1st photo: late September, when I moved her from the south-facing windowsill and placed under a grow light.
2nd and 3rd photos: today, after two months of being under the LED. In the 3rd photo, I put her back on the sill momentarily to capture the pretty colours.
Basically, my Echeveria enjoyed getting some full Sun on the windowsill during the summer here in Northeastern Europe, but now she seems to enjoy herself even more.
Here are the thoughts running through my neurotic mind: Should I just keep her under the grow light forever, under the same intensity (do succulents need dormant time?)? Or, could I move her back to the windowsill next spring and start fertilising then, even though she will, apparently, be getting a bit less light there during the summer? Will I mess up her “seasonal clock” with all this? I’d be thankful for any kind of input. Last winter was rough for this plant, so I just want to do what’s best for it.
Also, if anyone could identify her (some sort of Agavoides) or has the same subspecies, I’d love to see pictures of yours!
by Friendly_Grape7
3 Comments
windows filter a lot of the sunlight even tho we might not realize it, although the latitude at which you live at also affects the sun’s Intensity, so depending on where you are it makes sense that a grow light would be able to stress it more efficiently. Honestly it doesn’t look bad while on the windowsill and was clearly receiving enough light to not etiolate. Anyway I agree with agavoides
So growlights are my way of keeping my succulents happy so I’ve always been a fan of growlights. If it’s colder where you live your succulent could be stress coloring not only from growlight but bc of the season change to cooler temps. I find even as an indoor grower my succulents know when the temps drop and get more vibrant. If you’re growing indoors you don’t really have to adhere to the general rules of fertilizing in spring, water less, etc. you can continue to fertilize and use the growlight and if you have a bright enough spot in your window come spring, you can move it back. Depending upon what medium you have it potted in, will determine how often you can or should water. You want something gritty that will dry fast and allow airflow in. Good Luck! If you have any other questions feel free to ask!
Plants often display better colors under high intensity LEDs even when compared to full sun outdoors (at least in northerly climates). My Aloe, Echeveria, Dyckia and several other plants increase their anthocyanin production drastically within a few weeks under lights.
Your Echeveria will do perfectly fine permanently under lights. My collection hasn’t seen the outdoors in years, and are on timers to provide 16 hours of light.