From smart home to smart garden

Digitalisation and connectivity are on the rise – and fast. Around 51 million households in Europe were smart in 2021. Estimates suggest that figure is set to almost double to 97.2 million by 2025.¹ Gardens are not being left out and are evolving with homes.

Smart homes are taking control of devices, lights, blinds, thermostats, and security systems. Devices are interconnected, communicating with one another, and being controlled remotely via an app. And this ecosystem is even extending outside as the concept of smart gardening takes hold.

Gardens, patios, and balconies can be transformed into green extensions of the home with the right smart technology. Much like robot vacuum cleaners keep the floors spotless inside, smart robotic mowers stay on top of cutting the grass. Automatic lights create the right ambience inside, whilst out in the garden smart power adapters can be used to light the way. The smart irrigation system relies on soil moisture sensors to give plants and lawns the exact amount of water they need. And fitness watches and smart fridges can cater to the gardener’s every need. At the heart of all this automation is the GARDENA smart app. It can be used to control plant watering and lawn mowing from anywhere but that is not all. When it is connected to smart home platforms like Amazon Alexa and Apple HomeKit, it also allows for clever interaction and collaboration between devices in the house and in the garden.

Ecosystems connected by artificial intelligence

Smart home devices are evolving at an incredible pace, with artificial intelligence making solutions even more customisable and autonomous. And that applies out in the garden as well as in the house.

Thanks to the LONA technology, a new generation of robotic mowers is being welcomed to the world of smart gardens. LONA stands for location and navigation since it combines GPS technology with ground-breaking capabilities from the field of artificial intelligence. The option of mapping out the garden in the smart app is a highlight. The robotic mower records the layout of the entire garden and creates a virtual map it can use when mowing the grass. Gardeners can divide that map into zones on the smart app and then set which ones the robotic mower should skip. Each zone can be assigned a different mowing frequency and it is also possible to track the robotic mower’s every move in real time. It could not be easier to tailor the robotic mower to each garden and gardener’s needs. LONA is a platform technology that is being developed all the time. Updates are available through the smart app, where autonomous lawn care can be controlled.

Effective lawn care every time

Robotic mowers like the SILENO models are perfectly attuned to the specific lawn requirements and grass growth thanks to the smart app and LONA technology. But a flawless lawn needs careful watering as well as cutting. In combination with the smart Water Control for one watering zone, the smart Irrigation Control for multiple underground watering zones, or the smart Automatic Home&Garden Pump, the smart Sensor ensures that lawns and other plants are watered correctly and efficiently.

Having recorded the current soil moisture and temperature levels, it transmits the data to the water control unit. As soon as the sensor confirms that the soil is moist enough, the system moves onto the next scheduled irrigation. The extra-large sensor zone is ideal for use in deep and shallow areas, in natural soil or in plant pots. If the garden has been divided up into zones that need proper and efficient watering, multiple sensors can be used. This guarantees that plants get just the right amount of water they need to thrive – not too much and not too little. This saves water, which is good news for the environment and the bank balance.