Brighten the mood inside the house with lighting outside

The garden can act as another room, especially late in the evening, via subtly lit features.

LIGHT has a great effect on our mood and outlook — the result of a bright, sunny day can be directly reflected in the mood and outlook of our family, friends and colleagues.

There’s not much that can’t be improved by blue skies and sunshine. So with this in mind, there are several reasons why we should consider the integration of artificial light into our landscape projects. In winter the garden is left alone in darkness, only to be rediscovered in spring.

For those months, we are hemmed in by the four walls of the house, and while it may be cosy, for a while, the introduction of lighting in the garden can make an indoor room feel so much larger.

The garden can become a visual extension to the house and in the same way you’ll find that a well-designed garden will look sculptural in appearance, with key features lit from within, adding depth to the views from the house. Regardless of budget, I urge clients in the early stages of a project, to consider lighting as a priority — it’s worth making allowances, even if only to run the ducting beneath paving or any solid infrastructure during installation and to avoid costly excavations and re-paving at a later date.

As with any garden installation, but particularly with electronics and lighting, you really do get what you pay for when it comes to lighting. A key point, if purchasing for yourself, is to ensure you buy the light unit with the highest IP (ingress protection for water and dust).

The lowest you should go for is IP45, while the optimum is IP60. Apart from cost, another important aspect to consider is the lighting concept. By this I mean how you arrange a scheme to provide key route-lighting and subtle under-lighting or spot-lighting. The incorporation of subtle lighting within the garden allows us to occupy the space during the later hours of the evening. It lets us move around the space comfortably, without standard flood or security lighting.

Equally, it’s really important to have a control point located here — just think about the dark months when a flick of a simple switch illuminates the outdoor space.

For further information on garden concepts and ideas, you can contact The Pavilion Garden Centre by visiting www.thepavilion.ie, Facebook.com/thepavilioncork or via twitter @the_pavilion