Lake Anna High Tech Garden: First Steps

As a custom builder in Lake Anna, we are no stranger to technology. In fact, you cannot even design a modern home without fully understanding the concept of a “smart home”. The idea that you can infuse technology into just about anything and then link these things together is here to stay. In fact, the vast number of smart home products that have been manufactured have exploded as the benefits, novelty and wow factor continue to enchant millions. But this all loves me with an important question..

What about the yard?

What is in store for my beautiful green landscape that sits between my home and Lake Anna. Are there going to be endless a-ha and ooh moments as new innovations make it look greener, feel cooler, and require less work than ever. Well, here are some of the things coming down the pike..

Sensors

It seems that stage 1 of the backyard technology revolution focuses on sensors. Small, integrated devices that are monitoring my backyard for…anything. On the surface this did not thrill me. I have delusions of laziness where I get to float around on hover lounge furniture and an army of robots serves me cool beverages, watches my children, and maintains my yard.

Knowing what is going on is a key base element of that. If we are ever going to have Jetson like yard technology, there has to be some system of control. I found two devices which are great examples of this first wave of yard tek that we are experiencing.

Green IQ

Green IQ is a device that helps you manage your sprinkler system. It is a device which is helps you to reduce water consumption and thus reduce your water bill. A Green IQ hub will do things like:

• Make sure your automatic sprinklers are not running on a rainy day
• Make sure your sprinklers are running at a length proportional to the heat and moisture in the air
• Calculate what you are saving
• Alert you to problems and recommendations via your app
• Make sure you don’t over water as this can be detrimental as well

Edyn

Edyn is a small device that is placed in the soil. It’s major function is to monitor your plants and repot to you via app. Some of the things Edyn Will so are:

• Monitor the soil health of your yard and garden
• Alert you to changes in temperature, moisture, and heat so you can water them appropriately
• Monitor nutrition in the soil

The Future

As more and more yard devices are given robotic autonomy or are integrated with other devices, the homeowner will be able to do more things in the yard.

---

References

HORTON, R.

The Future of Home Gardening is Connected