In the northern climates where I live winters are cold, dark, and grey.   The holiday entertaining season is celebrated during the darkest and coldest times of the year.  Native plants have lost their leaves, flowers, and fruit.  It is no wonder people as far back as the 15th century decorated to brighten up the season.

One of the best ways to add color and light to a dark day is literally to add outdoor lights-- lots of them.  The glow and enjoyment they provide for everyone who passes by outweighs the trouble of stringing lights each year. Family traditions have developed around outdoor light displays, whether you string lights in your own yard or take time to investigate the displays of others.  There is no doubt they add cheer, and provide the color and light we long for this time of year.   

While most of our holiday traditions are borrowed from other countries, outdoor lighting is uniquely an American invention.  Although the first electrically lighted tree was created only three years after Thomas Edison invented the light bulb, it was too expensive to gain popularity.  Outdoor lights became popular after World War II when a light manufacturer ran a clever marketing campaign and sponsored "decorate your neighborhood with light" contests.  The glow of lights caught on and displays become bigger and more elaborate each year.

Decorating with lights

How and where you add lights to your landscape is a personal decision and will depend on the style of your home and landscaping.  Some people like to add just a sparkle of lights at the front door and others will cover the entire yard.  Every year there is a new product to add to your collection.  Strings of lights gave way to icicle lights and soon we began seeing freestanding forms such as deer and snowmen.  Projection systems are becoming popular and can project an image or the illusion of snow falling on your house. Here are some helpful guidelines to use when lighting the outside of your home:

• A simple outline will accent the architectural features of your home.  (The display will be more dramatic if you have an interesting roofline.)
• Whatever you light, use plenty of lights to make an impact.  If you don't have many lights, concentrate on two or three focal points in your yard.
• Using the same color lights can tie seemingly unrelated or disjointed items together.
• Deciduous trees are now as popular to decorate as evergreens.  Winding numerous lights around the trunk and branches creates a dramatic display. that is worth the extra time--I would eliminate this part of the sentence.)
• Colored floodlights directed up into the trees, or the house, can create a simple but dramatic result.
• Lights can appear to "float" in whatever shape you choose, if light strings are hung with wire.
• Talk and plan with your neighbors; a neighborhood that decorates in a unified way makes an even bigger impact.  
• Rather than spending a lot of time on a ladder, attach strings of lights to small boards (2x2) and set the board inside of your gutters.  This also eliminates any nail holes you may incur while hanging lights.

Before you string lights remember:

• Start with a plan.  Sketch a plan that includes dimensions and outlet locations.  Believe it or not, computer programs to plan outdoor lighting are now available.
• Make sure your lights are intended for outdoor use, have the UL approval and are in good working condition.  Test them before you hang them!
• Many commercial connectors and hooks are manufactured to hang outdoor lights.  Find the one made for the location where you want to hang your lights.
• Match outdoor extension cords to the surroundings.  A brown chord against a tree trunk will be more hidden during the daylight hours.
• Automatic timers save energy and eliminate the hassle of remembering to turn the lights off.
• Commercial enterprises will do the work for hire if you like lights, but don't want to hang them yourself.

By Barb Cross