I spent my entire morning planting heirloom tomato seeds. Enough for 120 plants. I hope I’ll have enough {seriously, what if it’s not enough?}. I have big plans to can salsa, tomato sauce, maybe even try to can some homemade ketchup and BBQ sauce as well. Bottom line… I need a boat load of tomatoes. Plus a little extra insurance in case a chicken gets loose and gobbles up a few plants before I can run outside and chase it away.
In an effort to grow mass quantities of heirloom tomatoes I thought I would try something different this year. Grow lights. How you ever used grow lights before? At first I was a bit confused. I thought the grow lights would emit heat. So I didn’t understand why the picture showed the lights so close to the plants. Wouldn’t they wilt due to the high temperatures? But now I get it. LOL. Grow lights provide light, not heat {it’s rocket science I tell you}.
Anyway, The Handsome Husband bought me a pair of grow lights for my birthday. Well, technically YES he paid for them, but he didn’t know he actually bought them for me until the lights showed up on our porch last night {I’m kinda tricky that way}.
At which point I announced “Hey thanks for my birthday present…”
So what do you think? Will have better results using grow lights than if I were to just start my tomato seeds and place them in a sunny windowsill like I always do? Inquiring minds want to know.
Heather S. says
I think you should put a few in the windowsill just to compare – that is if you have any room on the windowsill and they aren’t already full with other starters 🙂
Desi says
I think you’re going to have to use a wheel barrel to carry all your produce from the garden to the house. Have you ever tried canning roasted tomatoes? They are yummy out of the oven and I wonder how they would taste canned. I like the idea of comparing the grow lights with the window sill too!
Desi says
Is Salsa going to be what you give for Christmas this year? My family loves it when I give them jars of salsa.
Mavis says
We shall see. I may want to keep it all for myself. 🙂
junquejules says
I teach at an urban middle school. We have a huge orgaanic community garden, Our kids grow all of the heirloom tomatoes under grow lights with organich fertilizer and well water. It’s the only way to go in Michigan!
junquejules says
I do know how to spell “organic” . I guess it is time to go to bed!
Mavis says
Ha Ha Ha. 🙂
Kristen says
YES! You will absolutely have better success with grow lights. I promise you’ll ove the results and you won’t go back. This article explains why: http://www.growit.umd.edu/SeedStarting/Light.cfm
Mavis says
Wowza! I really like the set up in the photo. I could grow a serious amount of veggies if I had that many lights. Thanks!