It might be a bit cold outside still so the prospect of braving the bitter weather to prune and prep your garden ready for spring might not be a particularly enticing one. A less labour-intensive way to make your garden brighter and more inviting, even on those misty days, is by introducing outdoor lighting into your landscaping plans.
Light up the Night | The dark nights throughout the winter months often trigger low moods and the view out into a mass of black when you get home from work isn’t really very appealing. However, the right lighting can really transform a garden and improve your mood, and the continued development of LED lighting means your garden doesn’t need to look like a landing strip at an airport.
Adding lighting to your garden will not only improve your mood: it can also make you feel more secure and safe. Low-level lighting positioned around the perimeter of your garden picks out your boundary, increasing the visibility of your property at night. Decorative path lights mean that a walk to the greenhouse or shed in the evening is much less of a hazard than if you were negotiating your way in moonlight.
Plan in Advance | It’s important to think about what you want to achieve from adding outdoor lighting to your garden and whether you want the lighting scheme to perform a function beforehand to ensure you purchase the right products. If you want lights to act as security measures then you might want to consider proximity lights positioned near entrances, whereas if you are interested in adding lights purely for decorative purposes then you might want spike lights that are movable, or a set of lights that only come on when you flick the switch.
It’s important to consider how your lights will look and work all year round before installation. If you have a patio area or pergola that is used as a seating or dining area in the summer months then a permanent set of lights in this area, such as down-lighters fixed in the pergola, will be an important feature. If the planting in your garden is in a constant state of flux depending on the season then movable lights would probably be a good idea so you can choose the best areas to highlight, or if you have a vegetable patch you might need the gardener’s version of a task light attached to the fence or nearby trees.
The Focus is on LED Lights | LED (light-emitting diode) lamps are becoming increasingly popular, especially for outdoor lighting, because they are cheaper to run and last a lot longer than halogen bulbs. You can find plenty of new and interesting LED products at leading lighting companies such as www.e-conolight.com.
Developments in LED lighting means that the colour is warm and white, similar to halogen, but they don’t give out heat like halogen lamps, which means your foliage won’t become discoloured. Try LED garden lights today. You’ll be amazed!
If all the preparation feels like a chore just keep in mind how much you’ll appreciate your garden when it comes to spring and summer and the alfresco fun that can be had without any hard work necessary.