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Garden lighting design.
A garden lit in layers looks bigger, feels safer and becomes the view from every rear window. Here is how we design it.
← All garden and exterior lighting
How we design it
- See it at dusk. We walk the garden as the light goes and look at it from inside the house, because that is where you will see it most.
- Pick the features. Usually two or three trees, a wall or sculpture, a water feature and the main view. Not everything needs lighting.
- Make it safe to use. Steps, level changes, paths, gates and the route to the bins and garden room.
- Light the house itself. Wall lights, porch and facade lighting tie the garden to the building.
- Plan the cables. Routes, duct runs, junction points and where the transformers or drivers live, drawn on a plan you keep.
- Decide the control. Scenes, timers and sensors, so the garden turns itself on at sunset.
The layers
| Layer | What it does | Typical fittings |
|---|---|---|
| Feature | Gives the garden depth: trees, walls, sculpture, water | Spike uplighters, in-ground uplights, underwater lights |
| Safety | Lets you use the garden after dark | Step lights, path lights, bollards |
| Architecture | Connects the house to the garden | Wall lights, facade washers, porch lights |
| Security | Covers drives, gates and side returns | Sensor floodlights, dusk-to-dawn wall lights |
Our design rules
- Warm white. 2700K to 3000K looks natural on stone, brick and planting. Cold white makes gardens look like car parks.
- See the effect, not the lamp. Shielded fittings, aimed away from windows, seating and the neighbours.
- Less, but placed well. A few well-aimed lights beat a runway of identical ones.
- Ducts before paving. If the landscaping is still being built, ducts cost little now and save digging later.
Once the plan is agreed we install it: see tree uplighting, step lights, path lighting and low voltage or mains.
Photographs: a private residence in Totteridge (a project led by our director Michael Simm and now maintained by SEGplc).
Questions we’re asked
Do you work with garden designers and landscapers?
Yes. We are happy to work from your designer’s plan and to lay ducts while the landscaper has the ground open, so cables go in before the paving and planting.
Can I add garden lighting later?
Yes, but it is cheaper and neater to plan it now. If the garden is finished, we route cables along borders, under lawns and through walls to keep disturbance down.
How do you control garden lighting?
A photocell or an astronomical time clock that follows sunset all year is the simplest. If the house has Rako, Lutron or similar, we put the garden on it so one button sets a dinner or late-night scene.
Written by SEGplc. Last updated 19 October 2026.
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