Gumbo weather in Louisiana — it’s fall in the rest of the country — means gardens are full of hay bales, pumpkins, mums and crotons.
As daylight saving time ends on November 6th, and the days get shorter and it gets dark earlier, many homeowners are taking extra precautions to accentuate the holiday scenery and intricate trails, and to provide some degree of safety. We are starting to rely on outdoor lighting. But before you turn on your floodlights, you might want to explore the various options on the market. Technology is a good starting point.
Joseph King, owner of Baton Rouge Landscape King, said: “They aren’t using a lot of watts. In the past, we had to calculate the voltage drop, but now with a transformer that can maintain wattage throughout the installation, it’s relatively easy.”
He explained that a small LED path light uses about 2 watts of power. This is an easy load for a small transformer that can handle up to 120 watts. For do-it-yourselfers, low-voltage LED landscape lighting kits are available. Some even offer color-changing light bulbs that you can access from your phone, making holiday lighting up a breeze.
According to SiteOne Landscaping Supply’s Micky Manual, tree uprights have a dramatic effect.
“You can put holiday lights in a variety of places, such as green and red for Christmas and orange for Halloween,” says King. “It’s really fun to play with. We even have one at home.”
According to local landscape lighting experts, the three main concerns for homeowners are security, safety and ambience. And there’s a way to incorporate all these aspects into just the right amount of light that isn’t too bright.
Mickey Manual, account manager for SiteOne Landscape Supply in Baton Rouge, said: “You don’t want it to look like an airport. You want the lighting to be well balanced.”
said Michael Percy, Landscape Architect at CARBO Landscape Architects in Baton Rouge. “I think sometimes it can be tempting to shine a light on a project at night. Things can start to look a little artificial. It’s about making the light source invisible.”
Large oak trees are the highlight of many southern Louisiana yards and are a great place to start lighting up at night. Many, “to bring to life a large oak tree that may have been there for years.”
file photo. Good lighting can give your garden a magical feel.
“We start with trees. If you have a path or a driveway, start thinking about how you can use that tree to illuminate those elements so people can see them at night,” Percy said. .
Lights mounted on trees that shine downward mimic the glow of moonlight and cast shadows on the ground. But according to King, shadows can also affect your overall lighting plan.
“It can also illuminate things like plants and tall holly. There are many things you can do to get a rewarding look,” he said.
When it comes to safety, King suggests lighting areas in your yard that have “slope transitions,” including stairs, ramps, or places where someone could trip and fall. Pathlights are a common go-to for homeowners, but Percy offered a unique option for lighting the way.
File photo of the backyard of a New Orleans home at sunset. Spotlights hit the murals and lights on the pavement.
“We try to avoid aisle lights, but we try to have the lights run straight down the aisle. And your eyes really notice it, you can hide the lights in the trees and hit them from that approach,” he said.
Everything in your garden glows at night: trees, pillars, statues, walls, flowerbeds. Outdoor living areas and patios can also be extensions of your home if the lighting is right.
“I love spending time on the backyard patio,” said King. “I have a kid he’s two years old and all the neighbors come to play. At night everything lights up so the kids can run and play so they can all see us.” It’s great to come and hang out in the garden.
Lighting your home isn’t always a one-size-fits-all concept, but it’s always a good idea to have a game plan before installing.
“It’s all about what you envision,” said the manual. “That’s what you really want to achieve.”
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