Grow Tent in Apartment

[Peter.Constantine325]

Hello, everyone. Bonsai is honestly the only hobby, art and passion I have outside of debating religion and politics. I tried it once before, but ended up having to first sell the temperate pre-bonsai trees I bought from Brussel’s, and then throw away the tropical pre-bonsai trees I got from Wigert‘s due to them dying. I live in a small supportive living apartment for now, my room having only one window with no light. I have schizoaffective and schizotypal, and am recovering from a brutal months long psychotic adventure where I believed myself to be a prophesied figure. I think having something to do with my hands, something to tend to, care for and love, will help my mental health dramatically. So I’ve decided to get a grow tent next month, and some ficus pre-bonsai trees from Wigert’s (and a cool shirt). I still have to verify whether or not I can even have a grow tent in my room, but I’m guessing I’ll be able to, because I won’t be growing marijuana. Below is what I’m looking at so far, along with some questions.

Setup:

I. Vivosun 2x2 Grow Tent
II. Vivosun VS1500
III. Vivosun 4 Inch CFM Incline Fan
IV. Vivosun 4 Inch Carbon Filter
a. Eight feet of ducting.
V. Vivosun Aerowave A6 Fan

Pre-Bonsai Trees (Wigert’s Bonsai):

I. Ficus Willow Leaf
II. Ficus Exotica
III. Ficus Tiger Bark
IV. Ficus Philippinensis

Questions:

I. How much PPFD do tropical trees need to grow at a healthy rate?
a. Am I limited to low light tropical trees?
b. Can I get other kinds of trees besides ficus?
c. Will my setup be good enough for those trees?
II. How far away do my lights need to be away from the trees?
III. How long each day should I be keeping the light on?
a. Should I dim them in the morning and evenings?
III. Does the lighting have to be on different hours during different seasons?
IV. What should I immediately know when caring for ficus trees?

Any other advice or encouragement would be most appreciated as well.

 

[pandacular]

First, my sympathies as you've been dealt a rough hand. A close friend of mine is in a similar situation, and I have seen first hand that developing an engrossing, positive hobby has been a huge blessing for him.

I have no experience growing indoors, but I can certainly attest to bonsai giving myself a great deal of focus and no shortage of tasks. I think focusing on tropicals is a great path for you, especially due to the potential for full year growth.

Does the apartment have a shared garden or other outdoor space? it may be possible to use that as well, though going all in on indoor tropicals is not a bad idea by any means.

 

[Peter.Constantine325]

Thank you. I think this will be very beneficial for me too.

And I don’t have any shared garden or outdoor space. And, unfortunately, my roommate has the best room, as it has the sun on its windows all day long basically. If I had that room, I probably wouldn’t get the grow tent. But this is a six to eight month stay for me, so who knows where I’ll be at next year. I’ll certainly have bonsai on my mind when searching for a more permanent place to live though.

 

[JackHammer]

Hello, everyone. Bonsai is honestly the only hobby, art and passion I have outside of debating religion and politics. I tried it once before, but ended up having to first sell the temperate pre-bonsai trees I bought from Brussel’s, and then throw away the tropical pre-bonsai trees I got from Wigert‘s due to them dying. I live in a small supportive living apartment for now, my room having only one window with no light. I have schizoaffective and schizotypal, and am recovering from a brutal months long psychotic adventure where I believed myself to be a prophesied figure. I think having something to do with my hands, something to tend to, care for and love, will help my mental health dramatically. So I’ve decided to get a grow tent next month, and some ficus pre-bonsai trees from Wigert’s (and a cool shirt). I still have to verify whether or not I can even have a grow tent in my room, but I’m guessing I’ll be able to, because I won’t be growing marijuana. Below is what I’m looking at so far, along with some questions.

Setup:

I. Vivosun 2x2 Grow Tent
II. Vivosun VS1500
III. Vivosun 4 Inch CFM Incline Fan
IV. Vivosun 4 Inch Carbon Filter
a. Eight feet of ducting.
V. Vivosun Aerowave A6 Fan

Pre-Bonsai Trees (Wigert’s Bonsai):

I. Ficus Willow Leaf
II. Ficus Exotica
III. Ficus Tiger Bark
IV. Ficus Philippinensis

Questions:

I. How much PPFD do tropical trees need to grow at a healthy rate?
a. Am I limited to low light tropical trees?
b. Can I get other kinds of trees besides ficus?
c. Will my setup be good enough for those trees?
II. How far away do my lights need to be away from the trees?
III. How long each day should I be keeping the light on?
a. Should I dim them in the morning and evenings?
III. Does the lighting have to be on different hours during different seasons?
IV. What should I immediately know when caring for ficus trees?

Any other advice or encouragement would be most appreciated as well.

I think you are going heavy on the analysis which may not be needed. Ficus will do well under grow lights. A full tent is not a requirement. I use old shop lights and a few mismatched led bulbs. Nothing fancy.

All my ficus trees (several varieties) do quite well and grow all winter. Other varieties grow well indoors but they might get pests. Ie- my lime tree gets scale in the winter so I want to make sure it is outside all summer and very healthy. Pests would be something to keep an eye out for.

 

[pandacular]

From what I've seen in the results of others, a grow light is always going to be best for indoor growth. Not sure about the tent really, and I've heard some find them to introduce problems as they worn out the kinks.

This thread is a great intro:

Grow Tent for Tropicals - setup guide

Setting up a grow tent can be daunting to get started. I've been pretty successful with mine for the past several years, so I thought I'd put together a quick guide on what works for me. I grow orchids, tropicals, and several 'houseplants'/kusamono successfully. I assemble it typically in...

www.bonsainut.com

 

[Peter.Constantine325]

From what I've seen in the results of others, a grow light is always going to be best for indoor growth. Not sure about the tent really, and I've heard some find them to introduce problems as they worn out the kinks.

This thread is a great intro:

Grow Tent for Tropicals - setup guide

Setting up a grow tent can be daunting to get started. I've been pretty successful with mine for the past several years, so I thought I'd put together a quick guide on what works for me. I grow orchids, tropicals, and several 'houseplants'/kusamono successfully. I assemble it typically in...

www.bonsainut.com

I think you are going heavy on the analysis which may not be needed. Ficus will do well under grow lights. A full tent is not a requirement. I use old shop lights and a few mismatched led bulbs. Nothing fancy.

All my ficus trees (several varieties) do quite well and grow all winter. Other varieties grow well indoors but they might get pests. Ie- my lime tree gets scale in the winter so I want to make sure it is outside all summer and very healthy. Pests would be something to keep an eye out for.

I’ll be growing year round, even in the spring, summer and fall, in a grow tent. One of the reasons for getting a grow tent for many is to avoid pests. Do you think a premna and tamarind would grow well in this environment?

 

[BrianBay9]

A grow tent will improve growth of tropicals, but isn't usually necessary. Obviously the more light intensity the better (within reason). When I had one I kept it at 70 - 85 F, 60 - 90% RH. A small fan for air circulation is essential. I'll take a shot at your list:

I. How much PPFD do tropical trees need to grow at a healthy rate? Don't know. Too bright without sunglasses.
a. Am I limited to low light tropical trees? No, any trees that don't need cold dormancy, and can handle the humidity your ficus will want.
b. Can I get other kinds of trees besides ficus? Many tropicals (Schefflera, Brazilian raintree, bougainvillea, ...)
c. Will my setup be good enough for those trees? ?
II. How far away do my lights need to be away from the trees? As close as you can get them.
III. How long each day should I be keeping the light on? I used to run my 18 hr on, 6 hr off.
a. Should I dim them in the morning and evenings? I never tried, but I doubt if that's necessary
III. Does the lighting have to be on different hours during different seasons? Seasons near the equator are dry vs wet, not based on day length.
IV. What should I immediately know when caring for ficus trees? They like high humidity, hate freezes, benefit from pruning back hard (use cuttings to start new trees), prefer work on them when they're actively growing.

 

[Peter.Constantine325]

A grow tent will improve growth of tropicals, but isn't usually necessary. Obviously the more light intensity the better (within reason). When I had one I kept it at 70 - 85 F, 60 - 90% RH. A small fan for air circulation is essential. I'll take a shot at your list:

I. How much PPFD do tropical trees need to grow at a healthy rate? Don't know. Too bright without sunglasses.
a. Am I limited to low light tropical trees? No, any trees that don't need cold dormancy, and can handle the humidity your ficus will want.
b. Can I get other kinds of trees besides ficus? Many tropicals (Schefflera, Brazilian raintree, bougainvillea, ...)
c. Will my setup be good enough for those trees? ?
II. How far away do my lights need to be away from the trees? As close as you can get them.
III. How long each day should I be keeping the light on? I used to run my 18 hr on, 6 hr off.
a. Should I dim them in the morning and evenings? I never tried, but I doubt if that's necessary
III. Does the lighting have to be on different hours during different seasons? Seasons near the equator are dry vs wet, not based on day length.
IV. What should I immediately know when caring for ficus trees? They like high humidity, hate freezes, benefit from pruning back hard (use cuttings to start new trees), prefer work on them when they're actively growing.

Thank you for your response. There’s different light settings for the grow light I’ll be using. Cool white, warm white, red and far red. Which settings will I be using? Will humidity be naturally high because they’re in the closed environment each day and because of their watering?

 

[BrianBay9]

Thank you for your response. There’s different light settings for the grow light I’ll be using. Cool white, warm white, red and far red. Which settings will I be using? Will humidity be naturally high because they’re in the closed environment each day and because of their watering?

Lots of guys here really get into light wavelength and intensity. I'll leave it to the experts. I just used white light. Humidity will be high from your watering. I never needed to add additional water.

 

[Paradox]

I've kept ficus and Brazilian rain trees alive for 18 months inside under daylight fluorescent lights. No humidity tent.
I think you'll get pests in the tent regardless if they get in the house.

 

[Peter.Constantine325]

I've kept ficus and Brazilian rain trees alive for 18 months inside under daylight fluorescent lights. No humidity tent.
I think you'll get pests in the tent regardless if they get in the house.

It would be hard for any pests to get in. But I’ll prepare for that. You said for eighteen months. What happened after that?

 

[TrevorLarsen]

I have not grown indoors my self but Jack Wikle did for over 30 years his article is quite dense but I find it fascinating and he proved his techniques work.

http://www.fukubonsai.com/2b2a2a.html

 

[Paradox]

It would be hard for any pests to get in. But I’ll prepare for that. You said for eighteen months. What happened after that?

They went outside for the summer.
I had them inside the previous summer because I didn't have room on my benches for them that summer.

My ficus always get a case of scale over the winter. No natural predators in the house so they get uppity.

A mixture of dish soap, rubbing alcohol and water sprayed every 2 weeks for 2 months usually takes care of them.

 

[BrianBay9]

It would be hard for any pests to get in. But I’ll prepare for that. You said for eighteen months. What happened after that?

You will have pests, guaranteed. I usually had to give all my plants a shower in the middle of winter to wash off most of the aphids. Then picked off the scale. I kept adhesive pest strips around for the small flying things.

 

[MSGhero]

Personal preference, but I would go more iteratively than buying the "optimal" setup on day 1. For my first ficus, getting past "not killing this plant" was a big learning experience, and a temp/hum controlled tent with a fancy grow light wouldn't have saved it versus understanding soil types and watering. That said, Wigert's pre-bonsai are going to be more demanding than my little rooted cuttings were, so whatever grow light you had in mind would be a good purchase either way.

Couple years later now, I am considering how to convert my etagere plant bookcase into a grow tent without it rotting or making my living room look awful...