I'm sure it is possible, nigel, to place lights on the side. I actually tried a little side lighting once. I had coincidental plant health problems. As a reaction, un-supported by any direct evidence, I removed the side lighting.
My main concern with side lighting is that one has to keep some distance between light and plant. And the lights take up some physical space. If one adds a modest 3 inches for light separation and another 3 inches for the lamps, you lose six inches of grow space on each side of the cabinet. That is 1 foot out of 4 spent for side lighting.
To avoid the loss of grow space, I guess one could place the lights under the canopy. I have not tried that.
I think that if I meet the training objective I eliminate any need for side lighting. The training objective is to maximize the effeciency of the top lighting. |