Landscape Moisture Manager: Greener Plants AND Lower Water Bills

Landscape Moisture Manager: Greener Plants AND Lower Water Bills

Paso Robles Youth Arts Academy’s lawn curb strip was slowly dying off. After four weeks of Moisture Manager treatment by Madrone Landscape, the curb strip is green again!

Beating the Summer Heat: Landscape Resilience with Moisture Manager Application

Summer brings soaring temperatures, along with the potential for parched lawns and burnt plants. While increasing watering might seem like the solution, it’s not always practical and can even run afoul of water conservation efforts. In this article, we explore a quick and affordable solution to conserve water and keep your lawn and plants green: moisture management.

Going Beneath the Surface: How Moisture Management Works for Your Landscape

Moisture management starts at the plant roots. Much of the moisture in your soil evaporates before your plants can make use of it. Moisture manager applications change the game by reducing water requirements. They create a protective film around plant and turf roots that attracts and captures water molecules, storing them on the root and soil surfaces. These droplets are then gradually released into your lawn, ensuring efficient water utilization.

Safe, Effective, and Easy: The Moisture Manager Product

The product used for moisture management comes in liquid or granule form. It’s both kid- and pet-friendly and doesn’t contain any toxic ingredients that could lead to runoff or groundwater contamination. Erik Gorham, Madrone’s Operations Manager, explains that applying the granules with a whirl spreader and immediately irrigating the treated area can yield visible improvements in turf color and seed germination in just one to two weeks.

Partnering for Plant Health: Year-Round Soil Moisture Management

Madrone, with its focus on water conservation, plant health, and aesthetics, offers a comprehensive approach to moisture management. The landscape maintenance teams can collaborate with homeowners and property managers to develop a year-round soil moisture management program. In cases of dry winters, Erik suggests establishing an application schedule where the crew visits two or three times a year to maintain optimal moisture levels and break the drought cycle in plants.

Saving Water, Money, and Maintaining Beauty: The Advantages of Moisture Management

Whether you’re a homeowner or property manager, there are numerous benefits to Madrone’s moisture management services. Their detail-oriented staff not only helps you save on your water bill but also ensures a beautiful, lush landscape year-round.

Contact Us for a Resilient Landscape

To discover more about Madrone’s maintenance services and how moisture management can benefit your landscape, reach out at [email protected] or call (805) 466-6263. Don’t let the summer heat wither your plants; instead, let moisture management keep them thriving.

The Essential Guide to Fire-Safe Landscaping in San Luis Obispo County

The Essential Guide to Fire-Safe Landscaping in San Luis Obispo County

Fire Season is here again.

As the wildfire threat increases through the summer months, the question always remains: How can your landscape help?

In 2022, California had a bit of a reprieve from the destruction of 2021. While over 772 buildings were damaged or destroyed in 2022, no fires reached the size of the three largest fires in history, all from 2021. Just over 363,939 acres burned over the course of 7,667 wildfires, which was a significant decrease from the 2.6 million acres that burned in 2021. This was a welcome improvement from the previous two years, although a state of emergency was declared to support communities recovering from fires worsened by an extreme heat wave.

Property owners are at risk, to be sure, but what can we do to minimize those risks? Is it possible to improve the defensibility of our properties by landscaping wisely?

The answer is yes.

At Madrone Landscape, we have dealt with properties in high fire danger areas for decades. There are many ways to enhance the defensibility of a property, whether through plant selection and layout design or irrigation and water system strategies. Fire-resistant plants selections are available, but it is every bit as important that your plantings be well-spaced, properly pruned, and adequately watered in order for them to perform their fire-resistance function. Also, eliminating plants entirely from around structures may not be the best or only option. Properly chosen plants can catch air-born fire embers, letting them die out harmlessly, and plants’ roots are often vital to control erosion after a fire event.

For the latest recommendations on ways to make your family and home more fire safe, visit the SLO County Community Fire Safe Council website.

Defensible Space – Defensive Landscaping

What you plant in your yard, and where you plant it, can be just as important as how your home is built. When in the path of a wildfire, your garden and lawn can become fuel for the flames. But, by learning the different zones around your property, you can create a more fire-safe home.

Immediate Zone: 0–5 feet from the furthest attached exterior point of the structure. This is the most important zone, as fire in this area will present the greatest danger to your house. This area should be kept irrigated and clear of debris at all times.

Top Fire-Resistant Landscaping for the Immediate Zone:

  • Plants up to 18 inches tall that are low-volume (not thick and bushy)
  • Plants with a high moisture content, such as succulents
  • Grasses a maximum of 3 inches tall
  • Tree branches trimmed 10 feet up
  • Area is irrigated and kept clean
  • Use of rock mulch against the house (instead of bark mulch)
  • Removal of all dead, dying, and diseased vegetation from gutters, ground, roof, and exterior attic vents

Intermediate Zone: 5–30 feet from the furthest exterior point of the structure. The goal of this zone is to reduce the available fuel in order to slow a ground fire. Larger shrubs and trees can be introduced here, as long as a distance that is twice their height separates them. This will prevent the “fire ladder” effect, where fires jump from one clump of shrubbery or trees (fuel) to another. Grass in this area should be mowed to 6”. This area should be kept irrigated and maintained.

Top Fire-Resistant Landscaping for Intermediate Zone:

  • Succulents, small to medium shrubs
  • Trees at least 10 feet apart and tree crowns 10 feet off the ground
  • Lower tree limbs removed 6–15 feet from the ground
  • Grass a maximum of 6 inches tall
  • Shrubs separated by two times their height (a 6 foot shrub will be at least 12 feet from its neighbor)

Extended Zone: 30–100 feet, as far as 200 feet, from the furthest exterior point of the structure. The major effort here should be to thin existing vegetation and remove debris to interrupt and reduce potential fires.

Top Fire-Resistant Landscaping for the Extended Zone:

  • Low to medium height plants
  • Grass mowed to 18–13 inches
  • Plants grouped in “islands” for water efficiency
  • Dead branches, leaves, and litter removed

Landscaping in fire-prone areas should try to create a fire safe buffer—a defensive space—around your structure. On top of everything else, it is crucial to ensure there is a deliberately clear path to the structure for firefighters, ensuring both their safety and yours. Taking these measures can make it easier and safer for them to save properties from wildfires.

Looking for some inspiration and additional information?

Fire Safe Demonstration Gardens

Next time you visit the Mid-State Fairgrounds, check out the Madrone design-build fire safe landscape surrounding the Fire Safe Council Building. In addition to examples of appropriate hardscape materials, rock mulch and boulder options, and fire-resistant furnishings, a variety of informational materials are posted around the landscape.

The San Luis Obispo Botanical Garden has a Fire Safe Demonstration Garden located at 3450 Dairy Creek Road, San Luis Obispo, CA 93405. They are open daily during daylight hours. The Gift Shop and Office are open 9 am to 5 pm Tuesday through Friday.

Visit the UC Master Gardener Program‘s Demo Garden and their Fire Safe Landscape display at Garden of the Seven Sisters, 2156 Sierra Way in San Luis Obispo.

Get more tips from the San Luis Obispo Botanical Garden’s Fire Safe Landscaping Brochure and the University of California’s Home Landscaping for Fire publication.

Make your landscape defensible. We can help! Contact us at [email protected] or (805) 466-6263.

The Perfect Outdoor Party Space

The Perfect Outdoor Party Space

The Perfect Outdoor Party Space

Written by Tyler Ellison, Designer
Originally published in Living Lavishly

We know how much the venue sets the vibe. On the California Central Coast, the outdoors are a vibe. Mild evenings allow for gatherings almost year-round, so outdoor spaces become parts of the home—extensions of the kitchen, the dining room, the living room, the party. Properly envisioned outdoor spaces transform a bland lot into vibrant, flexible, and personal additions to the interior living areas. Here are some considerations for creating the perfect outdoor party space:

 

Embrace a Particular Design Character

A grove of trees, a feature wall, a boulder outcrop, or interior architectural styling might all imbue landscape character—conversely, a mishmash of incoherent features and materials is the easiest way to disjoint a garden. Attention to character results in the inclusion of similar materials, complementary colors, and pleasing combinations of texture. Perhaps a tile accent inside the house is repeated in a kitchen backsplash, or a modern architectural design mirrored with segmented concrete or clean large-format pavers. A thoughtful geometry of layout, attention to edges, and repetition of plant selections also work together to establish a cohesive character. During design it is helpful to collect imagery of specific materials and arrange them in palettes to ensure that selections are complementary and attractive.

 

Determine Key Amenities for Your Type of Party

A patio dining space often provides the foundational element. Food and drink are the fuel for good times, so having dedicated locations for sitting while eating, standing while munching, even lounging while browsing gives opportunities for a diversity of guests and party sizes. Additionally, a buffet location adjacent to cooking zones allows for flexibility during food preparation and service. In the planning stage, it is helpful to create a list of desired uses and features. Some of amenities worth considering on the Central Coast include:

  • Cooking – Gas BBQ, Griddle, Stove, Smoker, Wood Burning Oven, Ceramic Charcoal Grill
  • Kitchen Elements – Sink, Counterspace, Trash Receptacle, Island, Refrigerator, Cooler, Warming Drawer, Cabinet, Water Heater, Ice Maker, Beverage Tap, Storage Drawer, Shelving
  • Seating & Eating – Table & Chairs, Bistro Set, Bench, Bar Seating, Lounger, Seat Wall, Boulder Slab, Swing, Hammock, Patio, Deck, Nook, Overlook
  • Activity & Play – Pool, Hot Tub, Plunge Pool, Play Structure, Hard Court, Turf, Bocce Court, Open Game Space, Sand Box, Ping Pong Table, Horseshoe Pit
  • Comfort & Protection – Pergola, Gazebo, Heater, Fireplace, Wind Screen, Shade Sail, Umbrella, Shade Tree
  • Warmth & Atmosphere – Firepit, Fire Feature, Fountain, Waterfall, Pond, Boulder Outcrop, Sculpture, Dry Creek, Wall, Gate, Arch, Pillars, Trees & Planting

Explore the Best Location for Your Party Spot

In many instances, existing features will guide the answer to this question. A sweeping view of the Paso Robles hills or a mature Atascadero oak tree might perfectly frame a central party space. Flow between doors, gates, and seating areas should be considered, as well as proximity to the kitchen. A broad primary access path with secondary collectors prevents chokepoints during a busy party. Sun and shade patterns, as well as wind and other climatic features will suggest ideal zones for human enjoyment; a blustery wind in Morro Bay suggests a more sheltered party pad. Cloudy Los Osos might suggest a comfortable boulder-studded fire circle. Finally, planting often provides the smooth transition from hardscape into the larger landscape, playing a vital role in defining and elevating a space.

 

Design for Personalized Flexibility

You want to ensure that your landscape investment allows for all the various parties that you might throw. How can the space morph for different guest lists, different activities, even different seasons? A lawn can offer play for kids, cornhole for adults, or a dining extension for the big celebration. On a sloping site, a low perimeter seat wall might maximize the potential of a patio nook. A central elevated tree planter could provide fast shade, definition of space, and a place to sit. One furnishing can also provide multiple uses on different days: fire pits with hard covers can double as coffee tables or benches when the flame is off.

 

Furnish With Durable and Functional Pieces

Remember, you aren’t setting up your space just for the Instagram photos (although that may be a factor). Get tables, chairs, stools, and barbecues that will stand up in our environment—lots of sun, maybe fog or frost and the occasional rain. Near the beach? Consider the effect of salt spray. Up in scorching North County? Plan for some sort of shade. Certain materials and finishes offer greater protection than others. Concrete, stone, and metal are often the most rugged outside in the elements. Pots, pillows, and plant material can provide easy splashes of color in combination with other earthier features.

 

Install Lighting for Function and Safety

Lighting is the hidden gem of an outdoor party space. Since most parties happen later in the day, a beautifully illuminated garden turns a spooky yard into a welcoming room. There are many ways to light a space, and a well-designed lighting plan makes use of multiple types of fixtures. Up lights pointed along the trunks of trees can help define the boundary of a space. Integrated hardscape lights increase safety in stairways and definition along walls and fences. Overhead lights can provide an even glow across patio spaces. String “bistro” lights can provide low but consistent illumination over a large dining space.

 

 

Outdoor spaces are designed, so an exploratory process ensures that any outdoor space is cohesive and fully resolved. Some homeowners begin with a full vision, and that’s great! If you don’t quite know what you’re looking for, that’s no problem at all. It simply means taking the time to consider what locations, features, character, furnishings, and elements will work best for the party space you want to have. For complex projects, a professional landscape designer will guide the transformation of inspired ideas into buildable plans on paper. At the same time, parties are all about people, so gather food and friends, make some space outside, and you’ll have a great party!

For more information and help with your landscape project, please visit madronelandscape.com.

Eight Winter Bloomers for the California Central Coast

Eight Winter Bloomers for the California Central Coast

Eight Winter Bloomers for the California Central Coast

During the colder months on the California Central Coast, many of our plants fall back and go dormant. Throughout the region, from inland San Luis Obispo to coastal Morro Bay and north county’s Paso Robles, central coasters love year-long landscapes. With so many beautiful bloomers that thrive in our area, we can count on flourishing flowers to take the stage during any given season.

Here are eight of our winter favorites.

Aloe Striata

Aloe striata, or Coral Aloe, is memorable for its tall floral stalks the color range of a citrus sunset, but its leaves take the cake. Elegant and pale, their reddened edges lend a delicate blush year-round, even as it blooms in the winter.

Arctostaphylos

Drought-tolerant and robust year-round, these Manzanitas shrubs are popular for their handsome, red-toned bark and bunches of round, gentle flowers.

Erica Canaliculata

This showering splash of flowers is commonly known as channeled heath or hairy gray heather. Its bell-shaped flowers bloom in a cloud of pink to purple, lending waves of colorful body to every landscape it flourishes in.

Agave Attenuata

While the Foxtail Agave is typically known for its year-round architectural form and drought-tolerance, mature specimens will put out massive flower spikes once in their lifetime. Vibrant green, cool blue, and beautiful variegated cultivars are available, and will spread from basal shoots, eventually filling in a sizeable area.

Viburnum Tinus

Another shrub bursting with fragrant and elegant blooms, the Viburnum tinus not only blossoms in the winter but provides a burst of metallic blue from its berries as well. It is well beloved by butterflies, bees, and clients alike..

Aloe Camperi

One of the few aloes with verdant green leaves, Aloe camperi or Popcorn Aloe, is a mid-rise plant with beautiful apricot flowers and a spindly, dramatic shape.

Grevillea ‘Moonlight’

Large, fast-growing, and with lovely flowers reminiscent of loose embroidery, Grevillea ‘Moonlight’ is a bushy evergreen that brings its luminous ivory to your winter landscape.

Ribes ‘Spring Showers’

The pendulous pink flowers of this dainty plant come alive in winter, a vibrant display that can almost cover the foliage.

Looking for a landscape with plants that bloom in the winter? Talk to our landscape designers for a design tailored to your specific climate. Some of the species in this list are better suited for milder coastal climates, while others are bullet-proof even in frosty north county. Contact our landscape designers at [email protected] or (805) 466-6263.

The Essential Landscape Design Guide

The Essential Landscape Design Guide

Transforming a landscape can be overwhelming—there are so many places to find inspiration, and there are drastically different styles to consider. It can be helpful to work with a professional—landscape designers are trained to see the big picture and identify opportunities that elude most homeowners.

Maximize Your Residential Landscape

Written by Daniel Mazawa, General Manager
Originally published in Living Lavishly

Here are a few steps homeowners can take to understand the design process and get a grasp of what they want from their landscape:

Essential Landscape Design Guide to Maximizing your Space

Analyze the Site

On the Central Coast, there are several different natural backdrops that most homes enjoy. Whether it is a distant view of rolling oak woodlands or a beachfront bluff experience, it is important to understand the setting of a place as influenced by the natural world. Take stock of existing trees or plants on site as well as sun and shade.

The architecture of the home and the neighborhood aesthetic may set the tone for the landscape design style. Consider the experience of driving up to the house and walking around the yard. A guest arriving at the home should know right where the front door is and where to park. The movement around the landscape should be functional and beautiful. Where are the areas of interest? What is the flow and the circulation? Identify the opportunities and constraints in a setting before figuring out what to do.

Establish the Functions

It is easy for someone who owns a home to identify what they want, but it can be a little more difficult to define what they need. Everything takes up space, so prioritizing functions is extremely important. Figure out how much usable space is needed for parking, outdoor entertaining, open utility areas, connecting pathways, and any other high-frequency functions. Pools, hot tubs, sport courts, outdoor kitchens, vegetable gardens, and other secondary functions can be fun additions to fold in.

Consider the best locations for all functions as far as convenience, sun exposure, views, and feel. For example, both an outdoor kitchen and a vegetable garden are convenient near an indoor kitchen, but the garden wants open sunshine and the outdoor kitchen benefits from shade or shelter. Also consider the indoor/outdoor connection as perceived through windows and doors from inside. A pergola can feel like an extension of an indoor room, or a distant view can be framed to be enjoyed from inside.

Essential Landscape Design Guide for Function

Define Design Style

A good first step is to decide whether a landscape is going to be geometric and calculated or free flowing and natural. A modern home may work better with a straight-lined landscape, but these forms can deconstruct as they move away from the structure. A natural setting such as a woodland can work well with curves and natural pathways especially if preserving existing trees.

People who like control, simple bold design, or tidy surroundings gravitate towards straight lines with geometric configurations. People who like tranquility, natural settings, or designing with nature gravitate towards flowing curves. Bold Modern style utilizes straight-line end of the spectrum and Natural Style falls on the curved line end. Mediterranean, Southwestern, Cottage, and Japanese gardens fall somewhere between. Having a clearly defined style that repeats and transitions smoothly will make a landscape feel complete.

Design Spaces Before Features

While design features are important, the spaces they create are more important to the user experience. For example, a tree may be a beautiful feature, but the shade and shelter a tree grove provides can create a comfortable room complete with walls and a ceiling. Comfortable spaces are often perceived as a bit wider than they are tall, or 1 to 1.618 height to width per the golden ratio. A pergola 16 feet wide by 10 feet tall is a good example. The same comfortable feeling can be achieved with shrubs and trees.

Essential Landscape Design Guide for Spaces

Conversely, putting too many plants next to a front door entry can make it feel tight and uninviting. Open it up and make the path wide, prominent and inviting. Wide open views will feel more comfortable when framed with trees or from a comfortable viewing patio. The psychology of spaces can be overwhelming, but it is obvious when a space feels right.

Work Out Transitions

Landscape is the glue that holds together spaces and structures. Transitions can be the most dynamic aspects of a landscape, or they can be eyesores. Complex hardscape features such as patios, retaining walls, fences, pergolas, outdoor kitchens, water features, and fire features will often intersect and connect with one another.

Essential Landscape Design Guide Transitions

Figure out how connections will work to make a seamless transition point. Formal landscapes will often transition to a natural area. Utilize decorative bunch grasses on the edge of the landscape to blur the line between mulched landscapes and natural areas. When utilizing multiple design styles, create transitional landscapes to blend gradually. For example, a contemporary landscape may transition to a natural area going from straight lines to calculated arcs and then to a curved path.

Essential Landscape Design and Transitions

Iron Out the Details

Details in the landscape should emphasize the overall design style and theme. In most cases, color themes should be complementary, so they don’t clash. Choose colors for concrete, stone, wood, paint, mulch, and plant material that paint a picture that goes together.

Textures should also be considered. Fine texture details such as exposed aggregate concrete, small ledge stone, or small plants can feel lost in a large space. Bold coarse texture details like large boulders or big leaved plants can feel overbearing in small spaces. Perennial plants provide color, texture, and movement.

Plants should fit the design style with color as well as layout. Bold masses of plants work well with contemporary landscapes, while multi-species combinations can work well with natural areas. Finishing details can make the difference between a hodge-podge yard and a cohesive landscape.

There is a lot to think about when trying to maximize a landscape. A professional can help. Landscape designers can take ideas and dreams and turn them into a buildable design. Knowing the process before starting design or construction can be invaluable to being able to communicate goals and expectations to create a successful landscape to enjoy for years to come.

Ready for a landscape design and not sure where to start? Contact our landscape designers at [email protected] or (805) 466-6263.

Five Ways to Light Your Landscape

Five Ways to Light Your Landscape

Guidelines for Illuminating Your Outside Living Spaces

When choosing outdoor landscape lighting for any area, first think about how you will use the area. Do you want to see an ambient space out your window? Does it need to be easily walkable at night? Will you be holding al fresco dinner parties? Would you like an open-air dance floor? Do you want a cozy nook for a nightcap around a fire pit?

If you have one activity in mind, you can keep the lighting simple with a single switch for all lights. If you want to use your space for several activities, you may want options. To diversify your landscape lighting, you can arrange it into different switched zones, creating flexibility in how the space feels at night. Here are five different ways to customize the lighting for your outdoor spaces.

Pergola Lights

1. Provide Functional Light

In ancient times, sailors preferred dim light to eat their hardtack in ship galleys to avoid seeing their not-so-enticing food. Nowadays, you will likely want to show off your entire spread, and see your guests. Downlights, or directional spotlights with bright light, can be mounted on pergolas, walls, or trees to provide light directly to a table. For these zones, it is essential to provide more lumens with higher wattage lamps.

Suppose you want to provide illumination for safe walking. In that case, you can use path lights elevated on posts to cast broad light over walking surfaces. It is imperative to provide clear, direct lighting to stairs and precarious edges of patios. If you are building a new space, you can put recessed lights in the flatwork and riser lights in steps to provide illumination right where you need it.

2. Define the Edges

Lighting the edges of your patio or the adjacent landscape can be for function or ambiance. Sometimes it is nice to look out the window and see orderly lighting on the edge of a patio. It will make you feel comfortable by extending your visible perimeter when you hear a spooky sound outside. In addition, you can light objects in the landscape adjacent to the patio, such as boulders, art, tree trunks, or plants. This periphery lighting makes the space feel safe and defined even if you aren’t lighting the patio itself.

Here are three suggestions for using lights to define edges:

  • Place path lights or recessed lights on the edge of the paving.
  • Use broad-beamed wash lights to illuminate boulders and low plants for low detail textures and colors.
  • Position narrow directional beam-up or spotlights to focus on art pieces, tree trunks, or specimen plants.

3. Create an Outdoor Room

It is remarkable how a patio can feel open and exposed in the day but warm and cozy at night with proper lighting. Walls and ceilings at proportionate heights create comfortable spaces. Ancient Greek architecture used the golden ratio of 1:1.61; create a restful and secure-feeling patio space with a width 1.61 times wider than the perceived ceiling height. As a rule of thumb, you can strategically light things to make the area feel a bit wider than it is tall. Use whatever is around – trees, bushes, walls, pergolas, fences – to emphasize this feel. Lighting a few select features will cause your mind to connect the dots and feel the geometry of a room you have created.

Trees are great for this use because you can uplight the trunk to create a wall and feather the light into the canopy to define the ceiling at the right height. Built structures like pergolas are beneficial because they can be customized and provide opportunities to uplight, downlight, or create wall or ceiling light patterns.

4. Create Ambiance

People often say they want low lighting to create an ambiance in their yard. This is not the light for eating your dinner, but it can be stunning in its simplicity. As mentioned before, lighting edges can really create a cozy feel. You can also extend your visible perimeter to more distant features such as trees, plants, art, or even barriers. Use wide angle wash lights to make secluded shrubs and boulders glow. Use directional narrow angle lights to illuminate focal points. For example, a red barked multi trunk tree can be up lit to create a mesmerizing floating warm glow in the distance. You can arrange a line of lights on an isolated or remote hedge or wall to define a wider perimeter of visual space to feel more secure in a brighter lit patio. Moonlights, or hanging pendant lights, can be set high in trees and create a whimsical moonlit forest feel. These are even more stunning if set over a branch to create a shadow pattern on the ground.

Keep in mind that the color of things you light will permeate into the ambient light in a space. You can focus on greens and cool tones to create a calm space. You can focus on reds and warm colors to create a warmer, cozier light. You can also choose warmer or cooler tone lamps/bulbs by using the kelvin rating (A low rating of 2700k is yellow and warm, and a high rating of 4100k is bright white).

And don’t forget the ever-popular bistro lights. These typically low wattage bulbs dangle from strings stretched overhead to provide full area illumination. Bistro lights can be great for a party area because they light the entire zone with semi-dim light. Like a dim bar experience, you may not be able to see your food perfectly, but it is a very nice ambiance for a dance floor or casual hangout. When arranging string lights, consider the density of bulbs for even lighting. Also keep in mind that you would like these strings to look okay during the day, so create intentional patterns and avoid tangled webs. Use built structures, poles, or trees to secure them at a comfortable height.

5. Display Artistic Patterns

These days there are fixtures suitable for creating patterns on the ground, walls, and ceilings. When creating defined designs for a contemporary look, it is essential to map them out with a measuring tape. You are usually working with fans of light over a flat surface. In some cases, you are illuminating things that were already installed in an orderly fashion, like equally spaced trees or wooden posts.

You can use recessed lights in patio flatwork to shoot low fans of light from a central can fixture. Often these have 2, 3, or 4 radiating fans of light that can create a geometric pattern on a ground plane. You can use sconce lights on walls or wall columns to create equally spaced downward or upward fans of light. Some sconces have both up and down light to create an hourglass light pattern. When lighting existing trees or built structures that are already equally spaced, use directional spotlights to create a uniform rhythm. For example, fences usually have equal spaced posts and panels which can be lit by narrow or wide angle up lights, respectively.

Mix it Up

As you can see, these five techniques are not mutually exclusive. Choose what works best for you and your space, and light it up! By using one, two, or several, you can make your outdoor areas come alive at night.

Ready for a landscape lighting design and want to talk to a professional? Contact our landscape designers at [email protected] or (805) 466-6263.