Peat Moss Varieties and UV filters

[cropduster]

Haven't done any growing for over 30 years and 'back in the day', I seem to remember I used a 50/50 mix of Vermiculite and Pearlite. I want to go with 50/50 Vermiculite and Peat this time because I feel the Peat will provide a more natural root base. I'm still in the planning stages with about 90% of the gear I'll need already collected. Most of the remainder of my needed supplies have to do with nutes. I see that there are at least three different varieties of Peat with pH values ranging quite a bit from about 5 to 6.5 or so.

My first question is - should the variety of peat be chosen for its growing qualities and then adjust the pH when everything has settled in for a few days while I'm germinating, or should I choose a variety with a pH that falls closer to my final value that I will be growing with...or I guess, more to the point, is one type of Peat regarded to be better for the growing/flowering stage than another.

Question # 2 has to do with the glass cover that came with my CFL reflector. It states that it filters UV...is this good or not so good? Should I replace it with a cover that that transmits more UV? I haven't found any references yet that specifically address this issue.

I'm finding that although air, water, and nutes are still needed to grow plants, (just like the 'old' days - ) the technology has grown so much that I feel like I have to start from scratch and learn everything all over again.

TIA