Contents
If you’re growing cannabis at home, you might be wondering what color of light spectrum is best for the vegetative growth phase. Here’s what you need to know.
Checkout this video:
The Different Colors of the Light Spectrum
There are different colors of light, each with its own wavelength. The colors of the light spectrum from longest to shortest wavelength are red, orange, yellow, green, blue, and violet. Each color has a different effect on plants.
Red light has the longest wavelength and is least energetic. Red light is best for promoting flowering and fruit production in plants. It also helps plants to grow big and strong. Orange light is rich in red light and also helps to promote flowering and fruit production. Yellow light is rich in red and orange wavelengths and promotes plant growth. Green light has a shorter wavelength than red and yellow light, so it is more energetic. Green light helps plants to grow quickly, but it can also cause them to become leggy if they don’t get enough of it. Blue light has a shorter wavelength than green light, so it is even more energetic. Blue light helps plants to grow compact and stocky. Violet light has the shortest wavelength and is most energetic. Violet light helps plants to produce more chlorophyll, which gives them their green color.
So, which color of the light spectrum do cannabis plants like during the vegetative growth phase? All of them! Cannabis plants need all colors of thelight spectrum during the vegetative growth phase so that they can grow quickly and become strong and healthy plants.
The Effects of the Different Colors of Light on Cannabis Plants
Different colors of light have different effects on cannabis plants. For example, blue light is known to promote vegetative growth, while red light is known to promote flowering. In this article, we’ll explore the different effects of different colors of light on cannabis plants.
Blue Light
Blue light is at the cool end of the visible spectrum. It has a relatively short wavelength and a high frequency. In terms of photons, blue light has the most energy of any color in the visible spectrum. Blue light waves are very small, measuring just 380 to 500 nanometers.
During the vegetative growth phase, blue light promotes compact, bushy growth. Plants exposed to blue light during this phase will grow more rapidly than those exposed to other colors of the spectrum. Blue light also promotes chlorophyll production, which is essential for photosynthesis.
While blue light is beneficial during the vegetative growth phase, it can be detrimental during the flowering phase. Too much blue light can prevent plants from flowering or cause them to produce smaller flowers. For this reason, growers often switch to red or amber lights during the flowering phase.
Red Light
During the vegetative growth phase, your cannabis plants will do best with a light spectrum that is dominated by red light. This is because red light promotes growth in leaves and stems, rather than flowers. For this reason, most growers use red and blue light (more on that below) during the vegetative phase, as this encourages strong growth in both leaves and stems.
If you are growing cannabis indoors, then you will need to use a grow light that emits a lot of red light. The most popular grow lights for this purpose are high-pressure sodium (HPS) lights and metal halide (MH) lights. These lights emit a lot of heat, so you will need to be careful to keep your grow room well ventilated.
If you are growing cannabis outdoors, then the best time to plant your seeds is in late spring or early summer. This way, your plants will get plenty of sunlight during the long days of summer, when there is plenty of red light available for photosynthesis.
Green Light
Green light is at the low energy end of the visible spectrum of light. Green light has a wavelength of around 490-570 nanometers (nm). It is a cool light that doesn’t produce much heat. Cannabis plants use green light for energy, but it isn’t used in photosynthesis because cannabis plants don’t have chlorophyll B, which is needed to absorb green light.
Cannabis plants reflect green light, which is why they appear green to us. By reflect, I mean that they don’t use it and it bounces off of them. If you shine a green light on a cannabis plant, most of the green light will bounce off the plant and very little will be absorbed. This is why you don’t see many people growing cannabis with green LEDs.
Green light can be used during the vegetative growth phase because it doesn’t interfere with flowering like other colors of the visible spectrum can. White LEDs often have a small amount of green in them, which is why they are sometimes used during both the vegetative and flowering growth phases.
The Best Color of Light for the Vegetative Growth Phase
The best color of light for the vegetative growth phase is blue. Blue light is absorb by the chlorophyll in the leaves which is used in photosynthesis to make food for the plant. The blue light also helps the plant to grow strong and healthy.
Blue Light
For the vegetative growth phase, your cannabis plants will do best with blue light. This is the kind of light that is found in shade, and it also happens to be the light that is most prevalent during the spring and early summer. Blue light helps your plants to grow tall and leafy, and it also helps to encourage a strong root system.
Red Light
Red light is the best color of light for the vegetative growth phase. Cannabis plants like red light during the vegetative growth phase because it helps them grow taller and produce more leaves. Red light also helps plants to produce more flowers and fruits.
Green Light
It is easy to overlook the importance of light color when growing cannabis indoors. However, the light you use can have a profound effect on your plant’s growth and development.
So, what color of light do cannabis plants like during the vegetative growth phase? The answer may surprise you…
Most people think that cannabis plants need direct sunlight to grow. However, this is not the case. In fact, too much direct sunlight can actually damage your plants.
The best color of light for the vegetative growth phase is green light. Green light is at the middle of the visible spectrum and it helps promote sturdy growth in plants.
If you are using artificial lights to grow your cannabis plants, be sure to choose a light that emits green light. You can also get green light by using a full-spectrum white LED grow light.
