How to Build a Light Stand for Plants
- 1). Purchase an inexpensive bookshelf unit or find an old one at a thrift shop to act as the shell of your growing station. Strip, sand and refinish the unit if it's worn. Make the project even cheaper by opting for cement blocks and sections of foot-wide lumber.
- 2). Install lighting fixtures (ballasts) to the underside of each shelf. Adjust the shelves to match the type of light bulb you propose to use. Ballasts with fluorescent bulbs should be positioned 4 to 6 inches above the plants; provide at least a foot of separation for bulb ballasts with incandescent bulbs to compensate for the more intense heat they emit.
- 3). Connect each ballast's electrical wiring to a single juncture box. Attach a wall cord and plug. Consider installing reflectors behind the bulbs to maximize the amount of light your plants receive. Make your own reflectors by placing aluminum foil atop the ballasts. Tack plastic to the shelf tops to protect them from water spills, and put saucers beneath each plant.
- 4). Choose low light (50 to 250 foot-candles) for plants like Chinese evergreen and lilies. Go for medium radiance (250 to 1,000 foot-candles) if you're growing or maintaining begonias, violets and dracaena. Herbs and orchids thrive if exposed to 1,000 foot-candles of light or more. Replace bulbs with stronger ones if, over time, your leaves look puny or if fruit or flowers don't develop well.
- 5). Expose seedlings to between 12 and 18 hours of artificial light per day. Eschew the idea of continual light; plants need periods of darkness and are healthiest in room temperatures ranging from 55 to 65 degrees F. Once spring arrives, introduce your plants to natural sunlight gradually over a period of a few weeks so they don't go into shock.