LED recommendation for Micro Orchids!
 

Hello everyone,

I am new to the forum, but I've been growing orchids for a while.

I was recently forced to move my orchid collection from outside to inside. I have around 700 plants, the vast majority being Pleurothallids (Pabstiella, Acianthera, Specklinia, Anathallis...) and they are all mounted in cork bark. Currently they are in three smaller "greenhouse tents", with transparent cover, and they take the sun that comes from the window relatively well.

But, as winter approaches, I really need to move them to their permanent spot, that is a mylar grow tent, size 240x120x200cm (95x47x79"?), where they will be hanged on the walls.

I am currently having a lot of difficulty in finding any "definitive" information on which lights to get. I will probably go for LED lights, but I am still not sure on brands, intensity, spectrum or any of those.

I also didn't find a lot specifically on orchids growing vertical in these tents, mostly in shelves, and very little on the requirements for the Pleurothallids.

I really don't want to mess this, as these plants are really really important for me, so any help on finding these lights (and any other tent growing tips) would be immensely appreciated!

Thank you very much!

Sure wish I knew what to tell you,or where to find that info. But I do want to welcome you and I KNOW someone here will be willing to help, hopefully,expediently!

Ave. I don't have LEDs myself, though I have seen some serious complications with LED's at another grower, with plenty of light but not getting enough plant temperature and poor micro climate because of stagnant air. As an orchid grower you know how to deal with stagnant air, so my only caution is with LEDs to keep an eye on the plant temperatures when the ambient temperature drops (in the Alps).

I'm no orchid expert in general—I've just dipped my toes into this new passion a few months ago, so I'm probably not the best person to advise on what's best for your orchids.

But I might be able to help you out with the specifics of lighting and light spectrum, since I've run quite a few tests myself with a spectrophotometer. Plus, I’ve got my own little plant setup in a closet at home, which is about the same size as your grow tent (actually, a bit smaller).

As for the lighting and heat in my room, I’ve got four quantum boards pulling around 100-150 watts each. I don’t crank them up to full power—I usually keep them at about 30-50%, depending on their position. There's no radiator in the room, still it's about 3°C warmer than the rest of the house (clearly thanks to the LED). Day/night temperature swings match the rest of the house pretty closely, usually around a 4°C difference.

When it comes to lights, I’ve always gone with LEDs. I've found (check my other post in the same forum section) that as long as the LEDs are good quality, the difference between brands is minimal. In fact, in my case, the cheaper ones have sometimes outperformed the pricey ones! That said, even with off-brand boards, I made sure they used quality parts (I always go with Samsung components).

Sansi bulbs are great in terms of intensity across different wavelengths—super bright, but they do get really hot. Three of them burned out in just a year (without any cover on them…)! Also, since they’re bulbs and not boards, the light is focused in the center with a steep drop-off around the edges. Boards, on the other hand, offer a much more even distribution.

Tiny orchids burn much faster than large orchids. Initially use very low light, and slowly increase the light. They are too delicate to risk depending on calculations. Very few of the small Pleurothallids need intense light. Daylength is perhaps the more important reason for supplemental lighting in northern regions.