How many lumens is the Sun?

HA! I know that sounds stupid but it's a good question. Do you think a 50,000 lumens mh or hps is better than natural sunlight? More light? Or will the mh and hps give these plants exactly what they're wanting where as the Sun just hammers it with everything it has. Sort of like a Hortilux.

My thought here is that I have a grow going that is way behind another one I did. Only difference is that in the initial seedling phase the first ones got Sun each day for about a week then all cfl's. They were way ahead of where these are right now with no Sun. Any thoughts?

On the surface of the Earth, the average solar illumination varies between 32,000 and 100,000 lumens per square meter, or lux. From about the middle to the high end of this range is the optimal for cannabis. Shoot for about 50,000 lux, give or take.