MrILoveTheAnts. Good, you have a nice little set up going on there. When you hook up your fluorescent lights, remember that plants also need a time for darkness for photosynthesis. I would suggest having the lights on for 15 hours (or so, everything is approximate), and then allow that dark time, this is actually when they do all their growing.
If you need any advice as far as growing on, ask me, I may be able to help you. Remember, I was in the nursery business, having that small nursery on my property, I do have alot of information that I could help you with, if you only ask.
One key thing too is, if you find your plants are getting too spindly, it is generally a lighting issue. Good light keeps plants short and bushy, as does pinching them back, that is key to nice bushy plants too.
I remember with my snapdragons I used to grow, I would pinch them right back to the cotyledon after the first true leaves fully opened. The seedlings looked rather weird for a couple of weeks. But underground great things were happening. The roots were growing like wildfire, and within no time above the cotyledon leaves a shoot would come out on each side (instead of one long shoot coming out the middle), the plants would then grow like stink and become bushy lovely plants that made people just say "ah".
Oh great, now all this talk of growing on seedlings has made me want to get out to my greenhouse and set seeds. BUT.....can't do it yet. I won't start the greenhouse until the middle of February. It is too costly otherwise.
Yes, posting pictures of what we are up to is wonderful. The fact that you are working so hard to get little seedlings off to a new life is a wonderful thing too. When I get things really going in March and things are growing on well, I will show pictures. It is fun, it is time consuming, but I have my Sister that helps.
When we sit and transplant lobelia, that makes my head swim, (never mind sowing the seed that you can't even see, you only know it is there because you can feel it between your fingers, it is like dust). I grow the Crystal Palace lobelia and it is the most beautiful electric blue you could ever imagine. In full sun it stays short and makes incredible blue borders, I like to mass plant it. The bees totally enjoy this cultivar of lobelia.
Another thing, if you could get the seed (I have seed I could send you if you wanted, just say the word), is to plant some Heliotrope. The bees love this too. The scent of this flower is reminscent of vanilla, it is easy to grow, revels in full sunshine, but at the same time does not like to dry out completely, likes to be a little on the moist side. The plant grows to about 3 feet tall and is a beautiful cut flower (it must be held in the fridge in cold water for a couple of hours after cutting or the blooms only last a short time). Anyways, didn't mean to take over your thread, but you know me and my ramblin' on. Have a wonderful and beautiful day, Cindi