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Now that your chilli plant requires light it is very important to look at the amounts of light to help your plant flourish and grow. Many people will probably disagree with me, but in my eyes there is no real substitute for natural light, this being the case, if you are growing your plant indoors and have a nice sunny window ledge and the sun is bright and warm, the best possible place for your plants is there, regardless of how much you have spent on artificial lighting. That being said, If you are growing in a colder, more dull climate like me, (the UK) often natural lighting just doesn't cut it. There are days when the sun just doesn't seem to come out, the whole day can be dull and rainy and this is no good for your plants. When a Chilli plant doesn't get enough light it becomes far bigger than it normally would and can get leggy and spindly. If you are growing outside, this may not be a problem for you and you might like the fact that plants are getting big fast. You are however better off keeping your plants healthy and full of light, which in some cases requires the use of artificial lighting.
Since growing Chillies I have had the oppertunity to try several different lighting set ups and each has it's benefits. Below is a list of the different type of lighting that are available, and the Pro's and Con's of each:
- LED (Light Emitting Diode) - Very Cheap electrical usage as they are low power (0.7w each diode[average]), I can only talk from experience but this was a fantastic light for bringing my plants through to fruiting but my plants didnt thrive so well once they gained flowers. The idea with these is that a blue LED is used for the vegitation state (growing the plant and root structures) and red for the fruiting stage. I would however recommend this for a beginner as costs are low and a light can even be built if you fancy yourself with a solder. A great idea if plants are out in the daytime but you want to give them a boost when they come in from the day in the greenhouse!
- HPS (High Pressure Sodium) - This type of lighting by far has the highest running costs as a good HPS light needs to be above 300W. I found that HPS lighting does however produce the greatest results of all the artificial light sources I have tried. Many people that use this type of lighting take advantage of lower night time electricity costs to minimize the running costs. This type of light is usually used in place of sun and requires reflective sheets to spread the light across plants. Usually for about 18 hours a day. (not so cheap) also produces quite a lot of heat which can damage plants if in a small space.
- CFL (Compact Flourescent Lamps) - Brilliant middle ground when your choosing your light, by far my favourite lighting source as they produce a good amount of light without using too much electricity. These bulbs can be screwed directly into a standard E27 fitting to keep costs down. CFL bulbs are available in full spectrum daylight temperate (meaning they produce the same lighting as daylight) and blue and red the same as with LED's. Using CFL's I have had great success and the plants have grown healthily and produced good amounts of fruit. These lights do produce some heat but nowhere near the same as the HPS bulbs, I look at the light these produce as a positive thing, they allow you to keep your grow room or greenhouse even warmer for no extra cost.
There are many other lighting types but these are the ones I have used and had success with. The thing to remember when choosing your lighting is the needs of the plant. If you are growing solely with artificial light, the light has to be more powerful as the plant doesn't get sunlight. If however you are using the artificial light to prolong the day for a few hours then other options may suit you better.
If you have any questions post a comment and i'll try reply within a day.
Happy Growing!
