idea to stop stretching of seedlings under sunlight

Iâ??ve been reading in the forums about the concern that sprouting in sunlight causes the seedlings to stretch. The reasoning is that the sun is so far away. What Iâ??m wondering is what would happen if we tricked the seedlings into thinking the sun is a lot closer than it is? Would we be able to use the advantages of free solar energy without the stretching? I havenâ??t read anything about my proposed solution anywhere, so it might be a fresh idea. It might even work.

Think about it: When we set our grow lamps at different distances from a plant, we notice some amount of stretch. We say itâ??s because of the distance of the light from the plant. Some of these lamp fixtures have a bare bulb in a reflector, and some have a diffuser panel some distance from the bulb, usually at the bottom of the reflector. What part of the light fixture is the plant reacting to? The bulb? The reflector? What about when a diffuser panel is in place? My guess is that in this case the diffuser panel is seen as the light source and the plant reaches for it, not knowing that thereâ??s a bulb behind it. I think we can do the same thing with a diffuser panel outside, using the sun for the bulb, and trick the plants into thinking that the sun/ is the diffuser/ is the sun.

I donâ??t have anything sprouting right now or Iâ??d look into this myself. But if some of you folks who are sprouting want to give it a try, I think weâ??d all be interested in the results.

Hereâ??s what youâ??d need:

A diffuser panel of some type. A frosted glass pane like a shower door or bathroom privacy window would work. So would an actual panel from a long flouro fixture or a grow light. It needs to have an area that will cover the seedlings. Youâ??ve got something like that kicking around donâ??t you? . . . alternately, fresnel lenses might be cool to try.

Some way to place the glass horizonatally above the plants, ideally with adjustability â?? either legs like a table or suspended from above. A really quick idea would be four bamboo sticks for legs and a roll of duc tape.

Perhaps something to block most of the side light, critters and prying eyes, and retain humidity, such as a garbage bag, that b/w visqueen GN was talking about, or mylar, that could be hung like a skirting from the edges of the glass and go down to the surface the plants are on.

Seeds and stuff like that

The method should be obvious . . . put the panel somewhere that it gets good daylight and stick some seedlings under it at varying distances. Make a control group of a few seedlings that sit in the sun, but not under the panel. Let them go for a while and note the difference in stretch. The only drawback is that if you live in a low enough latitude, you might have to bring them indoors at night and put them under artificial light.

Does someone want to give it a try?