I don't have much light. What do I do?

Well, I live in Southern Wisconsin. Here in the winter, we bundle up in gloom for days/months, and not the “snuggling with Jon Snow kind”, but more the “there’s a zombie ice dragon apocalypse kind”. So I get a lot of questions of type “How do I care for plants when I have minimal sunlight in my dorm/apartment/office/basement…?”

Look no further! Here are some ways to battle that winter blues and save your plants!

Solution 1: Get plants that tolerate low light! 🙂

My top low-light plants:
  1. Snake plant (pictured).
    • There are many varieties with different colors and patterns!
  2. Spider plant (in your PZT kit)
  3. Pothos (Golden pothos is most common and easy to care for)
  4. Waffle plant
  5. Nerve plant
  6. ZZ tree
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Solution 2: Give the plants more light! 🙂

Depending on your budget and ability to set up, you can add more light in your place for plants! Full spectrum light is better for plants and a little more pleasing to the eye than the violet colored lights (I think). Some people also use florescent lights. Here are some budget-friendly, LED full spectrum lights!
  1. If you have small dorm room, you can get something like this clip lamp (thrift store for $3) and get a grow bulb, linked below. This bulb can be screwed in to standard fixture, so desk lamp will also work.
 
  1. If you want to cover a little more area at different angles, for both flowering and foliage plants, I like this one below. They also come in multiple packs. Definitely shop around! 😉
You can also get a storage tub to put over the plants that enjoy high humidity. These are usually $3-8 at a store or on Amazon, depending on size. If you group a few plants together under the “dome”, the plants will generate enough humidity on their own. 🙂
For a dorm room, you can definitely do a storage tub, a desk lamp, a grow bulb and some plants for about $20!
Happy Planting!
*** I try to only recommend products that I personally use and enjoy! If you buy any of those products by clicking that link, I may be able to earn a commission by being an official Amazon affiliate. 

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