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Garden
Lighting [ Home ] [ Up ] [ Light Up the Night! Quick Facts about Outdoor Lighting ] [ Lighting Your Way ] |
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Garden
Lighting [ Home ] [ Up ] [ Light Up the Night! Quick Facts about Outdoor Lighting ] [ Lighting Your Way ] |
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Light Up the Night! Quick Facts about Outdoor Lighting by Debbie Rodgers |
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| When the days
start to get shorter, the darkness may drive us inside from our porches,
patios or decks. Don't despair outdoor lighting can lengthen the day and
dramatically extend the potential of our outdoor living spaces. The first step, as with any project, is to plan. How do you want to use this space after dark, and what lighting will you need? Lighting can be summarized in four categories: Security lighting is needed in highly vulnerable areas of your property. Because it is bright and often motion activated, keep it away from the living areas so that it's not distracting. Alternatively, have your security lighting on a manual on/off switch so that you can override automatic illumination. Task lighting is for performing specific activities such as grilling or walking safely up and down steps and along paths. You should place task lighting between your eyes and the object that needs to be lighted and should take care that it does not glare. An overly bright light will blind rather than guide. Accent lighting adds drama or can highlight an unusual feature. Uplighting, for example can illuminate an interesting piece of statuary. Silhouetting, achieved by placing a light between an object and a fence or wall, dramatically displays an unusual tree or bush. General or ambient lighting provides overall illumination so that people feel comfortable and look good. The most magical of lighting imitates what is found in nature moonlight or starlight. Moonlighting is produced by hanging lights in mature trees, pointing downward to produce a dappled effect, as if the area were lit by a full moon. The look of starlight can be achieved through the use of flickering candles, sprinkled here and there throughout the space, or by suspending tiny lights in the branches of a tree to create a sparkling night time canopy. Of course, there are many other attractive types of light some just plain fun! No matter what type of lighting you choose, it will be powered by one of these sources. Fire is the oldest source of light and considered by some to be the most romantic. Flames, produced by candles or oil-burning lamps, are warm and flattering to faces, and have a hypnotic effect that induces calm and relaxation. Firelight on reflected surfaces such as ponds, mirrors and even gazing balls is a particularly effective way to create atmospheric lighting and enhance the impression of light. Try snaking a row of candles along a garden path or suspending them in glass jars from branches. An array of tiki burning torches can add an exotic touch to your patio area. Although torches are designed to withstand a reasonable amount of wind, it's best to provide as much protection as possible to any open flame and never leave one unattended. Solar-powered lights are an easy and portable choice for outdoor lighting. Some lights have a collector panel that can be concealed behind shrubbery, while others contain their own energy cell and absorb the sun's rays even on a cloudy day. Battery-operated and rechargeable units are also wireless and very portable while in use. Line-powered or hard-wired lights are connected to the electrical system of your home. Weatherproof lamps may be plugged directly into an outdoor socket. Wire for lighting that is further from the house runs through buried conduits. The most permanent of outdoor lighting, it is also the most expensive, sometimes costing in the tens of thousands of dollars. It should be installed by a licensed electrician. Low-voltage units also connect to the electrical system of your home, but are fitted with a transformer that reduces the electrical current from 120 volts to a safer supply of 12 volts. Although they are less durable than line-powered fixtures, they are also a lot less expensive and are ideal for a small outside space where only short cable runs are required. They are designed for an easy do-it-yourself installation. Whatever your light source, keep these tips in mind: Less is more in lighting. Be subtle: try to hide lights where possible and use a low watt bulb. Avoid setting lights in straight lines up and down paths, drives or patio edges. This "airport runway" effect is a very common error. Yellow lights are unflattering to both people and plants. Where possible, install blue-white bulbs or purchase daylight-blue filters for your fixtures. Position outside lights where they are easily accessible for changing light bulbs. Investing in long-life outdoor bulbs will make the maintenance even easier. With any unit requiring electricity, use the protection of ground fault circuit interrupters (GFCI) on all outdoor circuits. Don't let the sun dictate the use of your outdoor space. Get outside after dark and light up the night! |
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Hanging Candle Lanterns |
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Solar Petal Lights |
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Debbie Rodgers owns and operates Paradise Porch, and is dedicated to helping people create outdoor living spaces that nurture and enrich them. Visit her on the web at www.paradiseporch.com and get a free report on "Eight easy ways to create privacy in your outdoor space". Mail to debbie@paradiseporch.com |
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Lighting Your Way by Carrie Paulk |
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| One of the
reasons that discourages people from installing and maintaining a useful and
pleasing landscape is the lack of usefulness of it during the evening hours.
Many of us work during the day and do not arrive home until near or after dark. However, your landscape can be used and enjoyed
during the
evening by utilizing an outdoor landscape lighting system in your property.
A lighting system brings this and other benefits to your landscape.
Your landscape could benefit in multiple ways with the installation of an outdoor lighting system. With a properly installed system that utilizes the right light in the right way, yet also done with a creative flair, your property would literally glow with beauty come nightfall. A lighting system for your landscape has some other benefits as well. Do you find your garden looking rather bare during those sparse winter months? A few well-placed lights can highlight the architectural side of those bare trees. Do you feel nervous during that after-dark walk from your car to the front stoop? A well-lit landscape makes for a significantly safer property. Treating your landscape to an outdoor lighting system will add many useful features to your property. The most important benefit of landscape lighting, safety, is also one of the most overlooked. Not only are burglars warded off by a well-lit property, it makes you feel safer when you're outside at night, which gives you peace of mind. Having a lighting system also keeps you safe from yourself. With some path lights illuminating your way, you are less likely to trip over the flagstones, or run into the arbor. A landscape lighting system helps provide safety from others and your own occasional clumsiness. Apart from safety, landscape lighting will also increase the usability of your yard. With more people working longer hours of the day, there is less daytime hours to spend enjoying their landscape, which in turn prevents people to see any benefit to landscaping their property. However, with a lighting system installed, you will be able to enjoy your garden after nightfall. With some creative lighting enhancements, you could spend your evening home from work in your landscape, either by enjoying a home-cooked dinner with family or relaxing in a sitting area with friends. Having your landscape lit at night will make your property much nicer to come home to. How about those cold winter months, when your landscape seems to be at it's lowest point? Outdoor lights can be put into good use during the bare winter months as well. One good winter use of landscape lighting is to highlight the best parts of your landscape, while keeping the out-of-season areas in darkness. This simple lighting trick can work wonders in your winter garden. Many parts of the winter property have bare plant areas where the leaves have been dropped for winter, but this is no reason to hide these plants. With some well-placed lights, you can highlight the branching structure of these plants and create a winter architectural sculpture to enjoy during the evening hours. Many plants look striking in this kind of winter lighting, including crapemyrtles, japanese maples, and oakleaf hydrangeas. By directing the viewer's eye to the points of interest of your winter landscape, and creating new points of interest on your own, you can make your property enjoyable during the colder winter months. By combining these lighting tricks for winter use with the tips for safety and nighttime application, the results can be spectacular. Your property can be enjoyed at all hours of the day and any time of the season. With outdoor lights you will also feel safer in your yard as you come home to relax in your garden. By using a creative outdoor landscape lighting plan, you can create a safe landscape that will be both dazzling and functional day and night, winter or summer. |
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Carrie Paulk is the author of "Lawnmower Lighting Your Way," which is part of the Tip of the Week program with Turf Tamer, Inc. She has written many informative landscaping articles. To learn more about landscaping tips and tricks, you can find the rest of her articles at http://www.turftamerinc.com/tip.shtm . She can be reached at carrie@turftamerinc.com . |
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©2003-2005crazycatmaninorangehat
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