LED Vs. HPS
- Philly Weeds
- Jun 22, 2021
- 3 min read
In recent times, LEDs have taken a fair share in the Marijuana lighting space. With the recent developments, people have been asking many questions, including whether LEDs can produce high-quality flowers like HPS lamps.
HPS lamps have been in the industry standards for a while now. The advent of LEDs does not necessarily mean that high-intensity discharge (HID) technology such as the HPS is a mess that needs to be fixed. For a fact, HID lights can be budget-friendly and easy to apply.
HPS lights
HPS lamps emit their light by transmitting a high voltage pulse rich in energy through a pressurized quartz tube. Usually, the tube has to be full of vaporized sodium and other chemical elements, including mercury and xenon.
As the gases in the tube heat, light is emitted in return. Sodium exhibits intense light, which is yellow-orange. It can, however, be replaced by mercury and xenon.
Both mercury and xenon can release light at the blue end of a spectrum. The end product will be whiter light.
LED Lights
LEDs (light-emitting diodes) act as semiconductors. They can give way to electrical energy to pass through them with minimal resistance in a one-way direction.
LEDs have high resistance when electrical energy passes in the other direction; across the n-p junction.
There is a material treated with electrons placed on the first part, which comes before the junction. On the other bit lies a material that is treated so that it is electron deficient.
When one applies a voltage, the excess electrons move freely through the junction to compensate for the lack of electrons on the other side of the intersection.
As a result, the system emits light. The intensity of the light and its color is dependent on the material that one uses.
Nitrides of gallium, zinc, Phosphides, silicon, and aluminum are commonly used in making lights.
Comparison Between HPS And LEDs For Marijuana
LED lights have a performance rating that is variable on a scale. It depends on the product; hence, that can drastically affect the kind of light which will be emitted.
The same happens in HPS. Generally, gloss vital elements in the design of HPS lamps are;
The wattage of the fixture
Is the lamp double- or single-ended
Is the ballast electronic or magnetic
LEDs' efficiency is better than that of HPS. However, there are other LEDs whose efficiency is less than that of HPS fixtures of good quality.
LED light fixtures' efficiency varies depending on;
Type of diodes
The spectrum's color composition
The overall quality of the product
Engineering factors
What is more remarkable, that as much as the efficiency of µmol/joule is high, LED fixtures might not be in a position to provide one's cannabis plants with a better morphology.
Autoflower In Cannabis
In the Cannabis plant cycle, there are two principal phases that it goes through. The vegetative and flowering stages.
Some cannabis strains, commonly known as photoperiod marijuana, need a variation in light intensity to start the flowering process.
Autoflowering cannabis strains do not have these challenges. The strain does not need any external indicator to produce buds. Instead, flowers show up naturally after a given period.
The auto-flowering attribute did not come into existence as a mistake. It's just a natural adaptation of the Cannabis plant to the conditions in the environment. The auto-flowering gene was derived from Ruderalis cannabis.
The Ruderalis cannabis subspecies adjusted and aligned itself to the environment; hence could survive in harsh weather conditions and cold.
Ruderalis does not have to wait for triggered flowering. Instead, the Ruderalis subspecies cannabis uses its genes to produce flowers before temperatures plunge.
Thanks to the feature. Cannabis farmers now are enjoying faster growth in auto-flowering genetics.
Feminized Cannabis
Feminized marijuana seeds are made so that the cannabis plant can have higher chances of being female than male. The advantage of feminizing one's cannabis plant is because it's only the female plant that generates buds.
Non-feminized seeds usually produce both male and female plants in equal ratios.
Having many male cannabis plants on a farm may be a great asset in a breeding program. However, it is not worth it if one watches them over and ends up throwing them away if a farmer needs their steady supply of cannabis buds.
AUTOFLOWERING VS FEMINIZED
Both photoperiod and auto-flowering strains can be equally feminized. This is done through modifications of the cannabis strain so that it will only produce female plants.
Technically, the chances of the emergence of female plants are higher than the average growth of cannabis.
Bottom line
To get maximum profits from Cannabis cultivation, one needs to research the best technology to use and seeds to plant.
By planting feminized weed seeds collected from a reputable seed breeder, one does not have to worry about the gender of the plant. They will be female.
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