One of the great aspects of fall is the turning of the leaves and the vibrant colors that occur. This beauty can be enhanced with the landscape lights and usually with up lighting such as spotlighting or broadcast lighting. But there are other ways to light big established trees, for instance with moonlight globes. I wrote about moonlight globes in an earlier post and described how they offer a more modern look. They are more expensive than the landscape lights that most homeowners purchase but offer a look that no other lighting can. They can be hung from branches or placed at the base of the tree. Either way, they are a very unique way of lighting your landscape.

This time of year is also a perfect time to get creative with fall displays of harvest including the classic wheel barrel with pumpkins, gourds,  Indian corn with possibly hay bales to set the background. Adding a scare crow or wooden wheel is a great accent as well. Be sure and add some fall plant material such as Chrysanthemums, Sweet William, Pansies (in the south) and ornamental Cabbage or Kale to your landscape as well. Top it all off with some landscape lighting and you’ve got a terrific fall display that you can enjoy for the next several weeks!

Spring also means longer days to work outside, especially with daylight savings time. It’s possible that you could install your landscape lighting and still have plenty of time to do other projects as well as enjoy some time with your family.

Here is a quick method to laying out your yard lights:

1. Pick an evening and go out in your yard with your flashlight and use it to high light the places that you want to light. Look at your walkways, trees, landscape beds, water features and driveways as possible locations for your landscape lights.
2. Determine your budget – this will help determine the quantity and quality of your lighting project.  If you want to go for quality and don’t have the resources financially to install all of them at once, then go ahead and do your planning in advance, pick out the places that you will want landscape lights to be and get as many lights as you can afford. Do it in phases – come back when you can afford to finish the project.
3. Install your lights! The easiest method is using solar lights… no running of power to your lights, just install as described by the manufacturer. Nature provides the power.

In addition to enhancing the appearance of your yard, landscape lights can improve the safety of your home as well. Thieves are much less likely to approach a house that is well lit versus a houses that completely darkened at night.  They can be spotted by neighbors and passer-by-ers if you have good lighting as well.

Enjoy the spring time and make your yard standout with landscape lighting!

Solar Color-Changing Gazing Ball

This is a throw back to the gazing ball that many folks had in their front yards back in the 50s and 60s except this ball is solar powered and offers 6 different colors. It also features a “cracked glass” globe that is lit by a LED bulb and powered by three built in Ni-Cad batteries that are charged by a solar panel and can run for up to eight hours at a time.

Solar eClips Light String

These solar powered lights are a new product on the market that offer a different look and feel for solar landscape lighting. They are versatile because they can clip on to fences, deck railing or can be staked in the ground along a walkway or stairway. The light strings have 14 single LED lights, come with clips and stakes and a 50′ long cord. It charges with using a 4″ square solar panel and can run up to 8 hours per day. The lights themselves are 3-4″ wide and 2″ tall with approximately 32″ of wiring between the lights.

Solar Stepping Stones

Yep, these are stones with LED lighting already built in. They are powered by a solar rechargeable Siemens™ silicone solar cell Ni-Cad battery that can hold a charge for up to 8 hours at a time. There is a light sensor that turns the light on at night and off in the morning. It is a 12″x12″x2″ thick durable polyresin and fiberglass that is very durable and very attractive as well.

Solar Butterfly Lights

Another creative way to add color and light into your garden with minimal ongoing operation costs because it is solar powered. The multi-colored Solar Powered Butterfly light is “11-1/2″ and can be adjusted in height off of the ground to 18″. It is powered with a small solar panel and uses a single LED bulb for light with fiber optics interwoven to create points of light throughout the butterfly.

Solar Plant Light Rings

The Solar Plant Light Rings are great for potted plants because they are small and delicate, won’t overpower your plant but yet powerful enough to provide some great up lighting. They feature clear LED landscape lights powered by a solar panel you can stake up to 14′ away. It comes with a flexible plastic ring that ranges in size from 6″ to 11″ in diameter and is very is to stake inside a pot or in a flower bed if so desired.

These are all great ways to improve the landscape lighting in your home, very easy to install and can add a ton of creativity to your garden.

The fall is a favorite for a lot of folks: the  weather is cooling down, days are shorter and leaves are changing color. It also means its getting close to Halloween! Halloween is a great time for fun for kids of all ages. But it can also be a fun and creative time for whole family. It’s estimated that about half of the homes will be decorated for Halloween around the world. There are some great ways to make your home appear very scary for not a lot of money and be able to spend some great family time together. Here are some tips for creating a great Halloween landscape.

Lighting Options

Light strings are a good starting point when thinking about Halloween lights. They come in a variety of colors such as orange, black, green and puple among others as well as other colors and they are relatively inexpensive. They are also available in different themed shapes like pumpkins, goblins, ghosts and candy corn. They can be hung from trees and shrubs, strung along fences or attached to the eaves of the house.

LED lighting is another great option for Halloween landscape lighting and also less expensive to operate because they use substantially less energy. Many halloween lights now offer flashing or pulsing LED lights and come in many colors. You can also buys uplighting with colored lenses to help create the mood. LEDs are now available in string lights, candle lights and even costume lighting.

Solar lighting has developed to a point where it has become comparable in quality and light output to other types of traditional lighting. Plus, they come in Halloween decor and they can be shaped liked ghosts, gouls or a variety of other scary shapes.

Projection lighting is a creative way to add frightening images on to your house, sidewalks or other media. One great benefit of projection lighting is that it can be a stand alone peice of decor if you choose to only use it. Plus you can buy additional slides for other holiday occasions. Lighting projectors cost between $50 – $100.

Using light covers is an inexpensive way to add some Halloween flavor without spending a ton of money. You can get them in a variety of colors and frightening shapes in many cases for under $10. They are a temporary cover so you can pull them off, store them and use them again next year.

One of the more popular choices for Halloween lighting is the UV black light. This particular Halloween light produces a dark purple glow after dark and highlights costumes and makeup that are fluorescent. You canpurchase black lights with fixtures or by themselves to temporarily replace existing outdoor lights.

These are quite a few decorative Halloween themed peices that you can purchase and can be used as stand alone peices in the yard. There are a variety of items that may include pumpkins, lighted Halloween trees, tomb stones, ghouls, goblins or any number of different themes.

With landscape lighting, water features such as fountains and pools can be greatly enhanced with amazing effects. You can make a fountain glow, illuminate an entire pond from within or accentuate a reflecting pool. But choosing the right lighting for your water features can be the difference between just a mundane landscape component and a stunning focal point of the garden.

The most common and popular choice for fountain lighting is the submersible light. Submersible lights are placed underwater and up lite the fountain creating a shimmering effect. In addition to illuminating the fountain, the submersible lights illuminate the streams of water as they flow in to the basin. Many of these lights come with color filters that allow the user to experience vibrant and get creative with the effects of the lighting.

In addition to submersible lights, landscape lighting can be up-light with solar, incandescent or LED lighting. Solar lighting is becoming the choice for many people simply because there is no ongoing energy cost associated with solar outdoor lighting after installation. Also, solar lighting is very easy to install. LED lighting offers a great deal of creativity due to color options available and also the bulbs last much longer than incandescent bulbs. For larger fountains, a new option that is available is the moonlight globe. The globes are battery operated, come in various sizes and colors and can float in the basin of the fountain. In the right setting, smaller globes could be permanently installed around the base of the fountain to add lighting and color. They also are available with speakers in them for additional ambience.

Some water features, for instance a water wall or a floor fountain, would benefit from overhead or down lighting. In this case, the landscape lighting acts like a spotlight on the water feature. There are many different applications available here. Some lights can be incorporated in to the design of the fountain (if it is custom made) so that the lighting is obscure and nonintrusive while other fountains will require over head lighting to be attached to surrounding trees or other structures such as a building, pergola, wooden windows or lamp post.

Choosing the correct lighting techniques for your fountain will take a little planning on your part. You will want to experiment with a flashlight at night to see exactly the locations for your outdoor garden lights that will best serve you for your fountain lighting project. (If you are considering hiring someone to design a landscape lighting system for you, be sure and ask if they have a temporary kit that you can use to experiment with for a few days. Many are now offering these to their clients.)

Many times fountains are the centerpiece of the garden and need to been lighted more heavily. My advice is to choose fountain lights that will accentuate and illuminate your fountain without overpowering the surrounding landscape. Do a little research and planning prior to starting the project to insure that the results are what you desired. Visit this site to have more landscape design ideas .

Learn more about fountain lighting products here.

One of the latest trends in landscape lighting design is the globe light. They come in various sizes, can be used in a range of applications such as post lamp lights, landscape bedding lights, tree lights and even floating pool lights. The globes were introduced by a company out of Germany called Moonlight Inc. and have won many awards for their shatterproof polyethylene design and functionality.  The globes are available in four sizes: 10″, 14″, 22″ and 30″ diameter and are also available in half globes.  The globes are also available in many different colors and designs that can really add some creativity and life to your landscape. 

Floating, cordless globes are great for events like pool parties because they add such a creative,  modern element to the landscape but are easily removed and stored for later use.  Another application would be to attach globes in mature trees for adding extra overhead light to the garden.  Since the globes can be hard wired, plugged in or cordless and they come in a variety of colors and designs, the possible applications are endless. An obvious garden application would be in a Japanese garden or in the modern, minimallistic garden. Both styles use basic shapes and lines to define spaces and the globe light adds an both a design and functional aspect to both of these design styles.

The smaller 10″ globes can be used in applications like deck, patio and table lighting as well as for lighting pedestrian paths and driveways.  If you would like to learn more about the globe light, please visit the site below:

 http://www.moonlight-inc.com/

With today’s realestate market being in a decline and many people desperate to sell their homes, adding curb appeal to your house can make the difference between selling the home within the first 30 days or it being on the market for an extended period of time. Experts agree that adding beautiful landscape elements to your home will add curb appeal. One of those landscape elements that should be included in the budget is landscape lighting.

For as little as $250 you can add low voltage landscape lighting yourself and improve the curb appeal your home. Solar lighting, as we have discussed in earlier posts, is relatively inexpensive to buy, install and virtually cost free to maintain and can make a huge difference in how your home appears. A well lite walkway to the front door can instantly provide a sense of safety for the potential buyer and accenting the architectural features of your home can bring out the flavor of the house as well. If you have an outdoor living area, strategically placed landscape lights can make it feel like a great place for parties and entertainment. Sometimes the best garden decor ideas are simple yet elegant additions to your landscape including landscape lighting. Be sure to follow the design steps outlined on this site to achieve the desired results.

One way to market the landscape lighting features of your home is to take a picture(s) of the house at night with people using the outdoor spaces and have it framed and then place the picture somewhere it will be seen during a showing, like on the mantle above the fireplace or near the front entrance. You may want to hire a professional to take the pictures to insure that you achieve the desired results.  Another tip would be to have the photos marketed through your realestate agent on his or her website.

Of course, like other things, you can spend lots of time, energy and money on landscape lighting on your home. But the goal is to increase the curb appeal while adding value so ultimately you can sell it quickly.  Landscape lighting can definitely help you achieve those goals for just a little investment of time and money.

 Landscape lighting for your deck is essential for safety and enjoyment of the space that you have created on your site. Decks are designed to be a place for cookouts, parties and entertainment but without good lighting it can be a dangerous and/or an uninviting place to be at night. On cold nights having a patio heater can make decks much more enjoyable. Many times decks have elevation changes that involve stairs, seating, planter boxes and railing among other features so choosing lighting for these areas are crucial.  Solar lighting is a great idea because it is simple to install (see our posting on solar lighting), very inexpensive to operate and from a design stand point they offer enough light to illuminate the features on the deck without over lighting it.  Plus, solar lights eliminate the use of combersome wiring.  

Deck lighting can come in various forms and shapes. There is recessed lighting that fits flush into the deck intself and can actually be stepped without damage to the light.  Another option for deck lighting can be to have lamps on the deck. They can be quite decorative and come in many beautiful shapes in sizes.  Solar deck lamps can be incorporportated into the design of the deck from the beginning to add architectural elements while providing light. Also, solar light post caps are available and also serve to provide some added detail to the deck design while illuminating the posts.  (Keep in mind that solar lights do not produce as much light as traditional lighting but with proper planning you can achieve great results.)   There are also recessed step lights that fit flush into the riser decking and help to illuminate the steps and provide increased saftety for the user as well as wall fixtures like sconces that add architectural flavor to your deck.

Here is a great website that provides good pics and deck lighting products that will help you get started on your project.

LED lighting (Lighting Emitted Diodes) is a new trend in lighting technology (introduced in the 1990s)and is being used in many creative ways in the landscape.  LED lighting has a lot of advantages over halogen and incandescent lamps in that they are more durable (they are not affected by vibration, which is great for applications like cars and motorcycles) thus always giving off a steady stream of light. Also, they can last up to 200,000 hours before replacement is required and they use much less power than traditional lighting, although some will need to be replaced after 50,000 hours.   On average, LEDs will use about 80% less energy saving customers money throughout the year and conserving lots of energy.  There are quite a few models out there that operate on solar power which can save even more money for the consumer in the long run. When the light does begin to burn out, it will slowly lose power and light as opposed to incondescent lights which just “burn out”.

One of the great benefits of LED landscape lighting is that they come in a range of colors and you can really get creative with them. Think about how you could use blue LEDs to highlight a portion of your garden that has Blue Salvia or a cascading fountain . Or how a red LED could be used to do the same with mass plantings of  Red Petunias or Geraniums. The possibilities are endless! Here are some great examples of LED lighting.

There are a few disadvantages that you should consider when thinking about LED lighting. If you live in the northern states, snow accumulation on the lights can be a problem since they do not produce much heat at all. They run at about 60 degrees celsius, which is great in most circumstances, but freezing and bursting can be an issue for those in cold climates. Also, LEDs don’t produce quite as much light as halogens and incandescents so keep that in mind when designing your system. You may want to use a mixture of both in your landscape to adequately light your space.

Here is some more great information on outdoor LED lighting.

Solar Light in the Garden

The use of solar lighting has become popular in recent years because it is a low maintenance, inexpensive way to light your garden with minimal impact on the enviornment.  Like other types of lighting, there are pros and cons to solar lights. One of the advantages of using solar lights is that they are fairly easy to install. Once you have an idea about which parts of your garden space that you would like to lite as well as what type of lighting (i.e. down lighting, uplighting, accent lighting, etc.), you can purchase the appropriate number of lights that will be required for the project. Keep in mind, usually what you pay for is what you get. The cheaper models of solar lights usually have a shorter battery life span and produce smaller amounts of light. In contrast, the more expensive models usually have a longer battery life and will produce more light. Solar lights collect sunlight and use it to generate DC electricity but no wiring is required here.  Also, a lot the newer models have a sensor on them that tells them when to turn on. However, there are a few draw backs to consider. As mentioned before, the battery life can be somewhat short on cheaper models and some will only produce a small amount of light for a short amount of time. Also, some solar lights will not recharge when it is rainy or even cloudy so do some research before you buy.