How much light African Violets receive is crucial for the health and performance of the plant. Generally, these plants grow well in moderate or bright indoor light as long as you don’t shine it on them directly. Just like other kinds of plants, African Violets require light to perform the process of photosynthesis.
Even though your plant gets all of the essential nutrients it needs, it won’t survive without light. In such cases, the plant’s leaves will start turning yellow, and it will stop flowering too.
Whereas insufficient sunlight will cause harm to your plants, too much of it isn’t good either. In both cases, you can solve your problem by using a grow light. Used correctly, a grow light will help your plants grow faster and produce beautiful blooms. Read on to learn about the best grow lights for African Violets!
Why your African Violets Need the Best Grow Lights
Better performance
If you want to see better performance from your African Violets, then you have to make sure that they get plenty of indirect sunlight. However, these plants should only get sunlight very late or very early in the day. If you don’t have time to monitor your African Violets all day, then you would benefit from a good grow light.
As long as you choose a light that’s meant for African Violets and other indoor plants, you can use it to help your plant grow more productively. Then you don’t have to keep moving your plant from one place to another to make sure that it only gets as much light as it requires.
Better growth
This is another excellent benefit of grow lights. Such products would allow you to grow African Violets and other plants indoors no matter what the condition is outside. You can also grow the plants no matter what the season is because they will get all the light they need to grow better, thrive, and produce flowers or fruits.
No natural light
Grow lights are perfect for you if you don’t want to position your plants next to windows. They’re also great for those who don’t get enough natural light which plants such as African Violets need to grow. The best grow lights for African Violets need the appropriate colors to promote the growth of all the plant’s parts. Find such a light, and you won’t need the natural light to cultivate these beautiful flowering plants.
What To Look For In a Grow Light for African Violets
Color
Natural sunlight contains the full light spectrum which includes all the colors of the rainbow. Since sunlight is essential for indoor plants, this is an important factor to consider. This means that the best kind of light would have full-spectrum bulbs. The grow light you choose must have the right colors African Violets need to grow well.
When it comes to African Violets, the best grow lights to choose are those which emit lights in blue and red spectrums. Blue light is essential for the plant’s photosynthesis, and it promotes the growth of leaves, stems, and even plant carbohydrate protection. Red light is important as this can help your African Violets bloom.
LED light or fluorescent light?
Both these types of light may produce the full-spectrum. But the great thing about LED lights is that they don’t use as much energy but they lest a lot longer than fluorescent lights. Also, LED lights don’t shatter easily, they’re mercury-free, and they don’t produce as much heat. Still, both types of light may be highly beneficial for growing indoor plants such as African Violets.
Intensity
This is another factor to consider when you’re choosing grow lights. If you have an intense light, then you may have to position it further away from your plants. Conversely, if you have a grow light with a lower intensity, then you may move it closer to your plant to make sure that it’s getting all the benefits of the light.
Distance
If you’ve found a light that either contains the full spectrum of colors or at least just the blue and red spectrums, you should also consider the light’s distance from your plants. To get the best effect, mount the grow light one-foot above your African Violets if you have the miniature variety. But if you’re growing standard African Violets, then you can mount the light about one and a half feet above your plant.
If you want to be able to adjust the distance to suit your plant’s needs, then choose a grow light with that feature. That way, you can keep on adjusting the light as your plant grows to keep it at a safe distance.
The Best 5 Grow Lights for African Violets – Short Reviews
The Hydrofarm Jump Start 4′ T5 Grow Light System
It is perfect for growing cuttings, seedlings, houseplants, and flowers. It’s a whole grow light system that’s made with an all-aluminum construction. Also, it comes with a toggle clamp which you can use to adjust the lamp’s height easily. This grow light produces up to 20% more lumens which allows seedling to grow faster.
Promotes faster growth: You can use this grow light from the very start of your plant’s life and watch as it grows at a faster rate. If you grow plants other than African Violets and they get too tall, you can purchase some extension bars, snap them on, and watch as your plants keep on growing.
Complete: This is a complete system which includes a durable light stand, a reflector, and a T5 lamp with a high output. It’s easy to assemble since it’s a plug-and-play model. You can use it as the primary light for your plants, seedlings, and cuttings or as a supplementary light too.
Adjustable: The light stand is of steel that’s powder-coated making it highly durable. The stand has a patented one-touch adjustability system for its height. It also comes with a tube and a T5 fixture to provide you with a convenient and easy solution for growing your indoor plants.
With this particular model, you have to be careful when assembling it. This is because it’s quite flimsy and it might break if not handled well. But as long as you’re careful, you’ll have an excellent grow light to work with for your African Violets and your other indoor plants.
The Hydrofarm Jump Start 2′ T5 Grow Light System
This light maximizes the success of your plants’ germination. It’s perfect for African Violets, other types of flowers, seedlings, cuttings, herbs, vegetables, and more. It includes a T5 bulb with a high output and which provides the complete daylight spectrum for a faster growth rate. You can use this grow light with FLP, FLT, and FLV tubes from the same brand. It even comes with a cool design that makes it easier to move around.
Highly efficient: The stand of this grow light comes with an easy-to-use toggle clamp which allows for easy height adjustment. This means that you can keep the light as close or as far away from the plants as you need it to be. The bulb it comes with is highly efficient with a reflective finish on the interior. Because of the higher lumens, this light will help your seedlings grow faster.
Easy assembly: One of the best features of this product is its easy assembly. You can set up the lights without having to use any tools. Simply slide the different pieces together, and you can have the growth light assembled in a matter of minutes. If you need to adjust it, do this by sliding the locking mechanism.
Perfect for African Violets: This growth light is perfect for African Violets, but you can also use it for other indoor plants. The T5 light provides up to 20% more lumens than the competition. This allows your plants to grow faster and become more productive too.
One of the complaints from customers about this product is that it’s not very sturdy. Also, some people don’t appreciate the fact that the connectors are of plastic. But if you place the grow light on a single location, then there’s less risk of running into any problems regarding stability.
The PPUNSON 2018 Dual Head UV & IR Plant Grow Light
It is one of the best grow lights for African Violets as it comes with the appropriate colors these plants need to grow and thrive well. It’s a dual-headlamp that was initially developed and designed after asking what customers want and need in a grow light. It emits a light that’s completely absorbed by plants, therefore, promoting the growth of blooms, leaves, and fruits.
Superior design: This grow light comes with two heads which allows it to achieve good coverage of your plants. Even though it’s small, it covers a bigger area which means more lights for your African Violets. The grow light comes with two double switches which makes it safer and more convenient to use. It even has a parallel circuit so you can either switch on either just one or both of the lamps.
Red and blue lights: This product comes with 6 red-colored LED bulbs which promote the photosynthesis of plants. These lights also promote the flowering of plants and their seed production. Also, the grow light comes with 4 blue-colored LED bulbs which are essential for carotenoid and chlorophyll. These lights also help promote the growth of the plant’s leaves and stem.
Versatile: It comes with flexible and adjustable arms so that you can position the heads of the lights in various positions. The clip of the light is of metal making it steadier and more durable than standard grow lights. This is ideal for greenhouses, offices, darkrooms, balconies, and so much more.
One of the downsides of these grow lights is that they’re not resistant to rust. Also, some customers claim that the bulbs don’t last very long. However, the product still has more good features and ratings than bad ones which is why it’s still considered one of the best on the market.
Sun System Grow Lights
Sun system grow lights covers a recommended growing area of 2′ x 2′ 0/2′ x 0/2′. It’s one of the most robust growth lights available on the market yet it comes in a compact design. It has a ballast assembly already built into the light’s reflector. It’s fully self-contained, and it’s ready to use right out of the box. The light even comes with hooks in case you want to hang it up. This is perfect for those who have small areas for growing.
Compact design: This compact grow light is easy to use making it perfect for any gardener. It includes a bulb with a high intensity which delivers a whopping 16,000 lumens. This provides your plant with sufficient output and the right color spectrum needed for indoor gardening. With it, you can grow African Violets, herbs, vegetables, and more.
Superior performance: When it comes to performance, this grow light won’t disappoint. Compared to other products on the market, this one stands out. It has a compact, enclosed design which produces a lukewarm light. Also, it has a low heat production, and it also has a low noise level making it very effective for growing plants.
Easy to assemble: The entire set of this grow light is easy to assemble and easy to use too. It’s a lightweight model that has parts which are easily replaceable. Speaking of the parts, you can remove them individually in case any of them break down and need fixing or replacing.
While the product itself is superior, there are a lot of issues with customer service. Hopefully, you don’t run into any problems with the grow light so you won’t have to deal with their customer service. But since the product is great, we’ve listed it as one of the best grow lights for African Violets.
The Deckey 225LED Grow Light
Deckey light promotes the growth of African Violets and other types of plants. It comes with 225 LED light bulbs, 165 of them are color red, and 60 of them are blue. The combination of these LED lights significantly boosts the growth of fruits, vegetables, flowers, and other indoor plants which means that they reach maturity at a faster rate while flourishing beautifully. Also, since the growth light has both red and blue-colored lights, these enhance the growth and development of all the parts of your plants.
Designed for African violets: The design of this growth light makes it perfect for African Violets, other flowering plants, and more. It’s highly efficient since it can save you up to 80% in energy consumption compared to other types of lamps.
Simple and practical: This grow light has an appealing design, and it’s easy to use too. Because of these features, it’s widely-used in flower farming, greenhouse farming, plant factories, greenhouses, pipeline cultivation, and so much more. From beginners to professionals, this model will be an excellent choice.
Blue and red lights: This grow light comes with both blue and red lights which African Violets need to grow and thrive. The combination of these lights allows it to maximize plant growth. The red lights promote fruiting, budding, and flowering while the blue lights promote the growth of stems and leaves.
Although this grow light comes with the right colors for growing African Violets, some customers claim that it’s not that bright. But since it comes at a reasonable price and the brightness isn’t as crucial when it comes to growing African Violets, this isn’t much of an issue.
Which Grow Light is the Best for You to Buy?
When it comes to choosing the best grow lights for African Violets, there are several factors for you to consider. We’ve given you a lot of relevant information, and we’ve also reviewed some of the best products on the market now. All this information may help guide you as you make your choice.
If you grow African Violets as well as other types of indoor plants, then you may opt for the Hydrofarm Jump Start 2′ T5 Grow Light System. This grow light will help maximize the success of your plant’s germination. It comes with a T5 bulb which will provide your plants with the complete daylight spectrum which, in turn, promotes a faster growth rate. It’s highly efficient, easy to assemble, and it’s perfect for African Violets. With this light, you may also expect a healthier plant with beautiful blooms.
If you prefer a grow light that comes with both red and blue LED bulbs, then the PPUNSON 2018 Dual Head UV & IR Plant Grow Light is best. These colors will help your plants grow, develop, and thrive well. It’s a compact, lightweight lamp with two heads that you can move around. This feature allows the light to provide your plants with a bigger coverage area so they can absorb all the light they need to flourish.
Safest grow light to grow African violets over kitchen sink
I have a grow light but my violets aren’t blooming. We used the AV potting soil, fertilizer and indirect light. I read a foot and a half away for grow light. Mine was closer so I moved it away. Hope this is the problem.
I purchased a LED grow light for my african violets and were doing well. Now one of my bloomed violets seems like its leaning to one side and ive propped it up. What could have caused this? Thanks