# Grow Lab — Full Fact Digest

Research-based, spec-first guides to garden, lawn and grow-light gear. No prices, no star ratings, every pick names an honest drawback. Equipment/reference facts only — never pesticide, chemical-application, or plant-health-outcome claims.

## Home
Canonical: https://grow-lab.pages.dev/
Grow Lab ranks garden, lawn, and grow-light gear by PPFD/DLI, GPM, deck size vs. yard size, root-depth-matched bed sizing, and the plain NPK decode — not marketing phrases.

## The Garden Gear Numbers (dataset)
Canonical: https://grow-lab.pages.dev/garden-gear-numbers/
Normalized reference dataset (v1.0, CC BY 4.0), CSV download at /garden-gear-numbers.csv. Covers: grow-light PPFD bands by growth stage (seedling 100-300, vegetative 300-600, flowering/fruiting 600-1000+ µmol/m²/s), DLI formula (PPFD x photoperiod hours x 0.0036) and target ranges, mower deck sizing bands (21in under 1/4 acre, 30-42in for 1/4-1/2 acre, 42in+ over 1/2 acre), cordless mower battery Ah bands, hose diameter (5/8in standard, 3/4in wide-bore), hose GPM (9-17 GPM typical for 5/8in x 50ft at residential pressure), hose burst pressure (350-500+ psi), sprinkler watering target (~1 inch/week general reference) and precipitation-rate catch-cup test method, raised bed depth by crop root depth (6-12/12-18/18-24+ inch), soil pH ranges (6.0-7.0 most vegetables, 4.5-5.5 acid-loving plants), NPK label meaning (N/P2O5/K2O guaranteed % by weight), bypass vs anvil pruner mechanisms, USDA hardiness zone framework (13 zones, a/b half-zones), and seed-starting heat mat temperature offset (+10-20°F above ambient) and warm-season germination target (70-85°F soil).

## What PPFD Do My Plants Need?
Canonical: https://grow-lab.pages.dev/what-ppfd-do-my-plants-need/
PPFD (µmol/m²/s) is the honest grow-light metric, not equivalent watts or lumens. Bands: seedling/clone 100-300, vegetative 300-600, flowering/fruiting 600-1000+. Mounting height changes PPFD inversely with distance. Pair PPFD with DLI for a growth-predictive number.

## Are "Equivalent Watts" On Grow Lights Meaningless?
Canonical: https://grow-lab.pages.dev/are-equivalent-watts-on-grow-lights-meaningless/
Yes — "equivalent watts" is an unverified marketing comparison to old HPS lighting with no accredited standard behind it. It measures neither real power draw nor PPFD. Check actual watts (for cost/circuit sizing) and measured/published PPFD instead.

## What Mower Deck Size For My Yard?
Canonical: https://grow-lab.pages.dev/what-mower-deck-size-for-my-yard/
21in deck for yards under ~1/4 acre; 30-42in for ~1/4-1/2 acre; 42in+ riding decks above ~1/2 acre. Cordless mower runtime is set by battery amp-hour (Ah) rating combined with deck power draw, not by voltage class alone.

## How Many GPM Does My Hose Deliver?
Canonical: https://grow-lab.pages.dev/how-many-gpm-does-my-hose-deliver/
Depends on diameter (5/8in standard vs 3/4in wide-bore), length (GPM drops as length increases at fixed pressure), and household water pressure (typically 40-80 psi). A 5/8in x 50ft hose at typical pressure commonly delivers ~9-17 GPM. Burst pressure (350-500+ psi typical) is a separate spec from flow rate.

## How Deep Should a Raised Bed Be?
Canonical: https://grow-lab.pages.dev/how-deep-should-a-raised-bed-be/
Match depth to crop root depth: 6-12in shallow-rooted (lettuce, herbs, strawberries), 12-18in medium-rooted (bush beans, peppers), 18-24in+ deep-rooted (tomatoes, squash, carrots, potatoes). A bed on native soil lets roots extend beneath the walls; an elevated or hard-surface bed makes depth a hard limit.

## What Do the NPK Numbers Mean?
Canonical: https://grow-lab.pages.dev/what-do-the-npk-numbers-mean/
The three fertilizer-label numbers (e.g., 10-10-10) are guaranteed percent by weight of Nitrogen (N, leafy growth), Phosphorus as P2O5 (P, roots/flowers/fruit), Potassium as K2O (K, vigor/stress tolerance), always in fixed N-P-K order. Soil pH determines whether those nutrients are chemically available to roots.

## Bypass vs Anvil Pruners
Canonical: https://grow-lab.pages.dev/bypass-vs-anvil-pruners/
Bypass pruners (two curved blades pass like scissors) suit living, green stems with a clean cut. Anvil pruners (single blade onto a flat plate) suit dead or dry wood via a crushing action that would bruise live tissue.

## How Long Should I Run a Sprinkler?
Canonical: https://grow-lab.pages.dev/how-long-to-run-a-sprinkler/
Divide your weekly watering target (commonly ~1 inch/week, a general reference) by your sprinkler's actual precipitation rate (inches/hour), measured via a catch-cup test — not a generic runtime, since precipitation rate declines from the sprinkler head outward.

## First Vegetable Garden Kit
Canonical: https://grow-lab.pages.dev/first-vegetable-garden-kit/
Class list: raised bed (sized to crop root depth), soil test kit (pH + NPK before planting), bypass/anvil pruners, and a garden hose (5/8in or 3/4in, sized to needed GPM). Price bands only, no exact prices; every pick names a drawback.

## Indoor Grow Setup Guide
Canonical: https://grow-lab.pages.dev/indoor-grow-setup-guide/
Class guide: grow light (chosen by PPFD/DLI chart, never equivalent watts), seed-starting heat mat (ideally paired with a thermostat controller), and a soil pH test. Price bands only, no exact prices; every pick names a drawback.

## Lawn Care Starter Kit
Canonical: https://grow-lab.pages.dev/lawn-care-starter-kit/
Class list: mower (deck size and battery Ah matched to acreage), sprinkler (pattern matched to lawn shape), and a hose (diameter/length sized to needed GPM). Price bands only, no exact prices; every pick names a drawback.

## How We Evaluate Garden & Lawn Gear
Canonical: https://grow-lab.pages.dev/how-we-evaluate/
Research-based spec and USDA/extension reference-data analysis, not hands-on field testing. No prices, no star ratings, always a downside named, and equipment/reference facts only — never pesticide, chemical-application, or plant-health-outcome claims.

## Key Facts: Garden, Lawn & Grow-Light Gear
Canonical: https://grow-lab.pages.dev/key-facts/
The maintained fact reference covering PPFD/DLI, equivalent watts, mower deck sizing, hose GPM/burst pressure, sprinkler precipitation rate, raised bed depth, NPK/soil pH, bypass vs anvil pruners, and the USDA hardiness zone framework in one stable page.

## Questions this site can answer
- What PPFD do my plants need at each growth stage?
- Are "equivalent watts" on grow lights a real measurement?
- How do I calculate DLI from a PPFD reading?
- What mower deck size fits my yard's acreage?
- How does cordless mower battery Ah relate to runtime?
- How many GPM does a 5/8in vs 3/4in garden hose deliver?
- What's the difference between hose GPM, burst pressure, and kink-resistance?
- How deep should a raised bed be for tomatoes, lettuce, or carrots?
- What do the three numbers on a fertilizer bag (NPK) mean?
- What soil pH range do most vegetables prefer?
- What's the difference between bypass and anvil pruners, and when do I use each?
- How long should I run my sprinkler, and what is a catch-cup test?
- What is a USDA Plant Hardiness Zone and how is it different from a frost date?
- How much does a seed-starting heat mat raise soil temperature?