International België (nl) Belgique (fr) Danmark Deutschland Eesti Ελλάδα España McCulloch France Français Italia Latvija Lietuva Magyarország Nederland New Zealand Norge Suomi Sverige United Kingdom United Kingdom Österreich
McCulloch logo

10 Gadgets To Up Your Garden Game

Gardening has come a long way recently, especially when it comes to technology. There is now a wide range of products and gadgets that can transform your outdoor space into a modern haven and make you the envy of your neighbours. It’s time to up your garden game from the Stone Age into the 21st century.

Soil Sensors

Managing your garden can be time consuming, so knowing exactly when to tackle a task is important. This is why soil sensors are on the rise with companies creating devices with ever-improving features. The PlantLink device can measure the moisture in the grass meaning you will know when you need to water the lawn. The data is fed back though a push notification, email or text. There are also irrigation systems that can link to this so you don't need to worry about it.

The only drawback from this is that it can only measure moisture and not sunlight or fertility, which is something that other rivals rel="noopener noreferrer" can provide. The Edyn Garden Sensor uses its solar panel to stay powered while it collects data on moisture, light, humidity and nutrition. It can then relay this information to your smartphone so you are in complete control of your garden.

Control Your Garden Remotely

There are a number of products on the market at the moment that can turn your garden into a bona fide smart garden. Through the use of garden hubs you can control the irrigation system based on the weather forecast and only water when necessary. Some smart hubs claim to save you water in the long run because of this.

Smart hubs like GreenIQ rel="noopener noreferrer" and Blossom can connect with other smart devices such as the Amazon Echo, Google Home, Nest, IFTTT or an Apple Watch via Wi-Fi and collects real-time information from the nearest weather station which can then provide just the right amount of water at the right time. Smart hubs allow you to manage your garden from anywhere in the world via a smartphone – one simple click and your in control. Some can also link to some soil sensors such as the above. With the GreenIQ, you can even control your garden lighting based on sunrises and sunsets. This level of technology requires a lot of setup with irrigation systems however it can save you time and money in the long term.

Upgrade Your Planters

Nowadays even watering the plants is something that has been upgraded. From automatic irrigation systems to the plant pots themselves. Technology is being infused with all aspects of gardening to make life easier for you. Smart planters such as the Parrot Pot monitor the soil and automatically water the plants. It can do this for up to a month before needing replenishing. The four sensors monitor light, temperature, moisture and fertiliser levels in real-time.

If you are thinking of something rel="noopener noreferrer" different then the Planty from nThing might be more suited to your needs. This machine can be connected via Wi-Fi to an app that allows the user to monitor the plants and remotely water them when needed. The user would fill up a reservoir and then control everything through the app which is available on both Android and iOS.

Underground Beer Fridge

This may not help with the gardening but it will help when you want to host the ultimate garden party. By digging a narrow hole in the garden you can create an amazing hidden beer storage system. The natural temperature of the ground keeps your beers frosty even in summer time. Not only is this an awesome thing to whip out in a party but is much better for the environment too.

There are a few different versions of systems with different depths, storage capabilities as well as additional technologies. They all come with waterproof casings to keep the pests out and to keep the beers secure. The German brand, HopfenHöhle has a semi-automatic lifting system, which rises out of the ground with your beer with minimal effort.

Create A Futuristic Area

This technically is not a gadget but you have to admit, it’s very cool and you want one! The Garden Igloo can become a perfect little spot for you to sit in, come rain or shine, all year round. With its 360-degree view it can be the ideal place to unwind in the evening. Its max height is 2.2m, which is more than enough for the average sized adult.

These can be a costly outgoing, but can you think of a better place to be in a summer evening, beer in hand, with nothing but the stars above you?

Animal Repellents

There are an increasing number of tech options to help keep animals away from your plants and greenery that avoid using harmful chemicals and traps. The last thing you would want is to spend ages on your vegetable patch only for hungry wildlife to ruin all of your good work.

The ScareCrow Motion Activated Animal Deterrent by Home Defence is a handy piece of kit, which provides a humane way of keeping wildlife away from your plants. When an animal finds itself in the area the ScareCrow will instantly release a short but sharp burst of water - a humane yet effective solution. The ScareCrow has a motion sensor that can detect an animal inside a 1000 square foot area with one sprinkler. You can also link up multiple sprinklers to guard larger spaces. The only power it requires is a 9v battery!

You can also get animal repellents that use ultrasonic sounds. This is harmless to humans and birds but animals such as cats, dogs and foxes will all be kept well away. Easy Gardener has an Electronic Sensor Owl that can sit near your plants. It can turn its head and hoot recreating the sounds of the Great Horned Owl to scare away prospective predators. Isn’t that a hoot!

Robotic Lawn Mowers

We are a bit biased here, but these are still a fantastic piece of kit that can save you a huge amount of time. The robot lawn mower eliminates the laboring task of cutting the lawn allowing you to get on with the more important things in life. It is easy to install, simply place the changing station in a suitable spot, set the boundary wire around the lawn and let it do its job.

The robotic mower can work independently day or night, come rain or shine. It can also handle slopes in your garden up to 25%. No need to worry about someone running off with it either as it has a plethora of security features such as a lift sensor in addition to an alarm, which can only be defused by inputting a code unique to your charging station.

Bird Spy Cameras

Camera technology has come forward leaps and bounds in recent years and now this technology is bleeding into the garden. Have you ever wanted to see what happens in the garden bird boxes? Now you can find out with cameras that can record both video and audio with infrared technology without the birds being any the wiser that you are playing Big Brother. Cameras can now be purchased fully wireless and can feed straight into a TV depending on the individual product thanks to the wireless receivers.

Weed Killing Systems

Removing weeds is possibly one of the worst jobs in the garden so having something that can take care of this quickly and easily is always helpful. Luckily the tech world has come up with a few things to make this much easier.

Hot air weed burners are becoming more popular nowadays. Not only do they make you look as though you are in Ghostbusters but they are also very effective at removing weeds. Products like the Batavia Maxxheat and the GartenMeister Hot Air Weed Burner are environmentally friendly and can easily remove weeds without pesticides, whilst also avoiding using flames or gas. By briefly heating the weeds at temperatures of up to 600°C the weeds completely dry out and die within a few days.

It isn’t just weeds that these can be used for; you can even start barbecues with them!

Apps

Unsurprisingly there are a lot of apps available to help budding gardeners no matter the level of work you want to put into it. Whether you are an avid green-fingered garden legend or just someone who wants a nice looking garden with minimal fuss, there is an app for you that can cover a wide range of subjects.

There are apps such as SmartPlant that can help identify a plant from a photo. It can also detect whether there are any particular diseases that are afflicting your plants. The expert panel can then recommend a solution that would solve the problem.

Apps such as My Garden Containers can help take all of the stress out of designing your garden by deciding which plants complement each other. The app database helps you choose your plant recipes based on colour, light requirements, water requirements, design role, size as well as any other additional information. This way you can have a harmonious garden where one plant doesn’t thrive at the expense of another nearby.

ROB S600
ROB S 400/500/600
Working area capacity 600 m² ±20%
Cutting Height, min-max 20-50 mm
Maximum slope performance inside installation 35 %
ROB S400
ROB S 400/500/600
Working area capacity 400 m² ±20%
Cutting Height, min-max 20-50 mm
Maximum slope performance inside installation 35 %
R1000
RM 600, RM 1000 ROB600, ROB1000
Working area capacity 1000 m² ±20%
Cutting Height, min-max 20-50 mm
Maximum slope performance inside installation 25 %
R600
RM 600, RM 1000 ROB600, ROB1000
Working area capacity 600 m² ±20%
Cutting Height, min-max 20-50 mm
Maximum slope performance inside installation 25 %
Copyright - 2017 Husqvarna AB (publ). All rights reserved.