First, you must consider which types of plants adapt well to bonsai techniques, LED lighting and indoor gardening. Hardy deciduous and evergreen trees, such as maples and pines, rarely do well indoors and under LED lights because they require winter conditions for their growth cycle. Tropical trees might do well indoors since they cannot handle cold conditions. Fig trees, fukien tea trees and dwarf pomegranate shrubs can be adapted to indoor bonsai gardening using LED lights.
The primary advantage to growing bonsai with LED lights is that LED lights use much less energy than other lighting methods. They allow a grower to tailor the red and blue spectrum of light; blue light helps encourage growth, while red light regulates and slows growth to promote flowering. LED lights also produce little heat. LED lights last between five and 12 years, requiring less frequent replacement than other types of lighting. Because light is so important to bonsai growth, a less expensive light source readily used by the plant helps the plant to not only survive but also thrive.
LED lights are initially expensive to install; one LED bar without mounting equipment cost about $300 as of 2011; one LED bar provides enough light for five or six bonsai plants. If an individual light in an LED array dies, it is generally necessary to replace the entire light apparatus because specific LEDs in an array are typically not replaceable. LED lights also do not provide heat, which may reduce the growth of plants that need a warmer environment than room temperature to flourish.
Choose an LED system that suits your needs. If you only want to use the lights for growing the plants, consider a red and blue array. This will provide only the colors from the light spectrum that the plants need for growth and reproduction. If you will use the lights to grow as well as display your bonsai, look for a full-spectrum system. Many LED light systems require a separately purchased mount that holds the lights sturdily above your plants.