Gardening Indoors with H.I.D. Lights [Paperback]

Alyssa F. Bust (Author), George F. Van Patten (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: December 1, 1997

Six chapters in over 168 pages cover light and it's relationship to plants, including, photosynthesis, photoperiodism, phototropism and light intensity. This book explains in detail the differences between sunlight and artificial light. Advantages of mercury vapor, metal halide and high pressure sodium lamps are detailed. A light bulb chart is included and explained in detail. Choosing, using and all details of HID lights in book.

Editorial Reviews

Review

Gardening Indoors with HID Lights is THE definitive book on high intensity discharge(HID) lighting and plant growth. This book overflows with the latest information, advise and practical applications on high-tech lights for growing all plants. "If you use HIDs, you must have this book." -- Growing Edge magzine May, 1998

From the Author

I have been fascinated with indoor gardening for more than 20 years. In the early 1980s there was little information on the subject, so I started to do research. I made hundreds of phone calls and visited countless nurseries. Soon I started writing articles in the Organic Gardening, Houseplant and the Growing Edge Magazine. The research progressed into the Gardening Indoors Series - NEW REVISED GARDENING INDOORS, GARDENING INDOORS WITH CO2, GARDENING INDOORS WITH CUTTINGS, GARDENING INDOORS WITH HID LIGHTS, GARDENING INDOORS WITH ROCKWOOL. This is the only series of books that deals with indoor gardening and High Intensity Discharge lighting. The series has helped hundreds of thousands of indoor gardeners enjoy exotic flowers and vegetables grown indoors. I am also available at our web site.

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Product Details

• Paperback: 168 pages
• Publisher: Van Patten Pub; 1 edition (December 1, 1997)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 1878823213
• ISBN-13: 978-1878823212
• Product Dimensions: 8.3 x 5.4 x 0.4 inches
• Shipping Weight: 1 pounds (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 3.7 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (3 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #194,683 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

26 of 26 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars It's okay. Some great information, but cluttered., July 19, 2002

By 

Tom Krischan (Big Bend, WI USA) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: Gardening Indoors with H.I.D. Lights (Paperback)

Book contains about 154 pages and is divided into 6 sections. The sections discuss Light, Artificial Light, HID Lamps, Reflectors, Setup, and Electricity Basics. Appendices include Radiant Energy, Requirements of Plants, Troubleshooting, Types of Lamps, Glossary, and Index.

The book is a mixed bag of great information and cluttered lists of data. The major theme of the book wanders about. Some of the discussions contradict each other. For example, Van Patten does a masterful job describing why useful light for plants should not be measured in lumens. But then he goes ahead and displays his huge listing of light readings in lumens. Why? You made your point, use PAR Watts.

In another section, Van Patten decribes every possible detail about horticultural lamps and reflector systems, but draws no summary with a specific list of brands and models. Don't get me wrong, he lists lots of data. Pages and pages of spreadsheet like lumen data for over 115 models of bulbs. Pages and pages of 54 three dimensional charts. Yah, great, you did lots of research - but I don't need to see all the raw data. Just tell me which bulb I should buy. Maybe give me a top ten list. Should I really care what the lumens are for the 97th best bulb?

Many conclusions are very vague. For example Van Patten actually writes, "we still do not know which lamp is best". Gee, that a great reason to write a book.

I'm torn as how to rate this book. The book contains many jewels of information that are well researched and finely written. Some of Van Patten's findings are exciting, extremely interesting, and even thought provolking. But in between is a littered jumble of confusing tables and charts. It's disorganized. There are lots of typographical errors throughout. He should have hired a book editor before publishing this (or hired a smarter one).

If you plan to garden indoors with HID lights, you must buy this book (you have no other choice but this book, because there are no other texts available). The book is most valuable to purchase BEFORE you select a HID system. It will save you from making a costly mistake.

PS: I use two HID lamps, a 400 watt Agrosun and a 400 watt Sunmaster Warm Deluxe. Both are installed in identical Hydrofarm Super Grow Wing Systems. I love the results - I can grow anything!

23 of 23 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars Getting bright before starting grow lights, November 11, 2000

By A Customer

Amazon Verified Purchase

This review is from: Gardening Indoors with H.I.D. Lights (Paperback)

"Gardening Indoors with HID Lights" is a cross between a technical manuscript and an How To book for beginners. With a bachelors in cellular biology, this book was perfect for me. It explained how plants react to different parts of the light spectrum for different parts of their growth cycle. It steered me away from what would have been an ineffective fluorescent to maintain my citrus trees during the snowy winter. Instead the authors skillfully discuss the relationship of cost, watts, and effective indoor growth area for what is essentially artificial sunlight. As a novice, I decided not to take all their advice about an indoor lighting system, since I wasn't sure it would really work as advertised. But the practical science which is woven throughout this book would have been an equally effective guide for a much more elaborate set up. The salesperson where I ended up purchasing my HID system did not recommend this book since it was "too technical." I myself would recommend this book to anyone who studies their gardening and purchases other garden books. A high intensity discharged lighting system will cost several hundred dollars. My system had no information with it guide me in it's use. This book neatly fills the gap.

1 of 2 people found the following review helpful:

3.0 out of 5 stars Way Too Old ... 1997, September 19, 2009

By 

Ambitious Farmer - See all my reviews

This review is from: Gardening Indoors with H.I.D. Lights (Paperback)

Just bought this book (Sept. 2009). Was expecting "current data." Not so! The technical data is OLD, 1997, which is far from up to date in the ever changing world of "what works." You will note that Amazon fails to provide a publication date, which is not a responsible thing to do when buyers are out looking for state of the art info. [...]