Landscape Lighting Garden Nursery Landscaping Guide
Landscape Lighting Creates A Relaxing Atmosphere
By Joel F Mornigstar
Landscape lighting is a fantastic way to show off the beauty
of your home after dark. Well placed lights can highlight your
favorite flowers and shrubs, add drama to pools and fountains,
and create a cozy, relaxing atmosphere in your backyard or patio.
As a bonus, landscape lights illuminate stairs, walks and driveways
to make your property safer.
Make a visit to a garden center and you’ll soon discover that
there is a wide variety of landscape lighting choices available.
Ideally, you should choose fixtures that are stylish and functional.
Pick fixtures suited for particular tasks. For example, use well
lights that are buried in the ground for bushes and ornamental
grasses.
Draw A Plan Of Your Lighting Needs
Select spotlights to focus on a particular tree, a statue or
a fountain. You can draw a plan on paper or take digital pictures
with you when shopping for landscape fixtures. It will allow you
to consider your options without struggling to remember small
details.
Positioning the lights correctly is essential to effective lighting.
Stunning effects can be achieved by using a mixture of techniques
using one or more lights. Up lighting is often used to accent
a tree with the fixture at the base. Down lighting is the same
idea only the fixture is up high and shines down.
Backlighting Helps Create A Silhouette
This is a great way to show off flower beds, paths or steps.
Spotlighting creates a focal point by illuminating an object like
a fountain. One of the most dramatic techniques you can use is
back lighting. By placing the light behind a subject it will appear
in silhouette.
This can be an extremely effective technique with dramatically
shaped trees, shrubs or garden ornaments. Finally, you can highlight
a feature by using cross lighting which is shining two fixtures
from different directions to add dimension. Remember to be considerate
of your neighbors and do not shine lights into their windows.
Easy To Install Solar Lights
Installing outdoor lighting can be tricky business, so be careful.
If you don’t have the knowledge to work with electricity safely,
then spend a little extra and get an electrician to do the work.
Solar lights are a popular choice because they are easy to install,
require no wiring and won’t increase your use of electricity since
sunlight charges a solar panel that powers the light at night.
Shop around since solar lights can often be found on sale and
at discount stores. If your landscape is complicated or expansive,
then consider hiring a landscaper or professional outdoor lighting
designer to help.
Practical And Stylish Features With Even Lighting
Just as a beautifully ornate crystal chandelier can make a room
glow, good landscape lighting will make your property look well
cared for. Choose your fixtures so that they are practical and
stylish, choose bulbs that give you even lighting, and place the
lights strategically to make your garden look spectacular.
Landscape lighting is now considered as important as indoor lighting,
so look for decorative pieces like outdoor chandeliers, iron chandeliers,
and even contemporary chandeliers made out of sturdy materials
for a patio. The key thing to remember is, less is more. Well
placed lights will provide all the illumination you need.
About the Author:
Joel F Morningstar has written a number of articles on gardening
and landscaping including Backyard
Landscaping, Miniature
Fruit Trees, Front
Yard Landscape, Lawn
Swing, Fast
Growing Trees, Stone
Walkway, Big
Backyard, Deck
Ideas, Swing
Set Backyard, Outdoor
Decor, Patio
Garden, Furniture,
Lawn
And Garden, Design
Landscaping, Lawn
Care, Lawn
Garden.
Keep a lookout for more of his articles on this website.
Little Known Home Lighting Facts....
What types of lighting should I be looking at for my home?
The type of light you need for your home
all depends on what style you prefer. Many people find that a
combination of overhead lights and lamps works best for their
homes. Generally the overhead lights are used when the entire
room needs to be illuminated and the smaller lamps are used when
a person needs a light to illuminate up close. You can also use
track lighting to highlight architectural designs or artwork.
Most homeowners do not use florescent lights.
This lighting is often very harsh and does not look as nice as
softer lights do. It really all depends on what you want. You
can mix a wide variety of lighting types to achieve an overall
effect that can be used day or night. You can also change how
your lights look by changing the wattage of your bulbs.
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