The lighting design of a garden

A good lighting design for the garden is essential to create an enjoyable and relaxing atmosphere that facilitates and stimulates conviviality between guests.

The function of light is also to emphasise particular details to make the space more attractive and evocative: light is able to enhance volumes and give new life to even the simplest architectural elements such as stairs, walkways, balustrades and handrails.

Light in gardens also serves as an indication of the different paths or to signal the functions of different areas.
Lastly, good lighting of outdoor spaces serves to increase their safety, facilitating their use even at night.

Let’s discover together how best to illuminate the various areas of gardens, focusing in particular on private gardens and those of hospitality facilities.

Paths

The lighting of pathways is essential to ensure safety, to show guests the correct route and also to create an atmosphere that characterises the garden.

A suitable type of luminaire for this type of space are recessed floor spotlights such as our Zeppelin or our Cerchio, which help to diffuse a soft and comfortable light.

An alternative to spotlights are lighting poles, which in addition to providing adequate illumination can be considered true interior design accessories that can be customised in different shapes, materials and finishes.

Outdoor veranda

Outdoor veranda lighting must be functional, but at the same time it can create a cosy and relaxing atmosphere that put guests at their ease.

One option is to use pendant lamps with an IP65 rating for general or indirect light.

On the other hand, if you want to emphasise the design of the furniture, you can enhance it by using a linear light profile – like our Wanda – to be placed underneath seats, tables or counters.

Outdoor dining

Two different solutions can be adopted to illuminate outdoor tables.

The first, only possible in the presence of a roof, consists in adopting a pendant lamp, such as our Wanda IP65 capable of providing both general and indirect light.

Alternatively, for a more functional but at the same time atmospheric light, it is possible to use dimming lamps directly placed on the table.

Outdoor kitchens

Private gardens often also have a bar area or a proper outdoor kitchen. In this type of space, lighting has a purely functional role: it is important that the amount of light is sufficient to allow the preparation of drinks and dishes.

The best scenario is to use ceiling lights such as recessed spotlights or pendant lamps that provide punctual light.

Greenery

The lighting of green areas is closely linked to the characteristics of the various types of vegetation.

To illuminate half-stemmed plants, the best system is to use directional ground projectors, such as our Vision.

The illumination of tall trees, on the other hand, must generate a dramatic and more atmospheric effect, which enhances their shapes and emphasises their majesty. To do this, the trunk must be lit from the ground.

Ground plants are best enhanced by lighting that can come either from low bollards that illuminate the foliage from above, or through recessed spotlights that create a broadening effect of the foliage.

It is also important to choose a light source that emphasises the colour of the foliage so that it looks more vivid and saturated.