What is the best UV light for plants? 2021 Updated

Benefits of UV Light for Growing Marijuana Plants

While generally perceived as harmful for humans and for plants, there are actually quite a few benefits that these lights bring along. Here’s a closer look at the benefits of UV lights:

Increases The Production of Resins

The biggest benefit for marijuana growers is that using UV lights will help you boost the production of resins in your crop. The higher the exposure to UV lights, the more resins will be produced – resins, in turn, produce flavonoids and terpenes – which are the key compounds that provide your plant its unique flavour (with the help of flavonoids) and smell (with the help of terpenes). 

Better Protection Against Pests and Insects

Resins are known for their protective properties for the plants. Resins help the plants survive against pests, insects, and pathogens. Resins help ‘repair’ your plant. Anyone who has grown weed knows that pests can pose a real threat! Aphids, or even smaller insects and pests can cause quite a nuisance and your entire plant can be affected because of them! Hence, this is an important aspect.

Increasing the Levels of THC and CBD

Growers and stoners alike know that when it comes to marijuana plant’s resins, there’s much more than regular protection and taste that they offer. Resins also contain THC and CBD (in small quantities) which add to the overall potency of the plant! The higher the resin content the better the quality of ‘high’ that you are going to get when you smoke that weed!  

Improving Root Mass and Improves Branching

One of the key benefits of using UV lights is that they also help in promoting the overall growth and strength of the roots too. Especially while your plants are at a younger stage. Increasing root mass is very important. This is because growers often transplant their plants from one place to another when they start growing – In most cases it is outdoors to indoors and in some rare cases, it can also be indoors to outdoors. Hence, the roots really need to be well developed in order for this transplantation to successfully happen as they are the ones which bear the brunt of the stress.

UV grow lights can greatly improve your growth quality if used appropriately. Let’s take a look at the best UV light for plants and how to use them properly.

ECO Farm 30W LG UV395nm Supplemental Lighting Quantum Board

The best overall option is the ECO Farm 30W LG UV395nm Supplemental Lighting Quantum Board. It provides indoor plants with a diverse range of light. This helps promote growth and allows even the most delicate, tropical plants and flowers to not only grow but bloom year-round. You can also grow seasonal vegetables and herbs in the winter, spring, summer, or fall.

This ECO Farm Supplemental Grow Light also has an cooling plate to effectively dissipate heat, even on the highest setting. It  is easy to set up. You can put it together in about a minute and hang it from almost anywhere in your home.

In our test, the grow light gave our seedlings ample nourishment early on, so they didn’t outpace themselves. The light also proved to be the perfect size for a standard seed tray. It distributes light evenly so each seedling gets an equal share of light.

This light offers high-quality lighting that encourages houseplants, indoor gardens, cacti, and flowers to flourish every month of the year. Unlike some other grow lights that produce harsh lighting, it provides soft, natural illumination and warmth.

Gavita 30W UV LED Grow Light

Gavita 30W UV LED Grow Light is one of the few LED grow lights that are truly full spectrum. This LED light is known for its stability. It has a longer life than normal LED lights as well as higher brightness. This  great light that does not put out high temperatures like the usual high pressure sodium lamps and also is truly full spectrum.

For the price, this is truly a well-designed, quality light that contains UVA light wavelengths. The lights are brighter than the majority of LED lights on the market, and they will last longer as well.

Provide your indoor plants with a sunlike spectrum of colors and watch them thrive. Thanks to the quality of these LED grow lights, you will save a lot of energy, and they won’t produce too much warmth that can be damaging to the plants. Thanks to their adjustability and various modes, these lights will help you take care of your plants from the seed to the mature plant, without any complications. These LED grow lights will significantly save energy and keep your electricity bill low.

Even though the intensity is strong, these grow lights won’t produce more heat thanks to the ventilation system on the back of the grow light. The fans are effective yet silent, which is a perfect combination.

The bottom line on UV light boils down into two recommendations:

Explore the possibilities of LED lights with UV-A and UV-B for boosting yields and valuable features of your harvest, but understand you'll need to protect your eyes and skin from prolonged exposure.

Avoid using UV-C in the grow room, especially when emitted from a grow light. Exposure to UV-C can damage your skin, eyes, and more, even after only short bursts. Your plants do not need any UV-C to flourish.