I must be getting old, but I have been struck, like never before, by the poor quality of light the last few weeks have brought. Garden Office HQ has been a little dark to work in, in the afternoon without the lights on. But, with the leaves now falling off the trees, Autumn is naturally allowing more light to enter the office, so I can delay switching on the lights until later in the day.
A deciduous tree is a good companion for a garden office
In front of Garden Office HQ, sits a Magnolia tree. It’s pretty big having been planted long before the garden office was even thought about. It has stunning flowers in Spring, dense leaves in Summer, and then loses them in Autumn.
This annual pattern is why we chose to situate Garden Office HQ behind the Magnolia tree. As a deciduous tree like this makes a good companion to a garden office. You see, it has a significant role to play in the natural light levels in the room throughout the year.
Nature’s way of controlling the light in a garden office
By situating a garden office near a deciduous tree, a designer will give thought to how it will shield you from harsh light in the height of summer, but not obstruct the lower and very valuable winter light entering the room.
In the Summer when the sunlight is high and strong, the leaves of our tree, soften the light entering Garden Office HQ. They have such a good effect that we don’t often have to use the blinds we have fitted.
In Autumn and Winter when the sun is low, and not so strong. The tree without its leaves does not obstruct natural light entering the room. Meaning we can hold off switching on the lights until later in the afternoon.
Talk to your designer about how the trees in your garden can help you
When your garden office designer comes to conduct a site visit, ask them how the trees in your garden can help control light in your office. They might suggest orienting the building a certain way based on the location of the tree, or positioning windows differently to maximise the trees natural benefits.
A little extra thought at the design stage is worth it, because as we can testify a deciduous tree makes garden office work just a little more comfortable!