ttystikk
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@chazbolin and @Wyckoff You've both mentioned the use of light movers. A light rail won't do vertical, it's not designed for it. The light mover I'm building for my cylinder grow will be there for three main reasons;
1. Eliminate hot spots- no more burned leaves
2. Eliminate leaf shading- this aids penetration
3. Varies the light received by any given part, so that it's always producing at or near max
No. 3 might need a little more explanation; I noticed when running light movers in the past- yes, I have quite a history of building my own gear instead of running what's out there- that most light movers weren't set up to provide good lighting when they were at the opposite end of their travel. I've overcome this, and set up my movers to ensure that plants never spent time in the dark.
In addition, I noticed another phenomenon, that the plants seems to really enjoy getting blasted with light for a short period, followed by a bit of a break- just like my light rotator was providing at the time. I've since done some reading that appears to confirm my hunch, it said several interesting things; one, that plants can stop photosynthesis even in the presence of a July afternoon due to it just being too much light. The long, intense uninterrupted nature of the afternoon Sun's light was degrading products of photosynthesis nearly as fast as the plant was making them! Therefore, giving the plant a momentary break from high intensity light seems to help.
Another, related phenomenon is that of maximum light pressure-this is not a static value. Plants can handle more light pressure right away, then as they build up products of photosynthesis, they need less light. So along with the idea that there is a maximum and minimum light level that's productive, is the idea that the maximum can safely and favorably be exceeded for short periods.
This is the basis of the design of my light movers, both the horizontal varieties off posted with in the past, and the vertical version I'll be using in da can.
1. Eliminate hot spots- no more burned leaves
2. Eliminate leaf shading- this aids penetration
3. Varies the light received by any given part, so that it's always producing at or near max
No. 3 might need a little more explanation; I noticed when running light movers in the past- yes, I have quite a history of building my own gear instead of running what's out there- that most light movers weren't set up to provide good lighting when they were at the opposite end of their travel. I've overcome this, and set up my movers to ensure that plants never spent time in the dark.
In addition, I noticed another phenomenon, that the plants seems to really enjoy getting blasted with light for a short period, followed by a bit of a break- just like my light rotator was providing at the time. I've since done some reading that appears to confirm my hunch, it said several interesting things; one, that plants can stop photosynthesis even in the presence of a July afternoon due to it just being too much light. The long, intense uninterrupted nature of the afternoon Sun's light was degrading products of photosynthesis nearly as fast as the plant was making them! Therefore, giving the plant a momentary break from high intensity light seems to help.
Another, related phenomenon is that of maximum light pressure-this is not a static value. Plants can handle more light pressure right away, then as they build up products of photosynthesis, they need less light. So along with the idea that there is a maximum and minimum light level that's productive, is the idea that the maximum can safely and favorably be exceeded for short periods.
This is the basis of the design of my light movers, both the horizontal varieties off posted with in the past, and the vertical version I'll be using in da can.
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