It all depends on what you are growing, @jlbrown1. I was growing orchids, orchids in all stages of growth and maturity. Since I wanted vegetative growth on everything, the 6500K predominated. Some of the plants were mature enough to bloom and thus, I wanted to encourage some budding too. Thus the 2500K. If you are after only vegetative growth, 6500K is what you want (6000-6500K). I hope this answers your question.

I have been using full spectrum 6,500k tubes now for a full five months.
I can issue this report if it helps anyone in their considerations.
I am running ten tubes right now in five fixtures. Electrical cost increase for me is a bit less then $10 a month.
I have African violets placed at the ends of the tubes. They are now producing their second sets of flowers since they went under the tubes.
I am not a succulent expert. But I am trying a few under these tubes. Three of the eight have now developed flower spikes. I love jades and a seedling jade is growing like crazy!
As far as my orchids go, I have had 9 Paphiopedilums develope bloom spikes under the tubes. Four Cattleyas have produced spikes recently and I have had a few Latouria Dendrobiums bloom. Now two of those are spiking again, 3-4 months after blooming this fall.

Those fluorescent fixtures are doing a great job, Bill. Generally, when it comes to commercial growing, the 6500K are used for vegetative growth. I am surprised you are getting so much budding. The 2500-4000K are used in the nursery industry to initiate budding/blooming. Here again is an excellent example that given good, bright light, orchids (and other plants) can flourish, regardless of Kelvin range.

That being said, you refer to your 6500K as "full spectrum", which is actually related to sunlight. 6500K is only a part of the range of Kelvin in natural sunlight and that actually changes from season to season. The range basically goes from infrared to ultraviolet.

All fuorescents, although not full spectrum according to sunlight specifications, are full spectrum in that they do emit all wave lengths of light. The 6500K (or whatever temperature rating) is only the peak wave length emissions. We would have sorry looking plants, indeed, if a 6500K lamp emitted only 460nm (short wave lengths).

https://www.google.com/imgres?...

There are so many variables when dealing with fluorescents, Rick. Kelvin is just a part of what's important.

I just am spouting what the ad said from Gardeners' Supply!
I wouldn't know full spectrum from half spectrum from a platypus!!!
Thinking hard on that makes my brain hurt.
I went hoping that these plant stands would just be a winter haven for my plants. I have had them on for 10 hours a day and will bump them up to 12 this weekend. Center of tubes is the brightest, then mid tubes and then the end. I took light meter reading and placed everything where logic told me to.

Speaking of light. I asked folks on NGA how much shade did the no-seeum screening over a lanai afford. I asked this before having the lanai constructed. The consensus was that there was little shading, certainly nothing like shade-cloth.

Here's an interesting observation, in fact, two.

My wife wanted a little water-feature in the lanai, but instead of one, I have two. They are indeed small, just 20 gal. decorative pots filled with water from the pond. I have some type of rush in both pots, rush that grows along the edges of my pond. I dug up roots with soil, enough soil to fill 6" mesh-pots. One pot is in the lanai and the other pot is just outside the lanai, not 5' apart. The water in the pot outside, in full sun, constantly grows algae, really nasty green stuff. I scoop up what I can and toss it into the yard every few weeks. I know that this green algae piggybacked on the rush/pond soil when I planted them. The water in the pot in the lanai, under screening, is clear as can be and there hasn't been a single bit of algae growth. All the soil and the rush plants are from the same spot in the pond. The only difference is the screen.

A few weeks ago, I got out my light meter and took a reading in full sun, just outside the lanai. I then walked a few paces inside the lanai and took another reading. The measured lumens were almost half as much inside the lanai as they were outside.

I am not smart enough to understand the significance of these observations, but I have a feeling that the no-seeum screening gives a lot more shading than people think.