My apartment has so far been...okay for my plants; but I want to get a grow light so the herbs get a boost. I'm just not sure how much of a boost to give them.
I'm on the top floor of my building, and my windows are east- or west-facing and have really deep sills, so I've been doing okay putting them on the windowsills pushed up against the glass. They get about 4-5 hours of direct sunlight a day depending on the season, and then indirect the rest of the day. And they've been fine that way - they stay alive and see to be okay. But they do get a bit leggy, and tend to "reach out" towards the light, so I wanted to get a simple grow light to boost things up a bit.
I'm just not sure how long to use it for. The one I'm looking at has a timer and different level light settings, and that's just confusing things for me; should I turn it on first thing in the morning with the sun and leave it on for 8 hours? Turn it on only partway in the morning and boost it up to full in the afternoon? Wait until the afternoon to turn it on?
I could always just get a simpler lamp, I'm sure, but I like the "automated" element of this, where I won't have to remember to turn it on every day and it'll just do it on its own.