In general, you should not leave cannabis grow lights on 24/7. Plants need a light-dark cycle to develop properly. It’s believed that they truly do “rest” during periods of darkness, and probably use this time to move nutrients into their extremities while taking a break from growing.
With that simple fact in mind, also know that most plants expect to get at least 12 hours of light a day, all at varying intensities. Check your plant guides for the specific sunlight needs of your hydroponic plants as they grow and bloom.
Why Plants Need Both Light and Darkness:
In nature, plants thrive when they take root in advantageous locations. Plants that need 8-12 hours of daily sun will perform poorly, or even die, when they take root in a shady location.
Growing plants indoors provides the benefit of controlling the elements a plant requires for optimal growth, namely food, water, and light.
There are biochemical processes that occur in plants that directly relate to growth. Altering these can inhibit a plant’s natural growth pattern.
During the day, photosynthesis enables plants to absorb the sunlight and turn it into an unstable energy source. At night, the respiration process turns that unstable energy into carbohydrates which the plant stores for later use.
The Dark Side of Photosynthesis
Photosynthesis involves two biochemical processes, known as light reaction and dark reaction. During light reaction, the plant absorbs light and turns it into energy. This energy is in an unstable form, however, and cannot be stored for later use. To solve this problem, the plant's dark reaction converts these energy compounds into carbohydrates, which can be stored and accessed later. As the name implies, light reactions do need sunlight or artificial light to occur. Dark reactions, however, can happen at any time and often occur while the plant is exposed to light. Because dark reactions do not require the absence of light, plants will remain healthy when exposed to light 24 hours a day. There are some plants, however, that will survive but not thrive without darkness.
Leaving Weed Grow Lights On For 24 Hours A Day
Folks, it is possible to leave your marijuana grow lights on for 24 hours a day in the vegetative state of growth. Yes, your marijuana plants will grow fairly large and there will be an increased amount of foliage present, as well as stem height achieved.
Although, the problem is that most plants, including pot plants, do benefit from a light/dark cycle, or in other words, they are generally healthier and stronger when they receive some dark.
On that same note, during the flowering stage of growth, a weed plant needs 12 hours of light and 12 hours of dark in order to flower properly and produce big and potent buds, ones that will be ideal for smoking, making edibles with, and whatever else.
LED grow lights are cost-efficient, low maintenance, and have a lifespan of many years. Some cannabis growers use LED grow lights in conjunction with High-Intensity Discharge lights to produce high-quality buds, but they can be used as a stand-alone grow light for weed with amazing results.
DO AUTOFLOWERING CANNABIS PLANTS NEED A DARK CYCLE?
The short answer is yes with an “if”, and no with a “but”. If you want the highest potency and maximum yield, we suggest adopting either an 18-6 or 20-4 light-dark cycle. But should you run lights 24-0 indoors, your plants and all of your equipment like fans will be pushed to the limit as well. So far, 24-0 auto crops have failed to outperform those cultivated with dark cycles of 4–6 hours. There really is power on the dark side of the force.
Best Grow Lights for Weed
Amare SolarECLIPSE SE 500
The Amare SolarECLIPSE 500 is a High Intensity COB LED grow light that provides a uniform natural white light for your plants. It is as close to natural sunlight as you can get, making it ideal for every stage of plant growth.
Amare was the first company to combine the full spectrum white COBs with 5 watt supplemental diodes to produce a full expanded spectrum from 410 nm to 760 nm, with peaks in the red and blue areas.
Amare SolarECLIPSE 500 Features
With that simple fact in mind, also know that most plants expect to get at least 12 hours of light a day, all at varying intensities. Check your plant guides for the specific sunlight needs of your hydroponic plants as they grow and bloom.
Why Plants Need Both Light and Darkness:
In nature, plants thrive when they take root in advantageous locations. Plants that need 8-12 hours of daily sun will perform poorly, or even die, when they take root in a shady location.
Growing plants indoors provides the benefit of controlling the elements a plant requires for optimal growth, namely food, water, and light.
There are biochemical processes that occur in plants that directly relate to growth. Altering these can inhibit a plant’s natural growth pattern.
During the day, photosynthesis enables plants to absorb the sunlight and turn it into an unstable energy source. At night, the respiration process turns that unstable energy into carbohydrates which the plant stores for later use.
The Dark Side of Photosynthesis
Photosynthesis involves two biochemical processes, known as light reaction and dark reaction. During light reaction, the plant absorbs light and turns it into energy. This energy is in an unstable form, however, and cannot be stored for later use. To solve this problem, the plant's dark reaction converts these energy compounds into carbohydrates, which can be stored and accessed later. As the name implies, light reactions do need sunlight or artificial light to occur. Dark reactions, however, can happen at any time and often occur while the plant is exposed to light. Because dark reactions do not require the absence of light, plants will remain healthy when exposed to light 24 hours a day. There are some plants, however, that will survive but not thrive without darkness.
Leaving Weed Grow Lights On For 24 Hours A Day
Folks, it is possible to leave your marijuana grow lights on for 24 hours a day in the vegetative state of growth. Yes, your marijuana plants will grow fairly large and there will be an increased amount of foliage present, as well as stem height achieved.
Although, the problem is that most plants, including pot plants, do benefit from a light/dark cycle, or in other words, they are generally healthier and stronger when they receive some dark.
On that same note, during the flowering stage of growth, a weed plant needs 12 hours of light and 12 hours of dark in order to flower properly and produce big and potent buds, ones that will be ideal for smoking, making edibles with, and whatever else.
LED grow lights are cost-efficient, low maintenance, and have a lifespan of many years. Some cannabis growers use LED grow lights in conjunction with High-Intensity Discharge lights to produce high-quality buds, but they can be used as a stand-alone grow light for weed with amazing results.
DO AUTOFLOWERING CANNABIS PLANTS NEED A DARK CYCLE?
The short answer is yes with an “if”, and no with a “but”. If you want the highest potency and maximum yield, we suggest adopting either an 18-6 or 20-4 light-dark cycle. But should you run lights 24-0 indoors, your plants and all of your equipment like fans will be pushed to the limit as well. So far, 24-0 auto crops have failed to outperform those cultivated with dark cycles of 4–6 hours. There really is power on the dark side of the force.
Best Grow Lights for Weed
Amare SolarECLIPSE SE 500
The Amare SolarECLIPSE 500 is a High Intensity COB LED grow light that provides a uniform natural white light for your plants. It is as close to natural sunlight as you can get, making it ideal for every stage of plant growth.
Amare was the first company to combine the full spectrum white COBs with 5 watt supplemental diodes to produce a full expanded spectrum from 410 nm to 760 nm, with peaks in the red and blue areas.
Amare SolarECLIPSE 500 Features
- 800 Watt HID Equivalent: but consumes only 483 actual watts
- Large Coverage: 4 x 4 feet at 21" without lenses and 3.5 x 3.5 feet at 36" with lenses
- Without Lenses: 1207 umol @ 24", 770 umol @ 36", 546 umol @ 48"
- With Lenses: 2118 umol @ 24", 1523 umol @ 36", 974 umol @ 48"
- Enhanced Spectrum: the combination of white COBs and colored supplemental diodes gives the perfect light for all growth stages (from 410 nm to 760 nm)
- Dual Modes: dual operating modes for veg and bloom
- Modular Design: the flexibility to start small and expand later
- Removable 90° Lenses: focus intensity for high-bay rooms or remove the lenses and hang the light closer
- High Quality Chips: 6x CREE CXB3070 COBS and 60x 5w supplemental top-bin CREE XP-G2/XP-E2 LEDs
- Runs Cool: 4 premium high-CFM ball-bearing fans and proprietary copper-core heat-sinks keep temperatures down
- No-Risk Purchase: 5 year warranty
With a wide-angle footprint and Perfect Blend Ideal Spectrum, the X-Series bar lights will be the ideal addition to any seedling, propagation, mixed-light, supplemental, complete indoor, or greenhouse application.
FLOWER SPECTRUM: The Flowering Bar Lights are biased on the red end of the spectrum and are great for all supplemental lighting on high light use plants that are in the Flowering stage or as standalone Flowering stage lights for average light use plants.
APPLICATIONS: The X-SERIES Bar Lights were designed with the utmost versatility in mind. With an IP65 rating and ETL listing, its applications are only limited by your imagination.
OPTIMIZED SPECTRUM: Perfect Blend Spectrum provides ideal photon emissions in every essential wavelength along the photosynthetic spectrum.
IDEAL INTENSITY: Perfectly tuned photosynthetic photon flux density (PPFD) delivers optimal concentration and quantity of photon energy from canopy surface to base of plant.
The X40 and X80 are the most versatile LED bars lights on the market.
With a wide-angle footprint and Perfect Blend Ideal Spectrum, the X-Series bar lights will be the ideal addition to any seedling, propagation, mixed-light, supplemental, complete indoor, or greenhouse application.
Unmatched Hanging Versatility
- IP65 Rating
- Wide Angle Footprint
- Vegetative or Flower Spectrum
- Flush Mount Capability
Comments
Post a Comment