Adding tree lighting to your yard can transform the outdoor area into a more functional and aesthetic space. You may wish to enhance safety, spend more time outdoors, or create an intimate atmosphere in your yard—this is where tree lighting will do the trick for you.
1. Benefits of Tree Lighting
Tree lighting is not just something aesthetic. It provides you with several practical benefits for your outdoor space:
Safety
Tree lighting illuminates the pathway, steps, and seating locations, minimizing the chances of falls. This is especially important if you frequently hold parties or your family members are playful and enjoy playing in the yard at night.
Aesthetic Appeal
Light and tree placement increase the natural beauty of your landscape, drawing people's focus to its unique features, the bark texture, shape, or spread of the branches or leaves.
Extended Outdoor Enjoyment
Tree lighting will extend your time to enjoy your backyard, as you can host meetings, dine, or just sit in a well-lit, inviting ambiance.
Create Romance or Cozy Ambiance
Tree lighting can most definitely create a nice, soft, cozy glow for your backyard, making it perfect for intimate gatherings or quiet family evenings. Whether it's a summer barbecue or cold wintertime by the fire pit, lighting does well to set the mood.
2. Lighting Types and Styles
There are different kinds of tree lighting, each with its peculiar characteristics. Some of the most popular lighting options are described here that you may want to consider for your backyard:
Tree Lights
These much smaller lights are encased around the trunk or branches of a tree. They give a soft glow and draw attention to the tree's simple form. Choose any color and size according to your taste.
Outdoor Spotlights
A spotlight will really help to draw attention to one tree or a group of trees. Light focused on an area in this way can well highlight the height of the tree, its canopy spread and the shapes of its branches, or even the interestingness of the bark textures themselves. Dramatic effects are created when using spotlights, making your trees the central point of your yard.
String lights
String lights are straightforward to use and can be very versatile. You can hang them between tree branches or wrap them around the trunk. They are great for creating a whimsy or a festive ambiance, perfect for parties or holidays.
Solar Lights
These lights are powered by the sun, so it is eco-friendly and you are conserving electricity. It also has an automatic on-time setting that automatically switches the lights on once it gets dark - the added convenience. It works really well for lighting up a distant tree some distance from the outlet.
LED Strip Lights
These are the slim, bendable lights that one wraps around a tree to give it an upper-class look. The LED strips come in a range of colors and are very energy efficient, using minimal power for a much longer time.
You can explore more options for tree lighting to find the best fit for your backyard.
3. Lighting Tips and Suggestions
Choose the Right Fixture for the Tree Size
You may require bright lights like an outdoor spotlight for the large trees, especially to highlight the whole tree. String lights or even solar lights can add a great finishing touch on smaller trees without overwhelming them.
Choose Apendant Color Composition of Lighting
Soft white light will warm, invite. Cool white or colored lights may give a lively, frolicking atmosphere. The kind of atmosphere you want to create, think of, and choose that light color.
Position for Height and Angle
Play with the placement of where your lights will be. If you have a long tree, lights down at the bottom that shoot upwards create an illusion that the tree is even taller. Wrapping the lights around branches gives depth and emphasizes the aesthetic value in the tree.
Think of how energy efficient you can be
LEDs are power savers, which help you save on your electricity bill. They consume less power and last longer than the others. Solar lights do not need electricity at all because they run on sunlight!
Safe And Sound
Always use a light that is specifically rated for outdoor use. This ensures it has been designed to endure rain, snow, and wind pressure, so it will last longer and be safer to use. If you are going to use plug-in lights, utilize a dryer on your cords and outlet for safety's sake, so the water won't harm you in any way.
Save Energy Wisely
If you do not want to worry about plugging in lights or excessive usage of electricity, consider using solar lights. Use outdoor extension cords or power strips with electric lights that are out door-weather proof and safe.