About a week ago, i checked, and almost all of them were germinating.

So i got them in some pots and put them outsicxde. They still havent put out their true leaves yet, and i know they are not going to make it thru winter with out help.

I know the drawbacks and problems of trying to grow these indoors. But i do want to try.. even if it ends in failure. I have space in the basement where i can set up a grow light system, humidifier, fans, and try my best to recreate a more hospitable environment.

But the question here is looking at LED grow lights - most of it consists of 92% red , and 8 % blue LEDS. But since these seedlings are of the red variety, wouldnt that mean, its reflecting all the red light? what colored light do they need?

i can alwayss just use flourscents but wanted to add some supplemental light.

also any advice on trying to grow japanese maple seedlings indoors at least for the winter would be greatly appreciated.

Right now, they are set up in 1/8 gallon grow bags and under a cold frame outdoors. With the weather we are having - 65 degree days and 45 degree nights - i can keep it out for a while. But if Pittsburgh weather being the way it is, we might actually have some frosty nights in dec...

Jason

White light is made up of all the other colors of light all at once. Sunlight is very close to this but has it's own characteristics. No bulbs do this completely but some do better than others. Any time you see a colored light you are projecting only that light and throwing away the other colors. So colored bulbs are not giving you very much useable light. Fluorescent lamps are cheap and don't produce much heat but they don't have a very good spectrum. So while it looks bright the plants aren't getting as much as they could. The lights have to be close and the more the better. Incandescent bulbs (regular bulbs) have a better spectrum depending on what kind you buy (soft white and others) but they are inefficient and produce alot of heat. They can be used to supplement fluorescent bulbs to get a "whiter" light. There are bulbs that are mucher closer to sunlight (HPS for one) but they are not cheap, they are expensive to run and they produce alot of heat.

Those are the basics. The info is out there, people grow under fluorescent all the time. Just know what to expect. LEDs are becoming popular for energy saving home lighting but they are not a good choice for plants. They are quite narrow in their spectrum. If someone is aware of LED lighting being adapted to plant growth I hope they chime in.