Focal Points

Not only can designer garden lights provide a focal point in a garden at night but they can also create interesting shadows to enhance the design. For this type of lighting you should look at spotlights or other types of lights that can illuminate a small area and can be easily directed. Lighting a focal point in the garden usually works best when you keep the lighting to a relatively small area in order to draw attention to that location.

Garden Path Lights

Not only can garden path lights make it possible to see where you’re going at night but they can also increase the appeal of a garden design. Outdoor pathway lights work especially well if you have a curved path but they also look good with straight ones. You should make sure the lights are bright enough to provide enough light for walking along the path while at the same time not so bright that they overwhelm the rest of the garden.

Patio Lighting

If you want to entertain guests at night then using backyard patio lighting is a fantastic way of doing so. The style of lighting you buy should depend on the overall style of the garden as well as the size of the patio. For example, if you have a small patio then a small umbrella light may do the job while a standalone light may be required for a larger area.

One of the concerns people have when using garden solar lights is the extra electricity cost and the fact that they use energy which isn’t good for the environment. If you use low voltage garden lights you can cut down energy costs. LED garden lights also tend to be much more energy efficient than other types. If your garden gets a lot of sunlight then you could even go for solar garden lights for outdoor illumination which have almost no running costs once they’re installed.

http://www.bestgardenlights.com

The Tricod GL97 Solar Lights are so good they are currently sold out at OverStock.com. Reviewers loved these and gave them a 4.2 out of 5. Easy to install and they retain solar power very well. One reviewer said they would come on at sunset (7 pm) and stay lighted until 6:30 am. With no wiring and a sleek, unassuming design these look like a winner for only $24.99.

Another set of highly rated garden lights can be found at EarthTechProducts.com. Named simply “Bright Solar Lights”, these are stainless steel and were said to be very heavy duty by one happy customer. Features include the Crystalline Solar Cel power, the jumbo size, and the fact it lights up to 20 feet. These are usually priced at $65 but the garden lights are on sale for $54.89. They last up to 12 hours when fully charged and come in a set of 2. The lamps come installed with extremely bright Natural White LEDs.

Yet another winner from EarthTechProducts was the Cypress Metal Solar Garden Light. These have the standard features you come to expect from quality solar powered outdoor lighting, but are super stylish in addition to their functionality. They come preassembled and can be installed in seconds. These are $39.99. The only negative is I think only one comes per package.

The Sohodecor Steel Solar Landscape Lights at Amazon were rated a very solid 4.5 of 5.  These come in a package of 12 and the LED lighting was said to be pretty good.  If you’re looking for the brightest possible lights, you may want another set, but overall these got the job done according to 6 buyers.  They were out of stock so no price on these.

The Westinghouse Inwood II Solar Lights Set with copper finish were another mostly highly rated product. However, there were a few that gave it ratings of 3 or 2 because the lights didn’t hold a charge well.

The Sohodecor Decorative Garden Tulip Solar Lights 8 LED are $26.99 and were rated 5 stars by Amazon users. Buy these if your goal is decoration and your ok with a non-traditional object brightening up the backyard. I personally would be into more traditional outdoor lighting rather than flowers.

The Solar Fairy Lights – 96 LED Curtain were given 9/10 ratings and cost 40 pounds at BlinkingSun.co.uk. These aren’t actually for the garden. They are meant to be wrapped around a tree trunk, garage or other verticle surface area.