The Best Garden Lighting Ideas To Suit Any Landscape
You have spent a lot of time and money getting your garden just right – so you do not want to limit your time enjoying the outdoors to when the sun is out. Gardens can be magical places at night, and to take full advantage of this you need to invest in good outdoor lighting.
Outdoor lighting is more than just a functional tool, providing illumination when the sun no longer does, as it can also be a great decor item. Much like adorning your home with lamps, lanterns and twinkle lights to set an inviting ambience, your garden too can become a stunning environment at night.
At TM Landscapes, we believe that your garden deserves the best no matter the season or time of day. We provide a range of landscaping and design services to our clients, including comprehensive garden lighting, to help you make the most out of your outdoor space.
In this blog post, we are sharing the best garden lighting ideas that can be used to illuminate your outdoor space all year round.
Functional Garden Lighting Ideas
The primary purpose of garden lighting is functionality – making your outdoor space accessible and safe during the darker hours. While outdoor lighting can do so much more than this, it is a good idea to start with the basics when implementing new accessories to your garden.
There are many ways you can incorporate outdoor lighting to improve the functionality and accessibility of your garden well into the evening, such as:
Pathway and Driveway Lighting
Ensure a safe arrival home for yourself and your guests with carefully placed lighting along paths, steps and driveways. Low-level options, such as recessed lights or LED stake lights, are best for these types of gardening lighting ideas as these offer subtle yet effective illumination in key areas.
Wall-Mounted Lights
Ideal to use around patios, porches or even driveways, wall-mounted lights are a great way to combine functionality with elegance. Incorporating wall lanterns, for example, can offer soft, war hues in entertainment areas, making it accessible without the harsh glare of security lights.
Deck and Step Lighting
To illuminate areas where there may be accessibility issues, such as decking or stairs, recessed deck lights are some of the best gardening lighting ideas. These are stylish and offer enough illumination to ensure people can move around the garden comfortably.
Ambient Garden Lighting Ideas
Garden lighting is a great tool for setting the mood and creating the ideal environment for relaxing, entertaining or partying. Whatever you want to use your garden for, lighting can be used to create the perfect ambience for it and ensure that everyone feels welcomed and comfortable.
Some of the best garden lighting ideas for ambience include:
Magical String Lights
String lights are one of the best garden lighting ideas to create a fun, magical environment after dark. Used both indoors and outdoors, string lights create a gentle glow to the garden that can be a welcoming environment for children and adults alike.
Hang string lights over seating, the top of a pergola, across the fence or even across hedges and trees to create a magical wonderland that the whole family can enjoy when the sun goes down.
Elegant Lantern Clusters
To add a touch of elegance to your garden, use clusters of battery-operated or solar-powered lanterns in seating areas, on the outdoor dining table or even along paths. This can create a warm, inviting atmosphere and give the impression of fine dining.
Choose outdoor lanterns that have a warm glow, or even a fake flame to enhance the appeal and create the perfect environment for enjoying a glass of wine, hosting a dinner party or simply relaxing under the stars.
Romantic Candlelight
For something extra special, use real candles to create a romantic ambience in the garden whether in your cosy seating area or around the outdoor dining area. From tealights inside of lanterns to long table candles in the perfect holder, create a beautiful environment for the one you love that you can enjoy from the comfort of your own home.
Sustainable Garden Lighting Ideas
Sustainability is a major concern for modern consumers, which is why eco-friendly garden lighting ideas are so popular. Incorporating environmentally friendly elements across your home and garden can contribute to better environmental health, without compromising on your lifestyle.
There are many sustainable garden lighting ideas you can incorporate into your landscape design, such as:
Solar-Powered Lighting
Solar lighting is one of the best and most popular ways to illuminate your garden. Not only is it a sustainable option, as power comes from a renewable energy resource, but they are very low maintenance. As the lights are often automatically triggered when it gets dark, you do not have to interrupt your plans to turn on each individual garden light – simply sit back and watch the garden illuminate before you.
There are all kinds of solar-powered garden lighting ideas, from lanterns to fairy lights and spotlights, that can be incorporated with your garden design and accent the best areas of your landscape.
Motion-Sensor Lights
Motion-sensor lights are a great tool for security and sustainability, as they will only activate through movement. By not having the light on all the time, you are conserving energy while being made aware of any movement in the garden after dark.
These are commonly used by entrances, across garden pathways, or as the main light of the driveway.
Our Best Design Tips For Garden Lighting
Before you decide what garden lighting ideas you want to incorporate into your landscape, you need to know how to make the most out of them.
As a leading garden design company, we have helped many people transform their outdoor spaces into beautiful gardens and can offer some advice regarding the placement, style, and overall choice of garden lighting:
- Opt For Warm Colours When Decorating: Warm lighting creates a welcoming, comfortable environment and is the best option when decorating your space. Security lighting can be harsh, but decorative features like lanterns should have a warm, yellow glow.
- Consider Positioning: The aim is not to just add garden lighting to your space, but to design it which is why positioning is so important. Choose the best angles and locations of lighting to avoid harsh glares and direct exposure, always aiming for a low comfortable hue.
- Choose Durable Fixtures: Outdoor lighting needs to be robust to withstand the element, so make sure the fixtures you invest in are waterproof, windproof and designed to last.
Conclusion
There are many gardening lighting ideas that you can incorporate into your landscape design to enhance the appeal of the space, as well as improve accessibility when the sun goes down.
Garden lighting does not just have to be a functional addition to your outdoor areas, as there are amazing ideas that can improve the aesthetic appeal and create a fun, welcoming environment for the whole family at night.
Using the design tips from TM Landscapes can help you make the best out of your outdoor space and create an environment you’ll adore.
Trust TM Landscapes To Illuminate Your Space
To learn more about garden lighting, work with our experts or request a consultation please contact us today.