Light Up Your Nights
Is landscape lighting worth the investment? It most certainly is. Particularly if you calculate your ROI in sensory delight rather than dollars and cents.
A landscape architect will usually discuss an outdoor lighting plan in the final phases of the landscape design process. But it can also be done as a stand-alone project at a later time.
In either case, here are three of the most immediate benefits of lighting your night-time landscape:
- Enjoy Your Garden After Dark. As the days grow shorter, you won’t have to decrease the time you spend outside. A carefully drawn landscape lighting design extends the seasonal usability of your outdoor environment. And, the temperate climate we enjoy in Northern Virginia makes it comfortable to be outdoors most of the year anyway.
- Set the Mood with Light. Your garden is a different place at night. It looks different. It sounds different. Think about what it feels like to be outside on a moonlit evening. The moonlight naturally creates dramatic shadows, halos, and highlights around tree crowns and other foliage. Artful landscape lighting can give that same sense of “wow” on any night you choose.
- Aesthetic Enhancements. Outdoor lighting can showcase some of the most attractive landscape features after dark. In fact, certain details of your garden become apparent only after dark. For example, lighting trees from below can show off their beautiful structure, particularly in fall or winter after leaves have fallen.
Any basic lighting plan will always address practical lighting concerns such as illuminating pathways, steps, and entryways. But artistic lighting is where your landscape architect can get creative.
Guiding the Way with Light
We approach lighting objects of interest (trees, statuary, architectural details) differently than we do pathways or sitting areas. We look for the best view, the best angle. We try to hide the lighting instruments or mask them with foliage so that the eye is directed to the subject of the lighting rather than the lighting instrument itself. We are in a sense sculpting with light.
We also use lighting to guide us through the landscape. So a good garden lighting plan must account for changing elevations on the property. This can be tricky depending on the slope of a property. For example: If you are at the bottom of a path looking up, you might see the underside of a path light depending on its placement. You don’t want to have light beaming into your eyes as you try to find your way up the steps.
We’ve learned to walk our pathways to anticipate those issues. Sometimes we can mask a lamp from below with foliage. Or, we may choose a different type of fixture that is lower to the ground and below the eye line.
Lighting In Layers
When we plan our lighting designs we consider the key components of the landscape plan—the various types of use areas and the connecting pathways that link them.
We think in terms of layers that, taken all together, result in a balanced landscape lighting plan that includes:
- Functional lighting. Guides you safely along pathways and steps through the landscape
- Ambient lighting. Creates a pleasing atmosphere around a patio, spa, or dining area
- Accent lighting. Spotlights special features such as trees, statuary, fountains, or waterfalls
- Task lighting. Illuminates work surfaces at a grill station or bar area
Outdoor Lighting Techniques
A number of techniques are used to create visual effects in lighting the landscape. Aside from the most obvious –path lighting- there are many artistic ways to light patios, pool areas, and special features such as trees, statuary, and water features. These three are the most commonly used:
- Up-Lighting. Lights recessed into the ground at the base of a tree illuminate it from the ground up to show off its shape and trunk structure.
- Moonlighting. This is a theatrical lighting effect. Lamps fixed high in a tree cast light downward through branches and foliage. It can be used to throw dramatic shadow patterns onto a patio below.
- Submerged Lighting. Moving water, when lit by submerged instruments, creates an especially flashy effect almost like fire. The lights pick up the splash pattern of a fountain or waterfall and cast flickering patterns on nearby foliage or objects.
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Is Garden Lighting Wasteful?
It shouldn’t be. Most landscape lamps are low-wattage halogen in the 10 or 20-watt range unless you need to spotlight a tall tree. And technology in landscape lighting is changing every year. LEDs are becoming the norm. A 30W equivalent LED lamp only draws 3 watts and lasts much longer. So energy conservation is improving all the time.
There are also improvements to the equipment. One of the most persistent problems with outdoor lighting systems is a voltage drop and water intrusion. In standard systems, wire is twisted around wire nuts at junction points. This causes voltage drop sometimes and is a weak spot where water can enter. There are some new systems on the market that promise to make this problem a thing of the past.
Simplicity is an Art
Develop a garden lighting plan that will enhance your night garden experience without drawing attention to itself.
Perhaps you’ve been wondering how to bring out the fullest expression in your landscape and gardens. Our eBook: Choosing the Right Kind of Landscape Maintenance Firm, is full of valuable information to help you understand the fundamental differences between landscape maintenance companies.