DIY Network

Outdoor Lighting Good for the Garden

Master gardener Joe Lamp'l, host of Fresh from the Garden, discusses the benefits of lighting in the garden.

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Outdoor illumination today is much more than a motion-activated spotlight or lighting burning brightly by your front door. Carefully selected lighting can create an ambiance by accenting your garden or drawing attention to a special tree or feature.

Outdoor lighting brightens your garden day or night

By Joe Lamp'l

Sometimes the only time we have to enjoy our gardens and landscapes is after dark. So it only makes sense that we would combine that desire with the concept of outdoor lighting, especially when you consider the ease and low cost of installing a system yourself.

Outdoor illumination today is much more than a motion-activated spotlight or lighting burning brightly by your front door. Carefully selected lighting can create ambiance by accenting your garden or drawing attention to a special tree or feature.

Besides the aesthetic benefits, lighting a dark space is one of the most important deterrents in keeping potential burglars and vandals away, illuminating potentially dangerous areas for visiting family and friends and, overall, making your property safe and secure for everyone.

But in all cases, outdoor lighting allows our gardens to be enjoyed after dark, not in the dark!

Innovations in technology permit even the most project-challenged homeowner (like me) to quickly and easily install a complete system with the look of a professional job.

Kits are readily available for purchase at home-improvement stores. They include everything you need to install and power the system without the need of an electrician. The typical kit includes all of the following: light bulbs, fixtures, wiring, transformer and timer.

Let's look at the types of outdoor lighting:

• Do-it-yourself outdoor lighting kits are referred to as "low-voltage" lighting. These systems work by using a transformer to reduce standard 120-volt household current to a harmless 12 volts.

• Lighting kits come in a wide enough range of prices to suit any budget. Basic plastic kits can cost less than $30 and are good for lighting a walkway or row of foundation plants along the front of the house.

• More expensive kits include metal fixtures and halogen lights. They also may include more components. Be sure to examine the listed contents to know exactly what you are buying and whether there is enough to handle the job you want to do.

How to get long-lasting, great results from your system

I'm amazed at how simple and affordable it is to install a basic system that is adequate to light a path or walkway or to even provide some mood lighting. The disadvantage to these systems, though, is that they are almost always on the lower end of quality and looks.

If you really want a great looking, long-lasting low-voltage system, the key to is to use high-quality fixtures. They will be more expensive to purchase, but they'll last much longer, and you will quickly recover the added up-front cost. Among the most popular high-quality choices now are fixtures made of copper.

Even the bulbs have been improved greatly over the last several years. For a high-quality, well-lit system, use halogen lights exclusively. They look natural in the landscape, they're brighter, and they'll last longer.

From a design standpoint, you want the outdoor lighting system to complement the landscape, not detract from it. With so many choices now available, illuminating the garden has never been easier or more affordable. It can also be a very nice accent any time of the day or night.

(Joe Lamp'l, a master gardener, hosts DIY's Fresh from the Garden as well as a gardening radio show. For more information, visit www.joegardener.com. Distributed by Scripps Howard News Service.)

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