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How Outdoor Lighting Can Keep You Safe

Outdoor lights are not only attractive, they are also a good safety measure for your home. Motion detection lights alert you to the presence of guests and strangers on your property, outdoor lights offer many safety benefits. Some of the benefits of outdoor lighting is the ability to ward-off intruders, and to prevent falls and people from being hurt.

Automated outdoor lights can also be called dusk-to-dawn lights. Homeowners make it appear as if someone is home, even if they are not. This will make robbers think again about picking off your home and stealing your things. Automated lights can also enhance an existing security system.

Landscape lights not only look good, but are a great way to prevent falls and injuries. Paths and driveways lined with outdoor lights can possibly save someone from tripping over things in the dark. When bad weather occurs, the chances of slipping and falling increase, so having good outdoor lighting is a another benefit.

If you have a large outdoor area that is dark, then you need area outdoor lighting installed. Can you imagine being able to walk your pet out of doors in the dark and still being able to see every step you make? You run the risk of spraining your ankle or falling, but having area lighting will reduce the risks. So think of effective lighting ideas as early as possible.

Outdoor lights are a good way to make you feel safe as you get home at night. You will find yourself worrying less about being hijacked by a stranger if you surround your home in light so you can see your yard and house.

January 11 2009 | Landscaping | No Comments »

The Basics of Landscape Design Planning

When you purchase a new house or decide to improve your old one, you should focus some of your attention on gardening, which can make your entire property usable and enjoyable. Adding soil, grading, fencing, or terracing can make even hilly land attractive and useful. New hardier bulbs and seeds and hybrids in every color, will make gardens even more beautiful. At the modern home improvement store, you can find new gardening tools which can speed the tedious process.

Large picture windows make a garden view even more important. Beautiful gardens, green grass, and flowers can add a lot to your home. The time you spend on your lawn and garden is well worth it. Many of the principles you can use to design the interior of your home, including proportion, texture, color, line, harmony, and function, can also be used to design the landscaping outside your home.

Those with yards both big and small can benefit from carefully planning the landscape. Garden books can be useful for designing your yard, because they include many example plans. However, you should modify these plans to fit how you plan to use the space. Obviously, issues of cost and space can also impact this plan. Drawing out a scale plan can help you decide exactly what you need to buy and do in order to create the perfect yard.

You probably won’t be able to do things all at once, but you should start with a plan and add things gradually. You can plan it so it never looks unfinished, but has room for later additions. Because most people cannot do everything in their plan at once, leaving room to add things later is very important.

When planning your yard, it is often useful to imagine it as three spaces. First is the public area, which can be seen from the street. Next is the service area, with the garage, driveway, and parking spaces, as well as storage space. Last is the private area, most often located behind the house. This backyard space can be utilized for many uses including games, relaxation, dining, and a garden.

Each space provides different opportunities for landscape design, and should be planned according to its use. For example, the public area should be planned to take the minimum of care. Select plants that will be attractive, but which do not require a lot of attention, so that you can focus on the private space. Design the service spaces, such as your pool and your patio ideas, to be reasonably attractive but designed around their specified purpose. The backyard design will vary based on your family’s needs, but it is usually the space which requires the most effort to keep up.

Clearly, landscaping can be never ending, but it is both gratifying and beautifying. Caring for flowers, trees, and shrubs can be very rewarding, and adds interest and a relaxing space to your home. Planning your space carefully can help you enjoy it to its fullest extent.

December 04 2008 | Gardening | No Comments »