Tree Lights For Spring and Summer

It's that time of year. The days are longer, the nights are warmer and we find ourselves coming up with excuses to spend endless hours outside soaking it all up. Recently, we ventured outdoors armed with string lights and lit hanging decor in hopes of adding a few extra hours of enjoyment to our time spent outside. We wrapped trees with string lights and waited. As the sun began to set, an equally inviting glow took over in its place, blanketing the yard in soft, radiating light.

Mission accomplished!

Determine How Many Light Strings Are Needed

Wide Angle LED mini string lights with 6" bulb spacing are popular for wrapping trunks and branches. In our light wrapped tree shown above, 25 sets of 70-count warm white string lights were used. This equated to one set for the main trunk and then 24 sets to dress the major limbs.

String light lengths can vary widely depending on light count and bulb spacing but as a general rule of thumb string lights with 50 to 70 lights per string range from 25-35 ft. depending on their light spacing. Branch thickness and the density of lights you prefer will also play a role in the amount of lights you'll need. With wide angle LED mini lights, a few can go a long way in terms of producing a nice light halo.

In the example above, the tree branches were approximately 20 ft. long so a single string light set with 70 lights worked perfectly per branch. And, because we used LEDs, we can connect up to 43 sets of 70-count string lights together from only one plug outlet. This means we can light an entire tree using a single extension cord, which is a huge time saver.

When wrapping trees with lights like this, the density of the light wrap is personal preference. The more dense you want your lights, the more lights you'll need. The thicker your branches, the more lights you'll need. If your branches have numerous sub branches you wish to light, the more lights you'll need. However, if you just want your tree to have an enchanted glow without it overpowering the tree, you can space your string lights out further and still achieve the look of your tree glowing from the inside out, which was our goal.

Steps for Wrapping a Tree With String Lights

1. Create a ball with the lights to make passing them around the trunk and in between branches easier.

2. Connect the male plug with a power source at the base of the tree.

3. Wrap up the base of the tree and around the branches connecting the female end of the last light string to the male end of each new light string as you go. The internal glow we created within the green canopy of our tree can be acheived by leaving extra space between each wrap along the branches instead of keeping the light strings close together as you might when wrapping a tree for Christmas. This method of leaving space between light wraps provides better coverage from the trunk to each branch while still resulting in the desired lighting effect.

4. Plug your light strings in and enjoy the ambiance!

Lighting trees and bushes so they glow from the inside out is just the first step in our tree makeover for spring. Although you could stop here and still have an enchanting addition to your yard, we wanted to give our tree even more personality with the addition of lit hanging decor. We chose to hang solar lanterns from the branches of our light wrapped tree, which is an easy way to add personality to your backyard. In addition to solar lanterns, there are several lit hanging decor options that look incredible when added to the branches of a tree wrapped with string lights. Create an illusion of bright, floating galaxies with moravian stars and starlight spheres suspended above the ground or hang icicle lights from branches to give the effect of light streamers cascading down. If you love this idea and want to create your own backyard tree lights, follow the steps below to wrap your trees with lights like a pro!

Not ready to wrap your own trees with lights? Pin this page for later and check out some of our other exciting backyard lighting ideas below!