Architecture & Design

Architecture & Design | 15 G arden lighting is the key to making your outdoors enchanting. Homeowners are able to beautify their home and increase home value with garden lights. Besides, lighting enhances safety and security by improving vision ability and surrounding illumination. Embellishing a garden with the right lighting is not an easy task and requires a lot of attention to detail to limit light leakage and meet the needs of safety, visual comfort, and aesthetics. To achieve a truly spectacular effect, the lighting must be adapted to the specific characteristics of the vegetation and space. Safety aspect Adding light to walking paths, steps and driveways is a great way to increase nighttime safety on your property. It will guide you, and your guests while preventing trips and falls. The most suitable light fixtures are recessed spotlights that can be placed on the outdoor pavement, steps or walls. Alternatively, it is possible to use outdoor lamps that attach to the ground but are adjustable to better direct the light beam toward walkways, stairs, or garage access ramps. Vegetation The trees in your garden are a fantastic opportunity to create a unique setting. But not all trees are the same. This is why it is very important to make an important distinction. -Tall trees with small, narrow leaves, such as olive trees, cork trees, or a palm trees, need light from the bottom upwards using an adjustable spotlight, tilted towards the tree to avoid pollution caused by a light oriented toward the sky. This contrast between light and shade, multiplied by the leaves, accentuates the plasticity of the foliage and, therefore, the tree's uniqueness. -Trees with large, dense leaves, such as magnolia, will act as a barrier to light, cancelling the scenic chiaroscuro effects, so it's best to leave them in the dark. -Plants between 30cm to 80cm tall need medium or small light from top to bottom and placed inside the flower beds. Garden border Border areas of the garden need to shine to emphasise their boundaries and to enhance their scenic and practical appearance. A large garden with a thick hedge around it that acts as a boundary and a protective wall can install adjustable spotlights that illuminate the greenery in a frontal manner, creating and defining a visible light boundary. Another solution is to place lights inside the hedge that illuminate toward the ground to mark the boundary by the light areas hidden among the leaves. If there are walls instead of hedges, you can install LED strips at the base that will draw a seamless light band running around the entire perimeter. The garden will be even more fascinating if the lighting sources are hidden and camouflaged in the vegetation as much as possible. In this way, the attention will not be focused on the light source but on the plants, bringing them to the centre of the scene. Remember that designing classy outdoor spaces will require the same attention and dedication as the interiors. By adapting these tips to your specific needs, your garden's look will immediately win over your guests. iLLUmiNATiNg yOUR OUTDOOR SPACE ABOUT Light Design Solutions specialises in lighting design, focusing on innovative and cost effective solutions. For more information on LDS, visit www.lds.com.mt; call +356 2149 6843 gARDEN LIgHTINg IDEAS

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