For an indoor greenhouse to be successful, the owner must choose the best lighting possible for the plants to thrive. Remember also that not all plants are the same when it comes to their lighting need and the length of exposure; consult a gardener or read seed bag information guide to know your plants’ optimum light requirement. The energy cost to operate the indoor greenhouse light should also be given consideration when deciding which lighting to use.

For indoor greenhouse purposes, you can choose anyone or two of these types of light: incandescent, metal halide, high-pressure sodium, and fluorescent lamps. The tips were put forward by a pro in environmental engineering and hydrogeology who saw business opportunity in this respect.

The incandescent type of lamp is not a very good choice to light an indoor greenhouse considering its poor ability to support photosynthesis. Their use is probably concentrated on highlighting the plant for added effect, but never for crucial plant processes to happen. Not only are incandescent lamps bad at supporting photosynthesis, they are also bad for the environment and bad for the budget.

Metal halide lamps on the other hand are a good choice for lighting indoor greenhouse garden. In the scale of 1 to 100 (100 being the perfect score) on the Color Rendering Index, metal halide lamps score from 65 to 75, and some even score in the 80s. These types of lamp can substitute the natural white sunlight for photosynthesis vital for plants’ survival. For plant reproductive purposes also, there are horticultural metal halide lamps that emit red light for this purpose.

High-pressure sodium lamps are also good for flowering and fruiting processes of plants in an indoor greenhouse because of its orange and red spectrum light emission. However, if you use high-pressure sodium lamps solely in your indoor greenhouse, your plants would appear less healthy due to poor white light exposure. However, horticultural high-pressure sodium lamps can grow indoor greenhouse plants also.

Thus far, fluorescent lamps are the best choice for indoor greenhouse lighting for your plants’ and your own sake. Fluorescent lamps produce white light that can be a perfect sunlight substitute to sprout seedlings and maintain the photosynthesis action of adult plants. Horticultural-grade fluorescent lamps produce the full colors of the spectrum so that the light can not only support photosynthesis but reproductive processes of the plants also.  Aside from the much needed full-spectrum light, fluorescent lamps also produce just enough heat for the plants in your indoor greenhouse.