This modular unit from Gardener&#;s Supply Company allows you to grow plants vertically and expand as needed. Measuring x . x inches at its base, the compact, stackable design frees up precious floor space. Each shelf can hold up to pounds, and you can add up to two shelves—in addition to the base unit. When stacking two or more units, you may need to anchor it to a wall with the supplied brackets for added stability.

Each unit includes a -foot fabric cord, three ceiling hooks, two wall fairleads, and a swag hook for do-it-yourself installation. Just note that despite clear instructions, we found the installation process to be somewhat tricky, requiring two people, a ladder (given the ceiling installation), and a drill. Tricky installation aside, we believe the Soltech Solutions Hanging Grow Light is highly effective and aesthetically pleasing.

We researched the top-rated grow lights available online, ranging from as simple as adding a lightbulb, to a full indoor garden system that does all of the work of taking care of your plants for you. We then set up and tested several of these options in our own homes and at the lab for several weeks and up to three months in some cases. We then evaluated their size, wattage, bulb type, ease of setup, and overall effectiveness. Here are the best grow lights for your plants, backed by our thorough research and testing.

After researching dozens of indoor grow lights and reaching out to experts for insights, we sent several of these options to our testers around the country to test for several weeks. We also set up several in our lab to monitor over three months. At each location, we set up the light and recorded how long it took to set up, and noted any assembly that was required. Plus, we noted if the instructions were easy to follow, or were tricky and confusing. We then noted where we set up the light, how much space was required, and which plants we used it on. We noted the bulb type and wattage of each grow light, and then generally monitored the growth and health of the plant.

We loved that each of the plant pods has a note indicating the plant&#;s eventual height (short, medium, or tall) which we found particularly helpful when figuring out where to plant them (front for smaller plants, back for the taller ones). For example, the dill pod indicated that it would grow tall and we found that it grew surprisingly tall (in fact, it grew faster. and taller than any of the other pods). We had to adjust the arm of the light panel higher because the dill started to burn. Luckily the light is easy to adjust so you can make it taller as the plants grow (as high as inches). Also, note that we received pods (it has room for nine), and swapped out two of the extra pods that we initially planted that seemed slower to grow.