Hey everyone, I’ve been reading a lot about far red light, the far red to red ratio, SAS (shade avoidance syndrome), and how accelerating the rate that the phytochrome state is changed can effect flowering.
So I got HLG far red bulbs for my grows. All the fixtures I’ve gotten from HLG all came with paperwork. The cut sheets showed the specs, suggested mounting heights, and any other information you could want. These far red bulbs came in plain packaging, with nothing, no cut sheet, not a single marking on the boxes saying what it is, or even a barcode, lol.
I read on their website to have it come on for 3 to 10 minutes immediately following lights off, so I’m clear on that. I also read not to use them at all during lights on because it could cause severe stretching, but then of course I read some opposing views on that as well, lol.
Anyone know if there’s any benefit to using them during veg, or is it only benificial during flowering? I’d assume it would help them to get better rest in all stages of growth, but I haven’t been able to find any specific info about using them in veg.
Anyone currently using them have anything to add? Any suggestions would be greatly appreciated.
after lots of reading, I only use at lights out, 5 mins before Off to 10mins after Off. Supposed to allow 13on/11off light cycle in flower, due to phytochrome transition.
If you’re getting stretch in the vegetation stage, too much far red could be the culprit.
Because far-red makes your plants think they’re in the shade, they keep reaching upwards in search of the sun. Their leaves grow longer and wider and their stems elongate. The unhappy result is a long and lanky plant that’s too weak to hold up the healthy flowers you’re hoping to cultivate.
Yes me too, then the rabbit hole will lead to the Emerson Effect - complicated lighting schedule I surely would screw up.
So.
I opted for the simple proven benefits of putting to sleep fast so the plant can regenerate faster and you can get an extra hour of light in the light cycle for flower.
Yeah, that’s pretty much the main reason I wanted them, to get them resting right away after lights out instead of it taking them a couple of hours. I just wasn’t sure if it was ok to use during the entire grow. Thank you very much for the tip, I’m going to get them installed in my grows in the next few days.
@beardless, thank you very much for that. You clearly understand how to navigate this forum far better than I do. I tried to search for posts on far red bulbs before I started the thread. I didn’t come across any of those posts on Hellraiser’s page that you gave me a link to.
@oldmarine, thank you for that video. Aside from it being great information, something else happened while I was watching it that is going to change my life, lol. I really try to avoid videos because they’re frustrating to watch on my phone. I decided to check out your link anyway, and a few minutes into the video a little notification popped up on my phone letting me know I could watch this on my TV if I wanted to. A few minutes later, instead of struggling to see the tiny screen in my hand, and the crappy sound of a phone speaker, I was watching YouTube on my living room TV.
I used to only use the far red in flowering (and run 13/11 light schedule) but recently started using them in veg to put the girls to sleep. Did not see any problems from it, but not sure I really saw any benefit from it either.
