Easy operation providing great convenience to your planting


• FULL SPECTRUM UV & IR GROW LIGHT: Perfect light for all types of indoor plants and all growth stages. SP3000 covers with UV & IR helps to grow and blossom, speeds up flowering time and boosts yields. Shorten the growth cycle to bring you higher yield in a shorter time. A Good Amount of PAR/LUMEN output(999umol@19.5") for Big Buds


• RAPID GROWTH & ENORMOUS YIELD: MARS HYDRO SP3000 white LED light, with the most advanced equipment and technology, provides tremendous light output to give you one of the brightest, the highest yield, full spectrum lights, can work perfectly both in soil grow and in hydro grow. MARS HYDRO lights support 3 years warranty, feel free to contact us for any question--24 hours service for you

Short for light-emitting diode, an LED is a simple form of light with an efficient energy signature. Due to how the light is generated within an LED, they use a meager amount of electricity for the same amount of light compared to other sources.

However, LEDs have a pricing problem. The inexpensive ones are the type you don’t want. The lights you need for cultivating cannabis are costly.

If you try and use the cheap, Christmas-style lights, your weed harvest is going to be smaller than the LED’s carbon footprint. If you want to invest in your bud correctly, prepare to spend a substantial amount of money.

One great benefit of LED grow lights is that they create comparatively little heat when compared to other types of light.

This ensures you don’t overheat your grow room. Marijuana plants like a warm environment. However, excessive heat damages them, and may also cause a fire in your grow room.

LED grow lights can also distribute a fuller spectrum of light due to how the light is created through electroluminescence. This can result in a better, higher quality yield from your bud.

This benefit is somewhat counteracted by the fact that the average LED light board is quite low powered. As a result, you either require multiple boards or a huge, single one. Also, you only get the best results with LEDs that offer a full spectrum of light.

HID grow lights, short for High-Intensity Discharge, are large light bulbs that emit a tremendous amount of heat and light. They usually require a full exhaust fan to remove the excess heat, and electricity consumption is enormous. Also, they generally need a decent amount of time and space to set up a properly working system.

HID Lights are typically divided into a few different varieties or sub-categories:

Metal Halide or MH grow lights are primarily used during the vegetative stage. This is the part of the cannabis plant’s life where growth takes off, and leaves begin to flourish. MH lights produce a strongly blue-tinged light, which the plants prefer at this stage of growth.

It might sound strange that a plant prefers a type of light. However, different colored lights are mostly just different wavelengths and intensities. Due to this difference in wavelength, the plant prefers stronger or weaker lights at various stages of its development.

For the early vegetative stage, the blue glow from the metal halide lights is best.

High-Pressure Sodium, or HPS, grow lights are far more efficient than other forms of HID. They emit a gentler, yellow light that cannabis prefers when it is in the flowering stage. This yellow light helps encourage intense bud production. It allows you to configure the eventual size of your harvest more precisely.

You can buy HPS lighting in a variety of strengths, but don’t use 1000w. It is far too powerful, and is only suitable if you have created a vast underground field of weed! A pair of 400w or 600w HPS lights should suffice.

Also known as ceramic metal halide lights, this type of lighting features a collection of ceramic heating elements inside the lamp. Manufacturers use ceramic because it has a higher arc tube temperature. Arc tubes help create the lighting within MH lights. The result is enhanced efficiency and color rendering.

The choice of whether to use LEC over the standard MH grow light is a personal preference. However, it’s also tied to cost. LEC grow lights represent a higher initial investment. Yet they also are more efficient over the long haul, lowering your overall electricity bill.

HID grow lights are old school, and can produce a vast harvest but use a considerable amount of electricity. However, they’re still widely considered the standard for indoor marijuana cultivation due to their output of efficiency and power. They are also cheaper to buy before electricity costs enter the equation.

The two types of fluorescent lights are T5 and CFLs. The former is long and narrow, while the latter are twisted into the shape. They have cool, warm, or full-spectrum colors. Growers sometimes use them because they are cheap to buy, and have a low energy consumption which saves money on energy bills. They also provide a pleasant color for an indoor growing site.

Fluorescent lights also don’t require a ridiculous variety of different lights like HID lights.

Furthermore, fluorescent lights don’t need the investment of an additional setup like with HID. You also don’t need to include a particular ventilation system to keep the room’s temperature down.

However, fluorescent lighting provides lower yields than its rivals. You must also position them close to your plants to derive any benefit. This means you can use them in a small room, but they are ineffective if you plan to grow several plants.

One of the easiest to control and most important factors contributing to cannabis growth are the light cycles. As with all plants, cannabis relies on light as the foundation for the photosynthesis (wiki) process, the process by which the plant produces food and energy. Under natural circumstances, cannabis would follow the changing seasons in a particular environment. It would germinate, grow, flower, and go to seed all as reactions to changes in that environment.

‘Giving any cannabis variety less than 12 hours of uninterrupted darkness will not make it flower faster. Instead, the plant will take longer to mature, its buds will be smaller, and the overall harvest will be lessened.’ ~ Jorge Cervantes

These changes include changes in light exposure, changes in temperature, and changes in relative humidity. The most important factor is almost always light, however, especially the cycles in which lighting occurs. The cycles of light and darkness are roughly equivalent to the relation of hours of night and hours of daylight in a day.

Generally, cannabis plants get more light in a vegetative phase, and equal amounts of light and darkness during flowering cycles. Cannabis seeds are typically germinated during the spring when the hours of sunlight in a day begin to increase. They will continue to grow until the days get shorter and shorter.

Eventually, as the shorter days warn of winter, the plants will begin the flowering process so that they can reproduce and pass on their genes. When the days are longest, the cannabis plant has the time and energy to develop a strong structure in preparation for heavy, sticky buds. At least, this is how the cycle would work in nature. Because of the wealth of growing techniques and artificial growing systems, sometimes these natural cycles can be modified and taken advantage of. In general, growers want the plants to be as healthy and strong as possible without expending any energy on seeds or reproduction.

As alluded to above, growers can take advantage of the way plants develop in nature, essentially hacking the plants to perform in certain ways. One of these techniques is sometimes called ‘forcing.’ Forcing is the process of taking a plant that has been experiencing very long days (long exposure to light, between 18-24 hours) and suddenly switching the light exposure to only about 12 hours. By imitating the change from spring to summer, this technique has the effect of causing the cannabis plant to rapidly begin the flowering cycle. It’s this sort of high sensitivity to changes in light cycles and exposure that make it possible for growers to effectively grow cannabis.

When growing marijuana indoors, you have to decide what takes top priority. Do you care about your energy bills, the environment, secrecy, or efficiency?

If you’re looking for discretion, LED grow lights and fluorescent grow lights are the likeliest options. If it is efficiency you’re after, HID is probably the best grow light for marijuana available. That is, as long as you don’t mind the increase in your electricity bill.

Then again, if you have a grow space of less than five square feet, fluorescent light is enough when your plants are small. You can upgrade to a 250w HPS as the plants get larger. If you have space, an MH light for plants in the vegetative stage, and HPS for the blooming phase works well. Using MH lighting throughout is fine, but will have fewer flowers, more foliage, and a lower yield.

Different options work best for different solutions, so pick the one that’s right for you and work to its advantages. Once you have selected the right light for your needs, you can start growing cannabis. By the way, ECO Farm LED grow light can be your great choice.