Oct 6, 2019

Free Lighting Workshop Set for This Week By Tim Hodson

This week, Extension educators from Michigan State University will present a half-day workshop on “Greenhouse Lighting: Are LEDs Right for You.”

The workshop will take place on Wednesday, Oct. 9, from 11:30 a.m. until 4:30 p.m. in West Olive, Michigan. There is no charge to attend the workshop.

During the workshop, MSU professors and regular GPN contributors Erik Runkle and Roberto Lopez will discuss the most important factors that growers need to consider when selecting the right horticultural lighting systems for their operations.

Lighting is one of the most critical factors for growing high-quality crops in controlled environments. While conventional options have a proven track record, LED fixtures present a new options including energy-use efficiency, lamp longevity and the ability to apply situationally selective wavelength combinations to crops.

Among the specific topics that Runkle and Lopez will address include:

• Lighting strategies for plant production
• Spectral wavelength combinations
• Lamp efficacies and durability
• Fixture costs and return on investment
• Tom Gallagher of Consumers Energy, also will be on hand to provide growers information about rebates available from Consumers Energy for LED or other lighting installations.At the end of the presentations, there also will be an optional tour of the production facilities at MiCandy Gardens in nearby Hudsonville.Click here for more information on the workshop or to register to attend.