Trial by terrarium: my grow light beat the sunny windowsill by a mile

I set up two identical fern pots in my Chicago apartment back in February, one on the south sill and one under a cheap 20 dollar LED bar. The windowsill fern got leggy and crispy tips within 3 weeks, while the light one is still putting out fresh fronds like it's celebrating. Has anyone else had a plant that flat out refused natural light and only thrived under artificial?

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karenhenderson24d ago

Same thing happened with my calathea last winter. South window was too harsh, brown edges everywhere. Stuck it under a basic LED strip and it's been drama free since. Natural light in apartments is just not the same as full spectrum setups. My pothos is the only one that still prefers the window, everything else is under the grow light now.