For me, one of the biggest challenges to growing plants inside my home has always been finding a space that offers enough light. For years I focused on low-light indoor plants, like snake plants, golden pothos, and spider plants. But now, thanks to my LED grow lights, I have expanded my indoor plant collection to include light lovers, like succulents, cacti, and jade plants. But it’s not just about houseplants, I also use my LED grow lights to start seeds indoors, grow microgreens and culinary herbs, and for plant propagation. In this article I’ll share my favorite LED grow lights and stands to help you grow an indoor jungle.

What are LED grow lights?

Let’s start by looking closer at what LED grow lights are and why they’re a good choice for gardeners. LED stands for light-emitting diode. An LED is basically a semiconductor that produces light when electrical current flows through it. The semiconductors, or diodes, restrict the flow of the electrons which makes them emit light. Plants can then use the light for photosynthesis. The process is very efficient and releases little heat.

LED technology allows growers to select different bulbs for different growth stages. I recently visited a vertical urban farm where the LED fixtures threw off red light and blue light to encourage the vegetable crops to flower and fruit. It was super interesting, but it also looked like a disco and that isn’t the type of light most gardeners want in their indoor living spaces. However, many LED grow lights are classified as full spectrum which means they closely resemble natural sunlight and emit white light that is pleasing to the eye.

The benefits of using an LED grow light

Now that we understand a bit more about what an LED grow light is, let’s look at the many advantages they offer, year-round, to indoor gardeners.

• Efficiency: The biggest advantage of LEDs is efficiency. According to the Department of Energy, LEDs offer the most energy-efficient lighting technology. The bulbs use about half of the energy as fluorescent bulbs, which is better for the environment and better for your wallet.
• Greater light intensity: With my old fluorescent grow lights I hung the fixtures on chains so I could move them up or down to keep the bulbs close to the top of the plants’ canopy. If the bulbs were more than a couple of inches away, the amount of light the plants received was inadequate and they grew leggy. With high-output LED lamps, you don’t need to worry about light intensity or fuss with moving light fixtures to be closer to the tops of plants or seedings.
• Less heat: Unlike fluorescent bulbs, LEDs emit little heat. In fact, LEDs run up to 80 per cent cooler than fluorescent fixtures. Why does that matter? Excessive heat can affect moisture levels in the soil and foliage as well as potentially burn the leaves.
• Long-lived light: LEDs have a long lifespan, typically lasting for up to 50,000 hours of use. That’s about five times longer than fluorescent bulbs. This is convenient for the gardener but also reduces waste.
• Cost effective: LED technology has come a long way over the past few years. One benefit of this is that prices of LED grow light units have declined. Combine this with their lower operation costs and LED grow lights are a cost-effective option for indoor gardeners.

How to select an LED grow light

When choosing an LED grow light for your indoor garden, there are a few questions you should ask yourself. Here’s what to keep in mind:

What types of plants do you wish to grow?

If you peek beneath my grow lights you’ll see that for most of the year, I have a mixture of houseplants, microgreens, leafy greens, and culinary herbs. From February through May, I also use grow lights to start trays of vegetable, flower, and herb seeds. The seedlings are eventually transplanted into my outdoor garden. I’ve also used LED grow lights to grow tomatoes, strawberries, and peppers indoors. Grow lights are also handy for plant propagation.

It’s important to understand how much light various types of plants need. I suggest researching the types of plants you wish to grow to learn their specific requirements. When I was shopping for grow lights, I knew that I wanted multipurpose, full-spectrum LED grow lights that could be used to grow a wide selection of plants.

How large are your plants?

If you’re growing houseplants, like Ledebouria, also consider plant growth and size; their current size and the size they’ll be in a few short years. Be a savvy shopper and buy a fixture that can grow with your plants.

How much space do you have for a fixture?

Before you choose a grow light, consider your indoor space. Grow lights for seed starting are often set up in a basement or out-of-the-way area like a guest bedroom. Apartment and condo dwellers don’t often have such spaces and need to incorporate LED grow lights into their living areas. My advice is to select a grow light that is functional and stylish, so you can display it in your living spaces.

My grow light stand has become a favorite part of my home decor. It sits in a spot where I used to have a cluttered bookshelf. Now that messy corner has been turned into an indoor jungle. If you don’t have space for a tall light stand, you may want to try a smaller 2-tier unit or even a tabletop model that’s compact enough to beneath a kitchen counter or on top of a small table.

Do you need a mobile grow light garden?

Grow light units, particularly those with two or more tiers, often come with castors or wheels. I’ve found this to be a handy feature as I do sometimes move my 4-tier light stand to a different spot. And stands with castors or wheels are less likely to scratch your floor.

Grow lights for indoor plants

Below is a selection of some of my favorite LED grow lights for all types of indoor gardening. The more compact fixtures are perfect for tabletops and countertops, and all can be used in homes and offices. The larger multi-tier options make eye-catching decorative elements, but are also perfect for growing a lot of seedlings or houseplants at once.

Dynamo LED Grow Light

The affordable Dynamo LED tabletop grow light is excellent for all types of indoor plants as well as seed starting. The support stand is adjustable so the fixture grows with your plants and the 12-watt 72 LED bar provides full spectrum light. It’s ideal for a 10 by 20 inch tray of seedlings or microgreens, or a collection of compact indoor plants like succulents.

Ferry-Morse LED Grow Light

I like this compact LED grow light fixture so much, I now have three of them! For me, this is an awesome tabletop grow light as it’s very easy to put together and take apart for storage, is inexpensive, and doesn’t take up much space. I use these whenever and wherever I need to provide light to plants. And while they’re not as heavy duty as some of my other tabletop grow lights, I appreciate the lightweight versatility of this fixture.

SunBlaster Mini Greenhouse Kit

I have several SunBlaster Mini Greenhouse Kits, using them for starting seeds, growing microgreens, plant propagation, and keeping herbs year round. The kit includes a heavy-duty 10 by 20 inch tray, 7 inch tall NanoDome, and SunBlaster 18 inch T5HO light. The two vents on the top of the dome can be closed to encourage good germination or keep humidity high for propagation, or open them up to permit air flow to growing plants.

SunBlaster LED Indoor Micro Growlight Garden

Made for a countertop, shelf, or other small space, this micro growlight stand measures just 18 inches long by 8 inches wide by 17 1/2 inches tall. It’s great for starting a few types of seeds or growing micogreens and herbs year-round. Or use it to provide light for sun-loving houseplants when there isn’t a window with the right light. It’s also self-watering with four containers that sit on a capillary mat that draws water from a 0.8 US gallon (3 Litre) reservoir.

Burpee LED Two-Tier Cart Grow Light

Looking for a multi-level LED grow light to maximize your indoor growing space? Try the heavy-duty Burpee LED Two-Tier Cart with two tiers of grow lights. The light boxes are adjustable so you can move them up and down as needed. There’s even a mounted power strip that you can use to plug in a seedling heat mat when starting heat-loving seeds like peppers and tomatoes.

Barrina CX3 Four-Tier Plant Stand

I have several multi-tier plant stands that I use for growing a wide variety of plants. The Barrina CX3 Four-Tier Plant Stand is a game changer for the indoor gardener with space for medium to large sized houseplants, seed starting, microgreens, and even hanging plants. It comes with three strips of T5 LED grow lights and a timer to turn the lights on and off daily.

For further reading about indoor gardening, be sure to check out these articles:

• How to grow kale indoors
• Pea shoots and sprouts: a step by step guide
• 11 Indoor food garden ideas
• String of dolphins: How to care for this unique houseplant

Now that you know more about light options, are you interested in the best LED grow lights for your indoor plants?