Low-voltage outdoor lights provide a pleasant alternative to this glaring example. They can be strategically positioned to highlight the plants and features you want to highlight. They can be used for safety-to illuminate paths, steps and dark zones where boogey men hide. When artfully placed, they can be as beautiful and natural looking as the landscape itself. And since they're low voltage (you can literally add wires and lights to the system while it's operating), they're safe to use and install.

• Avoid over lighting. Outdoor lights look best as accents, broadcasting pools of light. Flooding sitting or planting areas with "stadium lighting" can make them look washed out.
  When lighting a path, decide whether you want to light only the path or both the path and the features around it. As a rule, the broader the field you want to light, the higher the light pole you'll need. Path lights with a 20-watt halogen bulb at a 24-in. height should be spaced every 10 ft.
• Consider seasonal factors. Install lights where they won't be easily damaged by plows or shovels. And bear in mind that some plants, like hydrangea bushes, sumac and dogwoods with colorful stems, look cool lit up, even when they're leafless.

  LAY OUT your light fixtures and wire. Use 10-gauge wire for the main lines from the transformer to where the lights begin, then switch to 12-gauge wire between the lights. To bury the wires where they cross the lawn, use a flat-nosed shovel to cut a slot and fold back the sod. Bury these wires at least 6 in. deep so they won't be damaged if the lawn is aerated. In protected planting beds, the low-voltage wire can simply be covered by mulch or soil.
  INSTALL THE TRANSFORMER in a central location near an outdoor GFCI outlet. Mounting it on a post allows you to easily change the photocell's orientation. Connect the 10-gauge main wires to the transformer by stripping off 3/4 in. of insulation, twisting the small strands together, then attaching them to the terminals. The 600-watt transformer shown (about $300) has a built-in timer and photocell, two circuits, and a switch and terminals for setting voltage output to 12, 13 or 14 volts. Since the transformer will always be plugged in, you must replace the standard outlet cover shown with an in-use weatherproof cover, available at home centers and hardware stores. CONSTRUCT ROCK-STEADY BASES for top-heavy path and cone lights from plastic pipe. (The short ground stakes that come with most path lights don't have enough "burying depth" to hold them vertical over time.) This base gives the light an indestructible, sturdy footing; provides a housing for your wire connections; and allows you to make pole extensions of any length, from 1/2-in. copper pipe. Don't glue the plastic pipe parts together or you won't be able to make the connections TEST each light fixture for its voltage level with a digital voltage meter (about $25 at Radio Shack). Each halogen light should be receiving 10.5 to 12 volts for a consistent look and to avoid premature burnout. Extremely low readings indicate a bad connection somewhere in the system or too many lights on a circuit. Minor voltage adjustments can be made using the voltage controls on the transformer .
   

  • If your lights come with press-on fittings-the type that bite through the insulation and into the wire to make their connection-cut them off and use the wire connectors shown in Photo 4. Your connections will be more solid and longer lasting.
     
    • The farther a light is from the transformer (and the more lights installed between it and the transformer), the less light it will put out. Avoid this "voltage drop" by creating a tee  and running two short lines rather than one long one. A good rule of thumb is to put no more than 100 watts of lighting on one line. If you want to put ten 20-watt lights on a circuit, make a tee connection with five lights on one line and five on the other. You can also minimize voltage drop by using a thicker gauge wire.

• Burying the wires should be your last step. Lay everything out, hook up your lights, test your voltage, and look at your results at night before burying the lines.
• Purchase a transformer with a built-in photocell and timer. Orient the photocell with some western (sunset) orientation so it doesn't turn lights on too early.