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Growing towards the light

SadisticPeppers

SadisticPeppers

eXtreme Business
The sprouts that have popped up in the last couple of days are growing towards the fluorescent light I have set up. The light and the germination tray are perpendicular to each other, and I know that their tendency to grow to the light is considered normal, but the angle they are growing does worry me a little bit. Should I have the germination tray directly under the light, or will the plants right themselves if the tray and light remain perpendicular?
 
FYI: The movement toward the light is called "phototropism", and you don't want them getting too used to a 90 degree light source. From my LIMITED experience...temperature trumps direct light for the first month or so. They will not right themselves unless you get them an overhead light source. They will eventually grow out toward that light at a funky angle, stop growing, and eventually fail.
 
Thanks for the advice. I've repositioned the tray accordingly. As the seedlings are at most a couple days old, they should be right as rain in no time :)
 
3/5King said:
LB..what do you mean by don't let them get used to a 90 degree light source? Explain my friend..explain.
Click to expand...

I understood the OP as meaning his light source was set up next to his seedlings, instead of over them. After a while, they reach out in that direction, and stay that way. The stems have high compression strength, and decent tensil strength (up and down strength)...but won't be able to support new growth if the stems are parallel to the ground...they'll simply be too heavy to support anything other than the cotyledons, and refuse to put out their first true leaves. This is only "my" theory...I've done it a few times with bean plants at school. Stems will naturally grow in a negative geotropic manner...they always "want" to go up (roots grow in a positive geotropic manner <downward> unless a location specific water source is available...then the roots will respond in a positive hydrotropic manner>. This is why you see trees on the side of hills and mountains growing upward, instead of perpendicular to whatever angle the ground is at. Seedling stems will fall over with just a couple drops of water on the cotyledons...they can't handle the weight. So...my guess is they won't put out first leaves until reasonably upright. If they can't get that way, as the functionality of the cotyledons decreases over time, they give up, and crap the bed.
 
What's the reason for having a light over your germination tray?

Once the seeds germinate they should be removed from the germination tray and placed under the light source. Seeds don't neet light to germinate, they need moisture and a warm growing medium. Lights come into effect after they have germinated.
 
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