zeus 600w led light unit

Lumatek Zeus Pro Lighting

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Lumatek Zeus Pro Lighting

6 reasons to use LED lights in your greenhouse

  1. Providing supplemental lighting for plants: LED lights can be used to provide additional light to plants in a greenhouse, particularly during the winter months when natural light levels are lower. This can help promote healthy plant growth and flowering.
  2. Controlling temperature: LED lights can be used to heat a greenhouse during cold weather, helping to maintain optimal growing conditions for plants.
  3. Improving plant growth and yield: LED lights can be used to improve the growth and yield of certain crops by providing the specific wavelengths of light that they need for optimal growth.
  4. Reducing energy consumption: LED lights are highly energy efficient and can help reduce the energy costs of operating a greenhouse.
  5. Improving the appearance of the greenhouse: LED lights can be used to create a visually appealing environment in the greenhouse, enhancing the overall aesthetic of the space.
  6. Improving safety: LED lights can help improve safety in the greenhouse by providing bright, consistent lighting that makes it easier to navigate the space and identify any potential hazards.

Lumatek Zeus Pro Lighting

Why use LED lighting

Well, in my opinion, the cost of running your lighting has got to be among the main reasons for updating your equipment. So as time goes by, there are thousands of inventors looking for new ways to improve things. In my opinion, this is the next step forward in growers’ lighting.

Indeed, there are many reports from manufacturers that say the LED lights can save as much as 40%. In comparison to the energy used by the old-fashioned lighting equipment that many people still use, Also, the growing area that is lit up using LED will, of course, generate a higher yield per kWh. My own experience is that a friend who is a keen grower of all sorts of plants had a surplus LED light unit. He offered the light at a good price, and so I snapped his hand off. The unit is just plug-and-play and simple to install.

Used LED for the first time

Last winter was the first time that I used the new LED lights in my citrus plants overwintering greenhouse. So, the light emitted from the LEDs was a very bright white light. My older lights were, of course, orange-coloured. Combined with a good greenhouse heater, my plants overwintered perfectly. Consequently, I added two hours of daylight at each end of the day. So giving my lemons and oranges the extra daylight they require.

My plants are put out in the summer, and I then grow my tomatoes and peppers. Incidentally, my friend had bought a new Lumatek LED light unit, which is rated at a tremendous 60,000 hours. I was happy to buy his old LED unit for my first step into LED growing. However, he upgraded to the Lumatek, giving him a 5 year warranty.

Lumatek LED, s highly efficient

One of the first things I noticed about LED lighting was how cool they ran at. The Lumatek also operates at high efficiency with much less wattage. That means less heat release, lower gardening costs (which keeps the wife happy), and lower electric bills.

My friend is certainly impressed with his Lumatek Zeus Pro Led lighting setup. giving Scott, my friend, more powerful grow lights. Another added advantage of Lumatek LED lights is that they can be dimmed. Accordingly, adjust the PPF level. Naturally, to suit the crop and the growth stages. This is without changing or losing efficiency.


Flexible light intensity;

Lumatek LEDs can be turned down to change the PPF level to fit the crop and its growth stage. This doesn’t change how the spectral power is distributed or make them less effective. Of course, LED lighting is the future and is already in the process of overtaking the HPS lighting market. Because of the way that the multiple light strips are designed, the diodes are spread right across the canopy. This spreads out the light, giving it an almost perfect footprint.

So, the type of lighting that the Zeus product emits is as close as possible to natural sunlight. Of course, something that’s most beneficial to your plants Finally, once the Lumatek LEDs are up and running, you won’t ever have to change a lamp again. This should save you more than £1000 per year!

These lights are available from many hydroponic stores online, and callers are welcome.

Hydrostore-Which Tomatoes for Hydroponics

Which Tomatoes for Hydroponics !

Home » Archives for September 2021

Which Tomatoes for Hydroponics !

Which Tomatoes for Hydroponics !

I must confess that tomatoes are probably the best and most rewarding things that you can grow. Also, they are a great choice for hydronic gardeners as well as conventional growers. Because of this, many growers think that they would do best in a hydroponic environment. Compared to being in a greenhouse or outside, I have tried all methods! This year, I grew in my usual greenhouse and have had mixed results.

I use two plastic water tanks to supply the pots, which are filled with a mixture of clay pebbles and coco peat made by Canna. So, you can buy this at your local hydrostore. However, I’ve discovered that it’s now available pre-mixed and ready to use. I will probably get this for the next growing season.

One of the most important vegetables in the world is the tomato. Many of our favourite dishes utilise tomatoes, a tasty produce that is also healthful. Who eats French fries without ketchup? Everything Italian appears to have a tomato base. Red, plump, vine-ripened, and spotless tomatoes are most desirable. Hydroponics is an intriguing, non-traditional method of growing tomatoes with these characteristics.

Numerous fruits and vegetables can be grown with hydroponics very effectively and efficiently. It entails raising them in water that has critical plant nutrients dissolved in it, known as a nutrient solution. You can carry out this either with or without an artificial medium. Sand, gravel, rockwool, peat, sawdust, and vermiculite are some examples of these mediums. Greenhouses used in hydroponic systems are enclosed, temperature-controlled, and help prevent pest infestations.

One important thing to remember is when choosing the type of tomatoes to grow using the hydroponics method.

Then, you should only choose the “indeterminate” varieties of tomatoes. These grow like vines and can be trained to climb a cane. The flowers that produce the tomatoes will sprout in-between the leaf axils. This can be best seen on this excellent video-

apart from tying them to the canes as they grow. Then the only thing to do is to pinch out any growth that appears to be sprouting on the joints of the branches and main stem. These tomatoes are said to be “truss varieties” because they grow on trusses.

The efficient use of fertilisers and water intake, extremely high yields, lack of seasonality, and pest removal are benefits of hydroponically cultivating tomatoes. By not growing them in soil, factors like pH, salinity, infections, or poor drainage are eliminated that can impede growth. The farmer has complete control over the environment, ensuring that the tomatoes are growing in the best possible conditions. These tomatoes can also be planted all year long to always have fresh, vine-ripened tomatoes available.

Hydroponically cultivating tomatoes has a few drawbacks. Energy and capital inputs are very high. Additionally, success requires above average managerial abilities. Hydroponics is only used for high-value crops like tomatoes due to these drawbacks.

To properly grow tomatoes hydroponically, a variety of outside elements must be managed. Light, temperature, humidity, and air flow are a few of these. Fertility, solution pH, and pruning are additional factors. These are all essential to the plants’ success and require precise, cautious management to function properly.

As the plant grows upward, you will be rewarded with bunches of green and then red tomatoes. As the plant reaches the top of the growing area, nip out the growing tip. thus allowing the plant to stop growing and put all its energy into producing a good tomato crop on the lower stems.

Just a mention that the determinate tomato varieties grow as a bush and are more suited to other types of growing methods.

Which varieties!

Cluster (Truss) Tomatoes

Because of my age (now very old), these are my first-choice tomato varieties. These are the types that look like regular tomatoes or vine tomatoes. As I have said, they grow in trusses and attain the regular-looking size of tomatoes. Of course, most gardeners recognise the names of these varieties because of their regular good performance and dependability. Old favourites such as Alicante, Ailsa Craig, and Moneymaker are still very popular varieties. Also, I grow a few F1 hybrid varieties such as “Shirley” and “Cristal.”

However, if you want to save the seeds for your next year’s crop, F1 hybrid seeds will not come true to variety. Finally, I find that the truss tomatoes have an excellent taste and are perfect for the salad bowl. I also like to cook them for breakfast with some eggs and bacon; they taste delicious.

Beefsteak Tomatoes-

So, these are my second-preferred variety to grow. These can grow very large, and I must admit to showing off their size when we have visitors to the house! I first saw this type of tomato when I was a young man and went to Spain for my summer holidays. They were not available in the UK at the time and were considered exotics. They looked great sliced on a lovely Spanish salad.

Later, when I visited France, I bought some “Marmande” seeds in a local garden centre. These were not the giants, but they were very similar to the beefsteak tomatoes found in Spain. Beefsteaks can also come in F1 varieties, so beware of saving the seeds as they won’t come true. This year, I tried a variety called “Pink Brandywine.” So, when sliced, they just fit into a slice of bread. The flavour is good, and they are excellent sliced with a pinch of salt and some good “virgin olive oil” sprinkled on top.

I would try your one choice, though. Sometimes it is worth buying a couple of different plants from your local garden centre to find your one preference. Believe me, it is well worth the effort, and there is nothing tastier than your own homegrown tomatoes.

Plum Tomatoes gaining popularity-Which Tomatoes for Hydroponics

Italy is becoming a very popular tourist attraction, and I believe it is the true home of the “plum tomatoes.” Again, these would only be found in canned tomatoes and would be inaccessible to UK gardeners. However, they are now widely available and are worth a try. They grow in the same way as a vine and are popular for their delicious flavour and plum-shaped fruit. I love to grow plum tomatoes and have been successful with the varieties “Roma” and ” San Marzano.”

So, both these varieties have grown very well next to my regular crops and the flavours are very tasty. I love these cooked with a little oil and two fried eggs on top for my breakfast. Fresh from my greenhouse then life could not be better!

Now there are many different colours!-Which Tomatoes for Hydroponics

During the past few years, “cherry tomatoes” have become a popular choice for salads and also for mixing with mainly Italian dishes. because they can be kept whole and remain in shape when cooked. However, I am not a fan of these, and so far I have not grown any. There are types that can be grown in a hanging basket and cascade from the basket called “Tumbler” . I may try these, but so far I’ve given them a miss.

Anyhow, to make the salad bowl more interesting, it is possible to buy tomatoes that have many different colours. Hence, orange-coloured varieties are now popular, including “Orange Santa” and “Orange Wellington.” Dark-coloured tomatoes don’t look right to me ! They have very dark skin, despite not being completely black. Varieties such as ” Black Opal” are available, but these are not for me.

A very nice looking striped tomato is available called “tigerella“. hence with a red back ground and yellow stripes. I have grown these, but my family thought they looked sick! Not for everyone, but certainly unique.

Finally all your growing mediums and plant care materials are available online from all over the UK via the “Hydrostore” website.