Garden lights can dramatically alter your lawn and outside garden, transforming your daytime yard into an exotic, different nighttime yard. Your garden will take on a new life when the sun goes down, shadows add mystery and the light can add safety for you and your guests. Your choices determine the effects your lighting has on your home and garden.

Garden lights can be used to draw attention to different elements of your landscape or to draw attention away from elements of your landscape. You can add them to your walkway to light the way to the door or around your garden pond to make sure it is visible to visitors walking at night.

Garden lighting is available in a variety of designs. Floodlights can be attached to buildings to provide large amounts of light to driveways for visitors or with motion detectors added they can broadcast light into darkened area of the yard if movement is evident.

Up lighting can be used in trees to cast a soft glow upwards, illuminating the leaves and branches to create a display reminiscent of artwork. The lighting can be directed to cast shadows on water features in your yard or on the exterior wall of your home.

Garden lights can be used with water features to make dramatic displays or subtle contrasts to the surroundings. Specially designed garden lights for underwater use can be placed in ponds, pools or water fountain areas to give contrast to the surrounding areas; you can choose colored light bulbs to cast different hues on your landscape for even more artistic effects.

Spot lights are designed to shine in one specific spot of the garden or yard. They tend to cast a straight on light rather than a broadcast light. Spotlights are good for accenting a particular feature. Grouped together spotlights can create a focal point of light in your garden area, perhaps surrounding a particular yard statue or seating area.

Garden pathway lights can be of the recessed in-ground type that or they can be individual pole lights that are either low to the ground or higher in the air for marking the pathways in your garden. Pole lighting can be as decorative or as plain as your tastes dictate.

Gazebos, porches and archways can be lit using either down lighting or up lighting or even a combination of both types. Again, personal taste and suitability of location should dictate your decision.

Once you have your garden light decisions made you need to decide on how the garden lights will be powered. You don’t want your beautiful garden lights to be overpowered by obvious cords and wires. You local lighting professional can help you with an installation that keeps the cords hidden from view or even run under the ground.
Choosing garden lights offers the possibility to explore your imagination. There are infinite decorating patterns and schemes, let your creativity be your guide. Keep your lighting plans tasteful and in tune with your house and your landscape design for the perfect garden lights.

-Sharon Chapman