Spring fever has taken the Nashville-area by storm! As homeowners flock to the garden centers and local nurseries selecting specimens to add to their landscapes, we can’t help but wonder how many of these lovely additions will get lost in the dark…
Landscape and garden lighting is something a lot of Nashville-area homeowners don’t think about when they’re planning (or planting) their seasonal landscape. The truth is, professional landscape lighting will not only add dimension and texture to your evening landscape it will also accentuate the beauty of the plants. Our experience in working with Cheekwood Estate & Gardens in Nashville and our many years of helping local landscape and hardscape designers illuminate their displays at the Nashville Lawn & Garden Show has taught us a great deal about enhancing gardens and landscapes through lighting.
— Bob Lyons Sr. and Bob Lyons III pictured with Charlie Nichols of Blossom & Bloom at the most recent Nashville Lawn & Garden Show. We added Nashville garden lighting to enhance the Blossom & Bloom featured garden vignette.
Just as we pointed out in our article Don’t let your beautifully cultivated Nashville garden and landscape vanish in the cover of night, you’ve worked so hard to make your property look its best, so why allow it to disappear under a veil of darkness?
Many plants and flowers popular among Nashville gardeners put on their most brilliant show in the evening. Night-blooming and night-fragrant perennials and annuals are available in local garden centers. Outdoor Lighting Perspectives of Nashville has put together a list of evening showstoppers whose beauty would benefit the most from the addition of landscape and garden lighting.
GARDENIA AUGUSTA
While this perennial shrub’s pretty white flowers exude their sweet aroma during the day, they’re even more fragrant at night. When planted along your walkways and bordering your outdoor living spaces their sweet scent will begin wafting at dusk.
EVENING PRIMROSE
This hardy perennial will add a dose of fragrance and bold color to your Nashville evening landscape.
BRUGMANSIA (ANGEL’S TRUMPET)
Though this small tree is only considered a cold-hardy perennial through zone 8, it can be used to herald in Nashville evenings as an annual or potted plant. Brugmansia’s large gorgeous flowers open in the evenings for a week at a time with the full moon.
MOONFLOWER
This magical annual flowering vine unfurls its beauty in the evening with 4"- 6" wide fragrant white blooms.
Nashville garden and landscape lighting are not only coveted for aesthetic appeal but having a well-lit landscape will also enable you to utilize your property to its full potential. The amazing spaces you can create outside your home for enjoyment and entertaining with proper exterior lighting are almost endless. By filling dark shadows with warm light and spotlighting stepping stones, statues, fountains and pathways, your garden and surrounding areas become your evening outdoor living environment casting an almost mystical spell upon its inhabitants.
The ultimate finishing touch, landscape and garden lighting will add value to your home and property. If you’re ready to learn more about our timeless lighting designs, contact Outdoor Lighting Perspectives of Nashville today. We can make sure your home and its beautiful surroundings never disappear at nightfall! (615) 697-4629 email: olpnashville@outdoorlights.com.
— David G. Todd, Outdoor Lighting Perspectives of Nashville.
You can find many night-blooming and fragrant evening perennials and annuals locally at Bates Nursery and your local Flowermart location.
