Landscaping

Landscape Lighting (Solar vs Low-voltage)

Solar Lighting System vs Low Voltage Landscape Lighting

While considering adding a solar lighting system to your home, you have likely done research that has led you towards either solar lights or low voltage lighting.

If you have read any of the other posts on my blog site, you likely know how fond I am of  low voltage lights. Be that as it may, it is important that you understand the benefits (and drawbacks) of both. The last thing I want you to do is go out and buy a bunch of solar lights that are not going to work for you, just based on my assertion that they are the best thing since sliced bread.

Low Voltage Lighting

I am going to low voltage lights over solar lights. The good thing about them is that they will work anywhere that you have something to plug them into which I use an extension cord coming around the house. Contrary to a solar lighting system You don’t really need to worry about whether or not you get enough sun to charge the batteries, because they do not have them. I have bought a light sensor which comes on at dusk and goes off at dawn for $18.  The lights cost around $15 to $20 dollars (I got mine for $10 clearance at Walmart).

That being said, they are also more difficult to install. I just dug a small trench where they are going to run the wires and lay the wires in the trench and covered it up with mulch. I do not recommend this. You can with a couple of dollars to buy some small diameter PVC pipes, glue, and fittings. Use the pipe as a wiring conduit. This will protect the wires from being gnawed on by pests and being accidentally cut with a gardening tool.

The benefits of using low voltage lighting in your garden is that they work well for areas that need a lot of light. They are much brighter than solar light especially good for paths.  The floodlights are a great deal brighter than the solar equivalent.  Also you do not need many lights for an area.  I have one light for every 6 feet. They will have a small impact on your energy bill.

Solar Lights

It means that it cost literally nothing to run as long as the solar powered lights get enough sun to keep their built in batteries charged. They will turn off during the day and turn back on at night. They will stay on all night, until they detect morning sunshine. This makes them easy to forget about until you go out in the dark and see them lit (or trip over one while gardening).

The “pitfall” in all this is that if you do not get enough sunlight, they will not work. Most solar garden lights have pretty efficient solar panels, so they can collect a pretty decent charge during overcast days.

Solar lights need to be able to charge to full capacity from time to time or the batteries’ life is reduced. If you plan to place them in the shade (like under a bush or something), make sure you get a fixture that has a remote panel that you can mount in a location where it will get enough sunlight.

Another point to consider is the bulbs themselves. Most solar powered garden lights use LEDs as their source of illumination. While this makes them virtually maintenance free, they are not as bright as other types of garden lighting. LEDs are manufactured to last for a very long time. Usually, the fixture itself will wear out before the bulbs do. They are also much more efficient. Incandescent bulbs convert energy into two things: light and heat. LEDs do a much better job of converting the energy into light, and create very little heat.

That said, they are still not quite as bright as other types of landscape lighting. This is due to the fact that they must focus on staying lit for 10-12 hours on a single charge. That longevity comes at a cost – they cannot be as bright. They also have batteries that need to be replaced.  That are solar batteries and you can not use regular batteries in their place.  Some lights the batteries are easy to replace, others you need to get the smallest phillip screwdriver you can find. Most are rather brittle with the weather and myself breaking them.

Hybrid Systems

Hybrid systems for landscape lighting do exist. A hybrid system uses primarily solar power and supplements it with low voltage electricity when the solar batteries run low. The biggest problems here are price and installation. You still need to run electrical wires with this kind of system. You also need to have a voltage sensor and relay system that detects when the batteries are running low, so it can start using electricity. While this obviously solves some of the problems associated with both solar and low voltage systems, they are not yet popular enough to be priced at a range that is comfortable for most people who are just looking to add some lights to their garden.

Battery Lights

You know, these are lights that you place batteries in whether AAA or AA.  I found these lights last around a week before the batteries state to deplete, so you put more batteries in.  After time, I found this starts to get rather costly.  Some of the lights will start when you place the batteries in and will run 6 or 8 hours then shut off until the cycle starts the next day the same time.

The Verdict

I think that if you live in an area that gets plenty of sunlight throughout the year, and you do not need a TON of light, solar lights are the way to go. If you think about it, there are not many applications where you need a lot of light. I think the two areas where they do not work as well as low voltage lights are floodlights and spotlights for garden walkways.

If you need lights that are just too bright for solar lighting to facilitate, or if you live in an area that does not get much sunlight, low voltage lights might be what you need. Be careful with the usage though. I would recommend having them on a timer to allow them to run only at certain times of the evening. Leaving them on all night long could cost may be a waste of money.

As for variety and style of difference lights, both comes with a large assortment to choose from.

Have I forgotten anything? Well, here you have it then. Solar lighting system vs. low voltage lighting. Which way will you go?

Astronomy

Venus

Venus

Sometimes called our sister planet, despite similar properties, this “sibling” is nothing like Earth.

 

This computer-simulated Venus globe contains data from several spacecraft: Magellan; Venera 13, 14, 15, and 16; and the Pioneer Venus Orbiter. Additional Earth-based data from Arecibo fill in some of the gaps.

NASA/JPL

The planet Venus is just 1.1 times smaller than Earth. It lies slightly closer to the Sun (0.7 versus 1 AU), with a similar volume and density to our home. But our so-called sister planet is a harsh, unforgiving place where even our hardiest spacecraft haven’t survived more than a few hours on the surface before experiencing complete system failure.

Venus is enshrouded by a thick atmosphere of carbon dioxide. Beneath sulfuric acid clouds, the planet experiences the greenhouse effect gone wild, with surface temperatures climbing above 880 degrees Fahrenheit (470 degrees Celsius). Not only is the ground a gloomy, hazy place, it’s also akin to standing a full mile (1.6 kilometers) under the ocean on Earth, thanks to the immense pressure exerted by the planet’s heavier atmosphere.

The planet is also an oddball among its solar system brethren save one: of the planets that circle our Sun, only Venus and Uranus rotate retrograde, or backwards relative to the direction of their orbits around the Sun. Even stranger, the year on Venus is shorter than its day: Venus circles the Sun once every 225 Earth days, but it takes 243 days to rotate once on its axis. Furthermore, based on observations taken by different spacecraft over a decade apart, astronomers have determined that Venus is slowing down — over the course of 16 years, its day lengthened by about 6.5 minutes.

Despite its oddities and its harsh conditions, Venus remains a mysterious place that beckons us to return and explore.

Container gardening

Gardening in Containers

Well the garden centers are getting ready for spring with all of the lights, ornaments, and containers. As I get older many annuals are going into containers making it easier to take care of plus the added bonus that you can move them around when you get tired of looking at them in the same space.

You can grow flowers, herbs, and even vegetables in pots. No space? No problem!
Pots, tubs, and half barrels overflowing with flowers add appeal to any garden, but container gardening can serve a practical purpose too. Container gardening is ideal for those with little or no garden space. In addition to growing flowers, gardeners limited to a small yard or only a patch of sun on their driveway can produce a wide variety of vegetable crops in containers. I grow basil, chives, thyme, rosemary and other herbs also are quite happy growing in pots better than in the garden soil, then I bring them in for the winter and keep them on the porch where it is cool and sunny.

Container gardening also adds versatility to gardens large and small. Plants lend instant color, provide a focal point in the garden, or tie in the architecture of the house to the garden. Place them on the ground or on a pedestal, mount them on a windowsill, or hang them from your porch. I know a pair of matching containers on either side of the front walk serves as a welcoming decoration, while container gardening on a deck or patio can add color and ambiance to such outdoor sitting areas. You can use single large containers for outdoor decoration, but also consider arranging groups of pots, both small and large, on stairways, terraces, or anywhere in the garden. A cinder block can contain a collection of my favorite plants, cactus and succulents. Houseplants summering outdoors in the shade also make a handsome addition to container gardening. Window boxes and hanging baskets hanging from the tree limbs like fuchsia basket hanging from the willow tree offer even more ways to add instant color and appeal.

Containers planted with a single species—rosemary or a bold variegated ornamental grass, for example—can be stunning garden accents. Containers planted with a mix of plants are fun to create and offer almost unlimited possibilities of combinations. The best combinations depend on plants that feature handsome foliage and flowers produced over a long bloom season. One easy guideline for choosing the plants to combine in a container is to include “a thriller, a spiller, and a filler.” That translates to at least one focal-point plant (the thriller), such as coleus or a geranium with multicolored leaves, for example, combined with several plants that spill over the edge of the pots—such as petunias, bacopa , creeping zinnias, or ornamental sweet potatoes. Finally, add the fillers, which are plants with smaller leaves and flowers that add color and fill in the arrangement all season long. Good fillers include salvias, verbenas, ornamental peppers, and wax begonias, as well as foliage plants like parsley or licorice plants. You may also want to include a plant for height, such as an ornamental grass like purple fountain grass. Add a trellis or pillar to a container and you can use a vine to add height to the composition. You’ll need a total of five or six plants for an 18- or 24-inch container, for example.
Start a bunch of radish seeds early in the spring in a container like an old wash basin and bring indoors or in the garage during a cold night. Harvest them in less than a month. Any vegetable can be grown in a container.

Container Sizes
Keep in mind that it’s easier to grow plants in large containers than small ones. That’s because large containers hold more soil, which stays moist longer and is less subject to rapid temperature fluctuations. Small hanging baskets are especially prone to drying out, and during hot, windy summer weather, you may have to water them twice a day to keep plants alive.

It’s also important to decide what plant you want to grow in each container. Several factors help determine how large and deep the container must be. Consider the size and shape of a plant’s root system; whether it is a perennial, annual, or tender shrub; and how rapidly it grows. Rootbound plants, which have filled up every square inch of the soil available, dry out rapidly and won’t grow well. Choose a large pot or tub for a mixed planting, one that will offer enough root space for all the plants you want to grow. Light-colored containers keep the soil cooler than dark containers.

The maximum size (and weight) of a container is limited by how much room you have, what will support it, and whether you plan to move it. If your container garden is located on a balcony or deck, be sure to check how much weight the structure will safely hold.

Container Drainage
Whatever container you choose, drainage holes are essential. Without drainage, soil will become waterlogged and plants may die. The holes need not be large, but there must be enough so that excess water can drain out. If a container has no holes, try drilling some yourself. A container without holes is best used as a cachepot, or cover, to hide a plain pot. Cachepots (with holes and without them) are useful for managing large plants and heavy pots: Grow your plant in an ordinary nursery pot that fits inside a decorative cachepot so you can move them separately.
Self-watering, double-walled containers, hanging baskets, and window boxes are available. These are a useful option for dealing with smaller plants that need frequent watering.