Growing tips 4. The Right Color Sunlight contains the complete spectrum of light including all colors of the rainbow- red, through yellow, to blue and violet. Plants utilize the full spectrum for photosynthesis, although red and blue light seem to be most critical. Red light stimulates vegetative growth and flowering, but if a plant gets too much red light, it will become tall and spindly. Blue light regulates plant growth, which makes it ideal for growing foliage plants and short, stocky seedlings.
Some plants perform best when given more of a certain color light.
An African violet will thrive under blue light, but if it doesn t receive an abundance of red light, it probably will never flower. If you learn what color light your plants need, you can then select the right type of bulbs to meet that need. The intensity of light that a plant receives is determined by the wattage of the bulb and by how close the plant is to the light source. Just as plants differ in their need for certain colors of light, they also differ in their need for light intensity. Typically, those plants that are native to tropical jungles or shady forests do not require as much light as plants that evolved in dry, sunny climates such as the Mediterranean or sourthern Mexico.