Solar lights, aaahh, they make it seem so easy. You can place them anywhere and don't have to worry about connecting them to a power source. Just as long as they get a few hours of sunlight a day. And they come in so many shapes and sizes, amber or white lighting, brass or stainless steel, heck, I've even got fake rocks with solar spotlights emitting from them!

QVC has devoted entire blocks of time to solar-powered garden items called "Powered by the Sun," which, I have to admit, mesmerizes me every time I come across it. Which one of you hasn't seen something solar-powered and said, "I've got to have that"?

As any garden enthusiast eventually comes to realize, everything looks better lit at night. It adds a whole other feature to your backyard oasis. Now you can enjoy the evening view as well. Soft, subtle lighting, or maybe one of those huge lighted palm trees to light up your deck.

When we first built our garden path, we went to the local big box home store and carefully picked out new electric lights to light it up. We also decided it was the perfect time to upgrade the landscape lighting out front of our home. We spent somewhere close to $300, but figured it was a good investment. Then we got down to laying and burying the electrical wires, installing the lights, attaching the power boxes to the house and so on. And when we were done, it really looked great.

Then we discovered solar lighting. New and improved from earlier versions, now solar lights were brighter, with white light instead of that dull amber. So we got 16 stainless steel small post lights from QVC. I don't remember how much they were, but we dutifully waited until they were "Today's Special Value."

When they arrived, I couldn't wait to place them around the back gardens, as we had no electricity back there. Although they didn't provide nearly as much light at the electrical ones, they still looked really cool and provided enough light to make it interesting. The solar spotlights followed, uplighting trees and the arbor in the backyard (along with a special light on our Buddha statue in the "zen" garden).

My absolute favorites are the new LED solar lights that change color. We again patronized QVC for the Victorian Gazing Ball solar LED light, which I still love. We even got a floating LED solar light for the pond from a local pond store. Then came the solar rock lights -- again, bought from the QVC Outlet store in Rehoboth Beach, Del. They were so cool and cheap, I couldn't resist!

And finally, last year, the "piece de resistance," the solar flickering tiki torches!! I got a really great buy on these at Home Depot. I think they were $11 on sale. And when I put them around our pond/patio area and they lit up at night, it felt like Tribal Council on "Survivor"!

Everything was glowing brightly the first summer, the second summer, we lost some of the stainless steel lights (they just didn't work anymore), and by last year most weren't working. This year, nothing. I haven't brought out the tiki torches yet, I'm afraid that although the lights still work, the woven baskets underneath the lights took quite a hit from the weather last year and need a little glue-gun restoration.

Anyway, here's the dirty little secret (in my experience) that no one tells you about "solar lights." They, like everything else that's not connected to an electrical supply, run on batteries!! Are you kidding me? I knew there had to be a catch! And, they're "special solar" batteries. And, THEY'RE NOT CHEAP!! Big surprise, huh?

A quick check of the Internet finds a 4-pk of Malibu Solar replacement batteries averaging $9.95 at such retailers at Amazon, Target and Google. I know I've purchased them locally at both Home Depot and Lowe's (Lowe's doesn't carry Malibu, but their version is $5-$6).

Before you role your eyes and think "big deal," let's do the math. Each solar light I own takes 2-4 batteries, so that's about $5-$10 a piece to replace. At $5 for 16 stainless steel lights (just for example), that's $80 alone!! And that's estimating on the cheaper side. Not to mention that the batteries are lithium and need to be recycled. So, you can't just throw them out. Although I'm told that you can take dead lithium batteries to Radio Shack and they will recycle them for you.

So think twice about how you want to light up your outdoor space. The electric lights may cost more up front, but are probably worth it in the end. As with everything else, do your research before investing your hard-earned cash!

Tomorrow I'll unveil the 2008 Perennial of the Year and guess what, I just happen to have a couple in my garden!