Garden gadgets - automatic watering systems

If you’re planning a summer holiday and beginning to worry about how to keep your plants alive and thriving while you’re away from home, perhaps its time to consider a technological solution.

Automatic watering systems offer the convenience of consistent, hands-off hydration for your plants all summer long, even when you’re away from home.  Linked up to an outdoor tap or a water butt, they generally use timers, pipes and emitters to deliver water to plants in pots or in the ground.  They supply water directly to roots using drip irrigation, or cover larger areas with sprinklers.

Some of the most sophisticated systems can even monitor the soil’s moisture content and will only water when really needed; others can be controlled remotely using a smartphone app.  Some have bonus sustainability credentials, because they work using renewable energy – for example, the Solar Select by manufacturer Hozelock.

This system, which launched last year, uses the sun’s energy to water up to 20 pots at a time.  It can be used indoors or outdoors, and features a large solar panel that powers three rechargeable batteries, eliminating the need for electricity.  The Solar Select is also designed to work with rainwater collectors like water butts using a weighted filter, to help conserve water while benefiting from rainwater harvesting.

Users have control over the duration, frequency, and volume of watering per dripper.  Additional features include a ‘Rain Delay’ function, which pauses watering for up to five days to conserve water, based on weather forecasts, and a ‘Water Now’ function for on-demand watering whenever it’s needed.

For a reasonable outlay (from around £60-£150 for various models) you can invest in a set-it-and-forget it solution which not only delivers efficient, regular watering for your precious plants, it also provides peace of mind while you’re on your travels this summer.