Finding the Grow Lights System Appropriate For Your Indoor Garden Application

Grow lights are electric lamps that are designed to encourage healthy plant growth by emitting electromagnetic radiation that provides the right conditions for the plant to undergo photosynthesis. This emitted light spectrum is much like that which comes from the sun, except that because it comes from a light, the plant does not need natural sunlight or even to be outdoors in order to benefit from it. Did you know that the lighting that comes from natural daylight has a high color temperature that makes the light appear bluish? Grow lights can replicate this same 6000°K lighting, so the plant grows and matures much like it would if it were outdoors and soaking up the full benefit of natural sunlight.

However, grow lights do not only emit a bluish cast of light. There are different light spectrums that are needed for different stages of growth in a plant. The plant in its initial vegetative state requires blue, but the flowering stage that occurs later on needs red and orange spectrums. Grow lights are available in colors all throughout the plant growth spectrum, and some specialty bulbs will be able to cover the entire spectrum.

So how are these lights used? Grow lights are used in conjunction with a reflector, which is used to intensify light emissions and direct how it falls onto the plant, and with an electrical ballast, which serves as a current controller to the grow light. The electrical ballast is a definite requirement, due to the high intensity of the light that is needed in order to replicate natural sunlight.

Today's types of grow lights include fluorescent lamps, high intensity discharge lamps, standard incandescent bulbs and even LEDs. High pressure sodium and metal halide are the most commonly used for professional flower and vegetable plant growing. Both are considered high intensity discharge lamps, and both must be carefully set up to ensure optimal plant growth.

You'll find grow light systems in use for plant propagation and food production, as well as indoor gardening and even for the raising of aquatic plants. These lights are almost always used on an industrial level, but will sometimes be found in private homes and small businesses.

Grow lights are available for purchase in most hardware and home and garden stores, and on specialty websites. They come in a variety of bulb sizes and types, are sold individually and in packs, and come with guidelines for usage and warranties. For more information about lighting for assisting plant growth in a synthetic setting, check with a professional in the plant growth industry.

Kimberly Green is a girl with a green thumb, sharing her insight to the wide world of Grow Lights [http://www.accessdiscounts.us] and Grow Light Systems [http://www.accessdiscounts.us/grow-light-systems.html]

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Growing Vegetable Seeds Indoors For an Early Start

It is easy to grow a great crop of vegetables and despite some people thinking it is a science it really is simple. You may have heard about people being labelled as having "green fingers" but they are not special, it is just that they may have followed the instructions about growing vegetables.

I have a simple rule. Read the back of the seed packet and follow the instructions but remember you can cheat. Looking at the back of some of my seed packets it tells me when I should sow the seeds, plant spacing, time to harvest and so on but I live in the UK where the instructions, (and seeds), tend to be slightly different from the US and other parts of the world. However, the information is more or less the same. I am looking at some seed packets my Sister in Law brought me over at Christmas from the US and they have the same information on as the UK packets, how long to germination, how long to harvest, planting depth and plant spacing. The only difference is the zone system which is based on temperature but here in the UK we have a 900 mile difference between south and north so we have to take temperature into consideration as well.

So how do you cheat? Well the planting time is based on how likely it is that the seed will germinate and this is based on the temperature of the soil and outside it is currently 38F. I am typing this in my kitchen where it is 79F and this is the simplest way to cheat. Sow your seeds indoors. Looking at a pack of chilli seeds in front of me the recommended sowing time is in 6 weeks time. Mine have been growing for the past 6 weeks and this means an extra 3 months growing time. My chilli harvest is fantastic and I do something similar for my tomatoes and other crops as well.

What I do is work out what temperature the seeds need to germinate. This allows me to figure out if I need to apply heat to the seeds or just let them use room temperature. I used to sow the seeds in small flats, (seed trays), but I now find it earlier to use cell trays. I put one seed in each cell and just let it grow. Do I cover the seeds, well it all depends on what advice is given on the seed packet, but generally I cover the seeds to at least their own depth with finely sieved compost or fine grade vermiculite. They may need to be deeper than this so check the seed packet. I like the cell system as it allows me to plant a complete root system out when I transfer the seedlings to a plant pot, with a flat you tend to get root disturbance.

If the seed needs heat, I give it heat. I have an expensive electric seed propagator but I do not tend to use this except for keeping small plants warm on cold nights in the greenhouse. I either use a shelf near a radiator which is fairly warm or I have an old heating mat I used to use when I made my own wine. Either way the temperature is higher than just standing the flat on a windowsill. If I do not need the extra heat other than already in the room, I just use the windowsill and you will find that the seeds germinate fairly well.

Once your seeds have germinated you need to grow the plants on and I keep them in the cell trays until large enough to transfer to a small plant pot. I turn the seeds daily so that they get equal light on each side otherwise your seeds will just grow towards the light all the time and bend. You can build a cardboard back to the area where the plants are and cover this with aluminium foil which reflects the light on to the back of the growing plant. You could even use an old mirror to do this.

Eventually the temperature outside will have risen enough to allow you to put your plants into the ground. A couple of weeks before you do this you need to do something called hardening off. This is acclimatising your plants to the lower temperatures outside. Simply put, it means putting your plants out during the day and bringing them in at night. Plants can suffer from shock at a sudden drop in temperature so look after them. It is just like you really. If you go out without a coat from a hot house into the snow you very quickly get cold and start to shiver. Your plants are just as tender and need to be looked after as well so harden them off for at least a couple of weeks. Work out when the last frost date is for your area and plant them out after this so there is no danger of them being killed by frost. If you look at many seed packets they may well tell you to sow the seed after this date, but some of my plants will have been growing for 12 weeks before this so I get a much longer growing season than many people do and I think this leads to a much healthier crop and a larger harvest.

Another trick you can use is to cover the ground where the plants are to go with a cloche or plastic. Black plastic is best as this will warm the soil quicker than clear plastic and your plant roots will benefit from being planted into a warmer soil.

A few final points. Always use new flats or plant cells or at least make sure they are clean if you reuse them. To clean mine I soak them in water, use a brush to clean them and finally soak them in a household medical disinfectant to kill off germs. You could use a weak bleach solution or a specialist garden disinfectant, but just be careful with the chemicals whatever you use and use you commonsense. I also do this with my plant pots except for small tomato seedlings where I always buy new but as I only use about 20 a year this is not expensive. The other tip is to use tap water to water your seeds and seedlings. Again this is to help prevent disease. In most countries tap water is chlorinated which basically is like bleach and helps kill off bugs. I use rainwater on my established plants as they can easily cope with it but tap water is best for seedlings.

Once you new plants are in the ground you could use cloches to cover the plants until they are well established. By starting off my seeds inside my house I get at least 4 weeks extra time added to the growing season and this can be much longer. As I have already mentioned, my chilli seed packet talks about sowing the seed outdoors in April but I started mine off in the house just before New Years Eve. This allows me to have a much longer growing season and leads to a heavier and more productive crop of vegetables.

You can learn more about High Density Gardening and growing tomatoes by checking out http://www.highdensitygardening.com/home.html which also has free downloadable worksheets on building hotbox compost bins.

Ric Wiley is an internet writer and gardener. His website about High Density Gardening can be found at http://www.highdensitygardening.com/home.html and his latest ebook is High Density Gardening

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Orchid Propagation - An Easy Introduction

Some methods of propagating orchids are fairly easily accomplished in your own home with due care and attention. However other methods are really only suitable for the commercial laboratory growers such as propagation from seed and tissue culture as both of these require extremely sterile environments to germinate and grow successfully. The methods more easily employed in the home are outlined here.

Division

This is probably the easiest of the propagation methods and involves dividing your orchid plant into 2 or more sections depending on size. Cymbidium orchids respond well to this method.

• Remove your orchid plant from its pot with a sharp blade that has been sterilized and cut through the rhizome and root ball. Each section should have at least 3 pseudo bulbs.Use sulphur powder to dust each cut to prevent infection.
• Place each division in a separate pot. You might initially need to provide some initial support by loosely tying your plant section to a stake.

Back Bulbs

Back bulbs are small leafless bulbs which are often found behind the pseudo bulbs. So long as these look healthy and are not shrivelled, with patience these can often be encourage to grow roots. Choose back bulbs that have a small bud formed near the base.

• Fill a pot with a sphagnum moss and course sand mix into which you can grow several back bulbs ( a community pot)
• Place each bulb into the sphagnum mix up to the bud.
• Put your pot into a clear plastic bag or propagator.
• Place in a spot that is out of sunlight and warm

Keiki

Keiki are small plantlets that are produced on the stems of older orchids, typically of the Dendrobrium, Oncidium and Phalaenopsis species. These plantlets can be safely removed from the parent once the roots have developed and are at least 1" (2.5cm) long.

• Plant the keiki into a pot that has been filled with a fine bark mix. spreading the roots out. Though don't plant too deep.
• Water the plantlets and place the pot into a propagator or plastic bag until established.
• Come next season re-pot the plant into your usual orchid mix.

Stem Cuttings

Some orchids such as the Dendrobrium can be propagated from stem cuttings.

• Take a leafless stem and cutting it just above a node. Each stem if long enough can be used to take several cuttings, but each cut section should contain a minimum of 2 nodes.
• Dust the end of each cut with sulphur powder.
• Fill a plant/seed tray with a sphagnum moss.sand mix and gently push the cut sections into it.
• Moisten the surface of the moss sand mix
• Put the tray into a propagator or plastic bag and keep in a warm position in light shade.

Shoots and roots should begin to form in a couple of months at which stage they can be potted on into individual pots in fine bark compost.

Different methods of propagation will suit different species of orchid of which an indication is given above however you should investigate further which method is appropriate for your orchid plant.

Jonathan Lawes is an orchid expert. For more great tips on orchid propagation [http://www.orchidgardenanswers.com/orchid-propagation], visit [http://www.orchidgardenanswers.com].

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How to Grow Chilli Peppers

Growing chillis at home - chilli growing guide

When growing chilli plants from seed you do not need to spend lots of money on expensive gear such as hydroponic systems, all you need is good old compost, pots, and of course chilli seeds. You don't even need to be in a hot climate because as long as you can provide warmth and light your good to go, growing chillis in the UK is a big YES.

Ok, first of all it is always a good idea to plan ahead, by this I mean looking at what type of space you have to grow. If you have a flat or a house with a small garden you might want to stick to the smaller type of chilli peppers such as Apache, Cayenne, Bulgarian Carrot, etc. However if you choose a bigger chilli plant you can grow it in a smaller pot which will give you a slightly smaller version of the plant.

Sourcing chilli Pepper Seeds

You can buy chilli seeds from pretty much anywhere such as DIY stores like Homebase or B&Q, even the Co-Op sell them! I find buying my chilli seeds online is much more convenient and you can buy them on eBay, however you might want to stick to more reliable sources such as Nicky's Nursery, Chile Seeds .co.uk, Simpsons Seeds, Mr.Fothergills, etc. However I can recommend an eBay shop named Premier Seeds Direct, I have brought many seeds through these and have never had any problems and my germination rate has been excellent, not only that but they are quite cheap and the company is DEFRA registered.

Growing Medium

Once you have your chilli seeds you are going to need to plant them. A high quality compost is ideal, I have never had problems with own brand multi-purpose compost from places like B&Q, Asda, Aldi, Wilkinsons and Homebase. Compost is pretty cheap and you can get 100L bags of multi-purpose compost for a few pounds, usually you will find deals on where you can buy three bags for £10.

Next you need something to put the compost in, you can use pretty much anything such as old ice cream tubs, yoghurt pots, loo roll holders etc. If you want to buy a propagator you can do so from places like eBay, B&Q, Wilkinsons etc. These propagators are plastic trays where you are able to either fill with compost or place small pots inside, they are also idea for seed cells.

What I find much more convenient than placing pots or seed cells inside the propagator is using Jiffy Pellets (peat pellets) which look like large brown tablets but when you add warm water to them they expand in to small peat filled sacks where you can pop your chilli seed(s) in to then place them in your propagator, they aren't messy and you don't waste any time filling pots up with compost.

How to germinate chilli seeds

Instead of waiting until May/June you can get a head start with your chilli plants by starting to germinate your chilli seeds around March, it will take roughly 60-120 days before you see fruit, this depends on the type of chilli pepper you are growing. A Jalapeno would take around 60 days whereas a Habanero would take longer, around 100+ days.

When germinating chilli seeds you need the right temperature, somewhere between 20c - 28c is good, although I have germinated around 18c before now. Your chilli seeds should start to pop their heads above the compost around 10-14 days, sometimes it can take up to a month so it's always good to get a head start when germinating your seeds.

As soon as your chillis have poked their heads up it's time to get them some light. If you don't get your chilli seedlings light you will get "leggy" chilli peppers, in other words they grow long and thin and become a little weak. Remember they still need a stable temperature of about 20c.

When your chilli peppers have their first set of 4 leaves you can transfer them to bigger pots (I put them in 1ltr pots), if you are growing in Jiffy pellets you might want to transfer to 9cm pots soon after you see the first pair of seed leaves, then on to 1lts pots when you have 4 leaves.

As your chilli pepper plants get bigger you will have to transplant again to bigger pots, I tend to transfer to 2-3ltr pots if I am growing a small chilli plant such as an Apache, or if it's a taller plant then a pot size of 5ltr is a good size, flower buckets are great for chilli peppers, you can get them from supermarkets for about £1 if they are willing to sell you some. If your unsure when to transplant your chilli take a look at it, if it looks like it's getting too big for it's current pot repot to a bigger one, if it looks OK then just leave it until it needs transferring.
When it comes to watering at the seedling age just spray the surface compost so it's moist, you can add a liquid nitrogen feed after about a month with the water once a week to help promote growth but using just water on it's own is fine. Going by my own watering methods I tend to always keep the chilli moist and never wet, even when it's full size I pour on the water but stop before the surface compost is swimming.

Before putting your chilli plants outside you should wait until the last frost in your area, just keep watching the news or check Garden Action for their frost dates in your area. Once you are sure that you will not get any more frosts you can start to harden off your chilli peppers. Hardening off chilli peppers is done by gradually getting your chilli plants used to the outside weather, I make the process 2 weeks long and start by putting the chilli plants outside for a couple of hours a day in a sheltered but sunny position for the first week then the second week I may taken them out late morning and bring them in late afternoon (4-5pm). After that I will leave the plants out over night just as long as the temperature doesn't drop more than 10c, chilli peppers don't like the cold so if it's going to be a little chilli (excuse the pun!) that night then bring the chilli peppers inside.

When to pick chilli peppers

Depending on the type of chilli you have you might want to wait until your chilli peppers have changed colour, most of the time your chilli peppers will change from green to red or orange, of course you can pick green chillis as long as they taste good and have the right heat level there is no reason to wait until they turn another colour. Another tip is to inspect the chilli, if it looks glossy and firm you should be good to go, also the earlier you pick your chilli peppers the more chillis your plant will produce! If you have to many chillis to pick you can store them in a cool try place or even or even place them in your freeze.

If you want to dry your chillis you might want to leave them out in a cool dry place until the pepper shrivles up and is dry to touch. You can then grind them down in to a chilli powder or even break them off (you might need to cut them) and use them as chilli flakes.

Storing Chilli Seeds

If you want to use the chillis seeds from peppers you have chopped up all you need to do is pick out all the the seeds and put them in a kitchen towel and leave to dry for a couple of days or so, once you are sure the chilli seeds are dry you can bag them up in to those little resealable bags but don't forget to label the bags!

Overwintering Chilli Plants

When you overwinter chilli plants it is best to select the chilli plants that have given you the most tastey/hot fruit as you will know roughly how many chilli pods you will get next season. Also remember that you will need to keep your chilli plant in a warm sunny place and don't forget to cut back your chilli plant, you should take the whole plant back to it's main stem leaving about 2" on the sideshoots. Don't forget to water leaving it moist and not wet, do remember in the winter months it probably won't need watering every week so just put your hand on the compost to see if it feels dry.

My name is Jay also known as FireGardenUK from [http://www.firegardenuk.com] and I grow chilli peppers at home in the UK.

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Plant Material And Planting Methods

Cuttings

A cutting is a small piece removed from a plant which with proper treatment can be induced to form roots and then grow into a specimen which is identical to the parent plant. You cannot guess the best type of cutting to take nor the best time to propagate a specimen which is identical to the parent plant. There are, however, a few general rules. Plant the cutting as soon as possible after severing it from the parent plant and make sure that the compost is in close contact with the inserted part. Do not keep pulling at the cutting to see if it has rooted - the appearance of new growth is the best guide.

Softwood cuttings:

These are green at the top and the base, and are taken from early spring to midsummer. Many hardy perennials and some small shrubs are propagated in this way. Basal cuttings are shoots formed at the base of the plant and pulled away for use as softwood cuttings in spring.

Semi-ripe cuttings:

These are green at the top and partly woody at the base, they are usually heel cuttings. Midsummer to early autumn is the usual time and most shrubs, climbers and conifers are propagated by using this method.

Hardwood cuttings:

A large variety of trees, shrubs, Roses and bush fruit can be propagated in this way. The usual time is late autumn. Choose a well ripened shoot from this years growth.

Roots with soil:

You will never finish stocking your garden as long as you remain a gardener. There will always be more spaces to fill, old plants to renew and new varieties to try. The easiest way to achieve success at planting time is to use pot-grown specimens or container-grown plants so as to avoid root disturbance. There are times, however, when we must rely on lifted plants, such as hardy perennials dug up at the nursery, bedding plants taken out of plastic trays or rooted cuttings separated from others in a propagator. In these cases some root damage is inevitable, and the rules for planting are designed to reduce this shock to a minimum. The leaves will continue to lose water after planting and so it is essential that new roots are produced as quickly as possible to replace the damaged ones. This calls for thorough soil preparation, careful lifting and then planting at the right time and in the right way.

Bare-rooted plants:

These are dug up at the nursery and transported without soil, at one time all of our Roses were bought this way. Damp material, such as peat, is packed around the roots to prevent them from drying out and at no stage should the roots be allowed to become dry. Bare-rooted plants are less expensive than their container-grown counterparts and it is not true that they are always more difficult to establish - some shrubs take root more readily when planted as bare-rooted stock.
Planting time is the dormant season between autumn and spring - choose mid October to November if you can, but delay planting until March if the soil is heavy and cold. Cut off all leaves, dead flowers, thin or damaged stems and damaged roots. If the stem is shrivelled plunge the roots in a bucket of water for 2 hours. Place packing material over the roots when you are ready to begin planting. If you can't plan straight away, leave the packing material intact and put in a cool but frost-free place. If the delay is likely to last more than a few days, unpack and heel the plants in by digging a V-shaped trench in which the roots are placed and covered.

A fantastic period of my time is spent in my garden, but as I am getting older and things are becoming harder to do. I have decided to make use of a firm called Landscaper London. Up to now they have given me all the help and advice that I have asked for. I still do a bit of pottering around my own garden.

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How To Grow Big Tomatoes

Tomatoes are one of the most common fruits (Yes officially they are fruits and not vegetables!) grown around the World. They are easy to grow, and with a few simple tips you can aim to get a big bumper crop of large tomatoes.

Now not everyone will agree with all of these tips, yet they have worked very well for me and resulted in big, strong flavoured tomatoes, as well as bumper crops all round.

Firstly the earlier you can get your tomatoes growing the better. This year I have planted mine inside towards the end of February. Many people will say do not do this until the end of March, but to an extent it does depend on where you live in the World. I live in the South of England and so I can get away with planting a full month earlier than most people.

I always feed my tomato plants with tomato food from the minute I plant them in their seed compost. Indeed I even water the dry compost with tomato feed before I plant the seeds. Whilst many people will tell you that this initially makes them leggy, I have found that as the plants mature the stems grow far thicker and stronger, and hence they are much more resistant to wind.

To set your tomato plants going I recommend planting two seeds per tray section, and simply either pull out the weaker of the two seedlings once they have germinated or re-pot the weaker one. Planting two per tray section is particularly a good idea if like me you are going to grow some plants to sell on to other people.
To plant your seeds imply use the blunt end of a pencil and press it down around 5 mm into the compost, then drop two seeds inside of the hole and simply use you fingers to pinch compost lightly over the top of the seed.

I then either place mine in my electric propagator (Highly recommended as they only cost around £15), or place them on a warm windowsill.

In either case I cover them with a layer of bubble wrap and then a layer of newspaper. The bubble wrap keeps them nice and warm, and the newspaper helps block out the light, which forces the seeds to seek out the light and germinate early. This can push your tomato seeds to germinate in less than 7 days, and not the 14-21 it says on the packet.

If you follow these tips then you will end up with great tomatoes far faster than your neighbours!

Visit us to find out more about how to grow tomatoes, and learn more about how to grow vegetables from asparagus to how to grow turnips

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Greenhouses and other glass protection.

Greenhouses and other glass protection

1. Install an electricity supply in your greenhouse to give you light and power for watering systems and propagating units.


2. Remove automatic window openers in the winter, as heavy frosts can damage the liquid reservoirs which operate them.


3. Locate greenhouses where they will get plenty of sun in winter and spring, and where you can get to them without getting muddy feet.


4. Grow a pot of basil in your greenhouse to repel whitefly. They don't like the smell.


5. Keep your greenhouse warm in the winter and save on heating bills by lining it with bubble plastic. The bubbles should be against the glass, to form a solid layer of air.


6. Make quick cloches with two sheets of glass and four clothes pegs. Put two pegs on each piece of glass, lean the sheets of glass together, and put a rubber band on each pair of pegs to hold them together.


7. Fix up a clear polythene curtain to separate plants which need different growing conditions such as dry and light for tomatoes or shady and moist for cucumbers.


8. Water your greenhouse in the morning. Evening watering leaves moist conditions overnight which encourage red spider mite.


9. Grow vegetable crops in growbags or tubs rather than in the border soil, to avoid a build-up of diseases and pests.


10. Make your own staging with trestle legs and planks or expanded metal.


11. If you have children in your garden, choose a cheap plastic greenhouse until they are grown-up, or choose rigid plastic glazing rather than glass.


12. For cheap adjustable greenhouse shades, use roll-up bamboo blinds.


13. If using biological pest control methods in your greenhouse. Check with the suppliers whether you can use pesticides without killing the predators you've purchased.


14. Treat wooden structural portions of your greenhouse with linseed oil every live years.


15. Install a water supply in your greenhouse. Even if it is no more elaborate than a tap.


16. Keep a tank in your greenhouse to bring water up to air temperature before using it on your plants. Mains water can be cold enough to shock tender plants in hot weather.


17. If you heat your greenhouse by electricity, keep a small paraffin heater as a backup in case of power cuts.


18. Ask yourself if you really need to heat the whole greenhouse, or whether a propagator would be sufficient to keep your favourite plants going through the winter.


19. Make a cheap cold frame the Chinese way, by digging a pit, lining the sides with sheets of polystyrene, then laying a few bamboo canes across the top to support plastic sheeting for a lid. A layer of gravel in the bottom of the pit will absorb heat during the day and give it off slowly at night.


20. Put cloches out on the growing area at least two weeks before adding plants or seed, to let the soil warm up. Cover the ends to keep out draughts.


21. Cold-frames and cloches attract ants, who like to make nests in warm places, so sprinkle ant killer round the edges to keep them out before they damage your plants.


22. Use plastic water-bottles as individual mini-greenhouses for tender plants. Cut off the bottom and push the bottle firmly into the soil over the plant. Pop a few slug pellets inside and put the lid on until the weather warms up.

Did you know that even a small greenhouse can boost your gardening productivity 10 fold? If you want to know how much you can do with only a Small Greenhouse then check out http://www.gardeningdatafiles.com/gardening-in-a-small-greenhouse

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Misting For Plant Propagation

The discovery of misting was a huge turning point in plant propagation. Prior to misting, plant propagators had very few reliable ways of asexual propagation. One common method was to take a cutting of a plant, stick it in moist sand, and place a glass jar over it. The jar would let in light and retain moisture around the cutting. This method does work, but the success rate was not high. Plants would burn if too much sun penetrated the glass. The glass would concentrate and intensify the light ( think magnifying glass) which would burn tender cuttings. Another drawback was fungus. Fungus thrives in moist environments. Having the cuttings under glass with no air movement to help dry it off, usually meant the cutting would die from too much moisture. Frequent removal of the glass helped to replace the stale moist air with fresh air, but was very labour intensive with large numbers of cuttings.

Later, it was discovered that if the cuttings were misted frequently by hand throughout the day, greater success was achieved. Again, very labour intensive.

Misting systems allowed propagators to keep the cuttings moist, but not overly wet, and saved considerable time. Cuttings are usually placed out in the open or an open enclosure, not under a sealed enclosure, which allows the circulation of fresh air which the plants require for it's respiration, cooling, drying, and watering requirements. Because of the automation, many more cuttings could be done at one time.

All mist kits have the same basic components.

A timer to turn the system on and off daily.

A timer to control the misting duration and frequency.

A transformer to reduce the voltage to the voltage the solenoid requires. Please note that transformers and solenoids are AC voltage and others are DC voltage! Voltage for the solenoid and transformer

MUST be the same!

A solenoid valve that controls the flow of the water to the mist heads.

A reliable water supply.

A reliable electrical supply.

A manifold to carry the water to the misting heads

mist heads to spray a fine mist over the cuttings

A simple misting setup would be assembled as follows: A 24 hour timer set up to turn the system on in the morning, and off in the evening. This timer can be hard wired to an electrical circuit, or a simple plug can be installed to facilitate the systems remove for the winter. The 24 hour timer is wired to another timer that controls the duration and frequency if misting. This frequency varies from geographical location and season, but a 10 minute frequency with a 6 second duration is a good place to start. This in turn is wired to a step down transformer that reduces the voltage to what the solenoid requires. If in question, a competent electrician should be sought. The transformer is then wired to the solenoid. The solenoid will need fittings installed so a common garden hose can be attached. Proper installation of these fittings is essential for the solenoid to work properly. The solenoid is DIRECTIONAL, meaning there is an IN and an OUT. Next, the outlet of the solenoid is attached to a PVC manifold that will carry the water to the mist heads. The connection of these heads can be done a few ways depending on the application. Some are suspended from overhead, others are simply attached to a manifold on the ground and raised to allow the spray to cover the cuttings. One option I recommend for the system is a filter. Small particulates will clog the solenoid or render your mist heads inoperable. The cost of a filter is far less than the frustration from losing cuttings due to a plugged head.

Modern technology has given us even better equipment than the two separate timers mentioned. The transformer can also be eliminated due to the fact that it is built into the timing unit. One timer in particular will operate six completely separate stations. This means you could have six separate mist beds, six different irrigation zones, or a combination of the two; one mist zone and up to five irrigation zones. This comes in quite handy, if you have a mist bed and potted plants, grow beds, perennial gardens, or anything else you need watered.

For areas that do not have electricity readily available, there are also units that are strictly battery operated.

Dwayne Haskell owns and operates Hidden Hills Nursery [http://www.hiddenhillsnursery.com]. He also enjoys teaching others how to grow their own landscape plants from rooted cuttings. After building his own misting system for his nursery, he realised he could design and build a system for home gardeners who are interested in starting their own plants from cuttings. He offers complete misting kits, individual components, and advice at Mistkits.com.

Article Source: http://EzineArticles.com/?expert=Dwayne_Haskell

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Stewart 52cm Thermostatic Control Electric Propagator

Company Description

Established in 1945, Stewart has an enviable reputation as a UK manufacturer and leading Brand in the Garden products market. Within this market the Stewart brand is widely recognised as representing quality, innovation and excellent customer support.”

  Stewart 52cm Thermostatic Control Electric Propagator - Black

Product Description

Premium electric propagator supplied with a crystal clear lid and sealed heating unit. Established in 1945, Stewart has an enviable reputation as a UK manufacturer and leading Brand in the Garden products market. Within this market the Stewart brand is widely recognised as representing quality, innovation and excellent customer support.”