Technology.am (Mar 27, 2010) — Gardening is not just for those with the enviable green fingers, the modern garden gadgets proclaim. There are even devices to learn gardening until your fingers turn the darkest green. Let’s take a look at some of the latest garden gadgets that aid in easy, scientific and enjoyable gardening.
A low-cost, patented system, specifically engineered to plant trees in under-irrigated sites. It reduces hand watering labour by more than two thirds and holds 15 gallons.It also works with multi-stems and conifers and is adaptable to remote installation. The typical configuration drips out the water in 2 to 3 weeks and allows air circulaion from stem to soil. It is re-usable and repairable too.
Do you collect leaves and plant debris for composting? Then perhaps, this one is for you. With this, you don’t have to depend upon anybody for holding the garbage bag open for you. The container is made from tough synthetic PVC fabric and a steel coil holds the bag upright. The unique pop-up design features a coiled internal skeleton that holds itself open to create a sturdy 43-gallon container capable of holding armloads of lawn clippings and weeds. When collapsed, the flexible Pop-UP-Bag is just 3″ tall and 22″ D in diameter, (26″ tall when open)and hangs neatly on a hook rather than taking up valuable floor space. And what more, it’s much lighter than plastic garbage cans!
Mowing the grass regularly is essential to keep our lawns healthy. We use the lawns for various purposes that result in the lawns getting compacted and less healthy with time. Hence,aerating the soil is really important as it creates passages that allow air, water and nutrients to reach the root system. The long spikes of the aerating sandals penetrate deep into the ground, opening up spaces in the compacted soil. So, you don’t have to carry a heavy tool to aerate your yard. Just walk and let your soil breathe!
A technology developed by NASA scientists, funded by both NASA and the US department of Agriculture. Most of the time, it gets too late by the time you spot stressed turf or greenery. These sunglasses help you find these unhealthy conditions of your plants much before the normal human sight can trace them. The lenses block out green colour reflected from Chlorophyll in healthy turf, causing it to appear black or gray. This enables problem plants to be quickly identified. Now, these lenses are quite trendy too!
The multipurpose tester helps you to monitor the conditions of the soil pH, soil moisture, light intensity and total combined nitrogen and phosphorous and potash levels (NPK). And monitoring the soil is essential as all plants have their preferred growing conditions. The tester is easy to use as you just have to slide the selector switch to the test being performed. The tester will aid you in deciding which plants will work best in each particular area of your garden.
Here is a simple low-cost solution to keep your plants watered when you are away for extended work days at office. The time-release houseplant watering gadget slowly drips water into your plant for about 2 to 4 weeks or even longer. The bottle comes to you with three separate pieces – a green plastic bottle for holding water, a cap spike for supporting the bottle and to deliver water directly to the plant roots and a small replaceable disc, called a Flo-disk to filter impurities from the water while releasing it into the pot. If you are one of those with too great a desire to preserve a garden and with too little time even for watering the plants, then this one is just for you.
This one saves you from the tedium of standing for a long time while picking vegetables or cleaning up your graden. The stool features a seat made of sturdy co-polymer with molded-in holes for easy adjustment or replacement of harness straps. Soft nylon harness with snap-on lock keeps the stool in place. The pedestal leg is adjustable in height from 13 to 18 inches and has a coil spring at the bottom, along with a firm anti-slip base. The stool weighs 4 lbs, and is designed to hold up to 250 lbs.
Worried about your cats spoiling your neatly kept garden? Well, you don’t have to worry anymore as you can keep your cats at bay from the garden with a simple technique and that too, without using chemicals or fences. The cat deterrent emits a suden burst of ultrasonic sound that humans cannot hear as soon as your cat reaches the garden limits. The sound startles the cats and keeps them away. It can monitor up to 280 square feet and operates for up to six months on a single 9-volt battery.
You have a hanging bird feeder in your garden but of no use. It doesn’t attract birds as the bird feed is eaten by the squirrels. So what do you do? The Squirrel Deterrent helps you keep your bird feeder an attraction for those beautiful birds. When a squirrel climbs on your feeder, the increased weight starts the SquirrelStop motor, spinning the feeder and causing the squirrel to jump off.
You have always craved for a lawnmower without the extension cable, haven’t you?
Bosch’s cordless rotary mower has a plastic styling and streamlined dragster design. It is easy to carry and manoeuvre across the lawn and has a solidly built 40-litre grass collector. The 36V 20-cell lithium-ion battery takes 60 minutes to fuly charge and works effortlessly. The main body can be raised and lowered using a single lever to cope with long and short grass.
It is only natural that one wonders which plant to plant where, when and how. The Plant sensor would help you in choosing the best plants for any location and povides plant care advice. All you need to do is just to plant the sensor in the soil for 24 hours. And lo, you get recorded the detailed readings of sunlight, temperature, humidity and soil drainage. Then you need to plug it into the USB port of your PC and it analyses the data quickly and matches it to a library of more than 5000 plants. Hence, you could know which plants suit your yard soil.
If you want your plants to grow fast, here is a new technology which will enable to see your wish come true. A result of pioneering NASA technology, this aeroponic device helps your plant grow indoors in all seasons, without soil. In this technology, an internal microjet system constantly sprays roots with super-oxygenated, nutrient rich water. This helps crops grow bigger and stronger on the sponge, which is included.
Here’s a trick to make your garden glow. The 28cm tall designer pot soaks up the sun’s rays in order to charge an internal battery that powers built-in LEDs. At night, the entire pot begins to glow. The duration of glow depends upon the amount of sunlight the solar panel is exposed to during the day. The solar cell is on a separate spike that connects to the pot via a 3-metre cable. There are two pots available – one that glows constant white or another one that offers different colours.
Here’s a sleek looking plant pot by designer Junyi Heo. The pot measures soil conditions, temperature, humidity, and water – and calculates those variables based on the need of the plant contained. It then advises the plant owner what the plant needs via a series of pictograms on an LCD display. It also indicates if you’ve over-watered and will systematically drain itself into a water vessel. The Pet Plant can be connected up via a USB port and the computer software could give you valuable information on how to keep your plans healthy.
Now, this one is only for those with not-that-green fingers. Yes, this is a practice plant that can help you in practising to turn your fingers greener. This is a concept from designer QianJun Gao. It features three “flowers” which display barometric readings and turn different colours depending on status, namely whether you’ve managed to keep it blooming. The surrounding leaves will droop if the “plant” needs attention. There’s also a restart button if you fail in your attempts. Well, after all, practice makes men perfect, right?
It’s the world’s first automatic electric solar powered hybrid robotic lawn mower launched by Husqvarna, the world’s largest lawnmower manufacturer. Working autonomously, the lawnmower will cut up to 2300 square metres of grass and can be programmed to come on at certain times or days of the week. Users can define the cutting area by laying a metal wire around the edge of their garden. The auto mower also has sensors in the device so it can avoid garden furniture. Further, the motor’s three sharp blades cut the grass short enough as to scatter it back on the lawn. The mower will cut for around 40 minutes, and then charge for 40 minutes in its charging station. However, Husqvarna says that using the solar panels on a bright day will mean the device will be able to stay out cutting for up to 50% longer.
Here’s some green lighting for your garden, provided by Firebox. Aided by 6cm propellors, the Mathmos Wind Light uses the breeze to power the built-in red or blue LEDs. No batteries are required for it. You just have to stick the 20cm tall lights into the ground and you can be the proud owner of a colourful wind farm.
You can actually carry this lightweight tiller to your garden with one hand. Though lightweight, it is powerful enough to till thrrough sod and compacted soil. The unique, patented serpentine tines claims to turn soil into a fine texture, ready for planting. It’s easy to start and operate and digs ten inches down.
A way to keep yourself clean and dry even after long hours of cleaning a pond, removing debris. The special waterproof gloves are made especially for water gaden maintenace. It is designed in such a way as to keep you dry from your fingertips to your shoulder. The cotton lining gives the comfort factor for wearing it and the elastic band at the top of the gauntlet keeps the gloves from slipping down the arms. The gloves are resistant to most garden chemicals also.
The special gloves has an adjustable cuff that fastens tight thereby preventing dirt from entering it. The gloves enables you to have padded finger tips and a padded palm that protects hands from blisters. The machine-washable fabric is snag resistant. Above all, it comes equipped with a built-in brow wipe along the inner edge of the hand.
This spring-loaded gadget simultaneously digs the planting hole and removes the dirt in one fell swoop. If you like planting a lot of bulbs, this could be of much use to you. Just stab the tool into the soil and squeeze the three-fingered pulley. There you have the perfect planting hole. However, it is the most suited for light, fluffy soils.
This lightweight garden seat becomes special with its curved base that rocks as you bend, stoop and stretch. Hence, it reduces strain on your lower backside. It also has provisions for height adjustment and all this has made it a necessary accessory for grdening. It’s sure to make your gadening much more fun!
The device is a combination of shovel, scoop, rake and fork. The nylon tines make it strong enough though it’s surprisingly lightweight. It is effective for working organic mulches of all kinds as it allows you to scoop the mulch into beds, spread it around, rake it and even fluff it when necessary. It is also of great use in turning compost and raking and picking up leaves.
The sprayer has a 5-litre tank, on which sits the pump unit and power, attached by four clips. The two halves can be separated by just flipping up the catches and lifting off the top. The pump unit contains four D cell batteries and it can last for around 40 fence panels, as they claim. Install the batteries and be ready once you have primed the pump. The attached 2-metre hose features a hand trigger for controlling the spray. A quick squeeze and it eases the pressure allowing the content of the tank to be sprayed out through the nozzle on the end. Now you can have a good even spray on your fence. Besides using a fence treatment, Ronseal also does a garden cleaner which you can add to a tank of water to spray onto garden paving, decking etc.
The Foldit garden cart hauls wood soil, leaves, camping supplies, garbage cans and building materials. It promises up to 330 pounds of cargo at a time, balanced over the axle, making it easy to maneuver heavy loads. 20″ pneumatic tires add stability and maneuverability over uneven terrain. When the job is over, the cart cleans up quickly with a garden hose and folds in seconds to a compact size that requires less than two square feet of floor space. It is lightweight and built for years of service.
The design features of this trap exploit the mosquitoes’ sensory signals such as light, color, heat movement and odour to attract the insects. It covers up to one acre of area and attracts mosquitoes, Asian Tiger mosquitoes, biting midges, black flies and sand flies. Mosquitoes navigate to the source of the air plume enriched with Octenol, a synthetic component of human perspiration which emanates from the base of the trap.The color, shape and vibration of the trap and the texture of its exhaust skirt excite the mosquitoes and cause them to begin probing. Finally, internal infra red heat sources cause the mosquitoes to enter the trap where they are swept through a high speed fan and into either a wet catch container or a catch bag where they expire.
The system helps to direct rain water away from your home and into your yard.
With the RainDrain, the rainwater gradually drains out of the spout through an extended tube instead of coming out in a rapid flow. When it rains, the force of the water opens the RainDrain as the water flows through the perforated holes. The RainDrain then completely unwinds, up to 46″ inches in length. When the rain stops, the RainDrain rewinds and conveniently self-stores.
If bugs are your problem in the garden, here’s an easy solution. The Handheld Bug Zapper terminates insects and that too, without using toxins. It comes with two AA batteries included. Further, it comes equipped with a child safety switch as well.
What’s a trake? Well, it’s a combination of a Trowel and a Rake. Two sturdy tools in one. Doesn’t that sound good? The measured trowel is pointed for easy digging and the rake is narrow enough to cultivate between crowded plants. It is made of lightweight solid cast aluminum with a comfortable vinyl that allows a good grip of the handle.
The 150 Watt high pressure sodium (HPS) plant grow Sunlight Supply Sun Systems are said to be ideal for compact growing applications. They work well for seed germination, over or under greenhouse benches, single plant applications, over windows and wherever you need extra light for your plants. The Sun System HPS 150 Grow Light Fixture easily covers a 2 foot by 2 foot area for primary applications or a 3 foot by 3 foot area for supplemental lighting. At 150 watts, this unit uses no more energy than a standard 150 watt incandescent reading lamp in your home, yet it emits almost 6 times as much light.
Moreover, it is lightweight also.
The shrub sculptor is small in size and this particularly helps in precise shaping of bushes. Its 4″ stainless steel rotary blade quickly cuts through branches up to 1/4″ thick, mulches the clippings to 1/10th their original size, and sends them to its integrated receptacle. The receptacle holds up to 1 1/2 gallons of clippings and fits inside the included shoulder bag. The blade is powered by a powerful 7 1/4-volt motor and the lithium-ion rechargeable battery provides up to 35 minutes of trimming after a five-hour charge. However, a five-hour charge is required for a mere half-an-hour cutting. With more advantages than a single disadvantage, it is a nice try.
Here’s a solar powered device to keep birds at bay. You can use it anywhere – in your patio, pool area, A/C unit, boat or car cover. It has rotating, telescoping arms extending up 2 1/2 ft. each, and sweeping continuously in a maximum 5-ft. diam. You can attach the included streamers for even greater deterrence. It has a nearly silent operation. It’s weather-proof plastic and can also be mounted.
A raking machine has been introduced by Yanko Designs. The Power Rake is designed by Rury Vizcarra. It not only sucks up leafs like a vacuum cleaner for your front yard, but it also has a conveyor belt system that moves the leaves towards the back and into a bag. It rakes up the leaves by clogging them into the teeth of the collection cylinder in front, then onto the belt which moves the leaves and and over to the hopper in the back, which can include a yard bag already in place for collection.The best part of it all is that it is not powered by gas or electricity. Elbow grease is the trick. However, you can use an optional electric blower to speed up the process.
Who would not love to have a waterfall in their garden? Then, how about a waterfall flowing uphill? The ‘Wrong Garden’ concept designed by James Dyson was inspired by the uphill waterfalls from artist MC Escher. The waterfall works with air pumped from a sealed tank with bubbles rising to make the illusion of uphill flowing water.
A Pond Fountain in the middle of your garden is a brilliant idea and especially so, when it’s solar powered. Cordless solar powered pond fountain harnesses the sun’s natural energy to produce a dramatic fountain in your outdoor pond. It does not require hoses or wires. You just have to stake separate solar panel in the ground to collect sunlight. There is absolutely no need for costly wiring to any remote location. It is environmentally friendly, saves money and reduces energy costs. You can also choose from two fountain heights – 36″ and 14″ versions.