Does reflected light help plants to grow, or do they need direct sunlight?
Yes, reflected light can be used by plants the same as direct light. The light is somewhat less intense, but still fine.
Do seeds need light to grow and do plants need light to grow?
Most seeds do not need light to sprout, though there are a few that do. Most seeds that need light to sprout will have this very clearly pointed out in their sprouting directions. Once the seeds sprout, then all plants need light of some kind. Some plants need more than others and some can take very low levels of light, but all plants do need some kind of light.
I just bought a 4 foot, 2 bulb T5 fluorescent sunblaze fixture and it came with two 54w starcoat cool white bulbs 6500k or daylight, it says both on the box. The info I got from a friend is to use 1 cool white and 1 warm white for vegetative growth but I've read different while looking for a better anwser. I already own 1 warm white 3000k. I just don't know if I should use it or not. Thank you very much for your time.
For optimal growth, yes, a warm and a cool are best, as they will provide both the blue and red light spectrum the plants need. That being said, for the most part, especially if you are just growing seedlings under the lights, cool bulbs alone will work just fine. The plants grow fine and do not suffer from the lack of the red spectrum for the relatively short period they are under the lights. I would only worry about making sure they get warm light if you plan on keeping them under lights for many months.
We have a science fair this term and my big question is, how dose lighting affect plant growth and can plants grow in the dark with water?
This article should help: https://www.gardeningknowhow.com/plant-problems/environmental/how-light-affects-the-growth-of-a-plant-problems-with-too-little-light.htm
What will happen if the plant has too much light?
This really depends on the plant but normally too much light can cause foliage to curl and may lead to scorching of the leaves as well.
I have read that there is available a fluorescent VHO 96" fluorescent strip fixture. I can find the bulbs but no fixture. Any suggestions? What is your opinion on using VHO VS HO? This will be side light in a MED-Gro. Thanks.
When I googled "fixture for VHO 96" fluorescent" I found a number of sources. It may take a bit of research, but you should be able to find what you need. There are so many possible lay outs of artificial light for growing, and so many different opinions on the merits of one system over another, that the best advice I can give is to do as much research as you can, then try a set up that seems good to you. I do know that I prefer fluorescent light to other types of light sources, for anything I've ever grown. And I'm very interested to see what kinds of results can be had with new LED technology.
Here's an article with general information: https://www.gardeningknowhow.com/houseplants/hpgen/fluorescent-lighting-for-indoor-gardening.htm
I've been doing a lot of research and have also read all of the links everyone here has provided, but I'm still having trouble figuring out what light color (kelvin) choices to go with. It's 5.5' tall tree and the canopy is about 4' around. I'm planning on adding 5 100 watt (23 watt) cfl bulbs overhead. From everything I've read, the red spectrum of light is only used by flowering plants and that the blue spectrum is for vegetation. Since the ficus b. does not flower, should I leave out the red spectrum? Or would it be beneficial to have? If so, I'd go with 1 2500k bulb in the center for reds, and then two 5000k and two 6500k for blue. Or should I just skip the red end of the spectrum completely and add either a 3500k bulb center or just stick with all 5000k/6500k? I've searched and searched. Most grow light articles are just about marijuana and, thus, lighting for flowering plants. I'm not looking to buy the full spectrum bulbs. I'd rather create the full spectrum with the Kelvin scale, as it's much cheaper. Thanks!
Here is a few links for you.
https://extension.missouri.edu/p/G6515
http://www.uvm.edu/pss/ppp/articles/lighting.html