Use These Smart Tools to Automate Plant Care

In his ongoing series “Am I Lazy or Is It ADHD?” I’ve come up with the perfect way to stop killing your houseplants. Now I could pretend this is for when I’m on vacation when it’s physically impossible to care for my plants because I ‘m not there . But let’s be honest: I use this method all year round because I can watch a plant die from lack of water, the way people keep pots from boiling.

In theory, you should be watering your plants “once a week lightly”. This means watering them with a small amount of vegetable food in water. It’s simple enough, but every day people watch their greens go from this mortal ring into the land of dehydration.

I recently showed you how I solved this problem with my plant wall by connecting it to a water source behind a washing machine , a timer, a pump, and a smart plug. This is a slightly more lo-fi solution.

First, automate your watering

I’m not sure what we did before Amazon, but I use it as a search engine to see if someone invented what I need. It turns out that automatic sprinklers are a thriving business, and I’m happy to report that they work quite well.

The device, usually a small box , has an inlet and outlet that you connect a ¼-inch tube to. You connect the output tube to an emitter and then stick it into your houseplants and stick the inlet tube into something with water. You then program it to water for a specific amount of time, however often you want. When the timer goes off, the device draws water from the reservoir you created, draws it through the device, and then dispenses it to your plants for the time you specify (10 to 20 seconds is ideal for most plants). . Since they are relatively inexpensive, you can install them in different rooms or group plants together that need longer or shorter watering periods.

The nice thing is that it’s actually quite flexible and powerful. You can branch the tube to efficiently water as many plants as you want at the same time; or, if you’re a super hacker, just stretch two lines to the plant that needs more water. ( I’m looking at you, you useless giant iron factory that I don’t really care about.) Devices even come with connectors for this.

You can also use any water container you want, no matter how big. If you are away from the city for several months, use a large trash can, for example. If you want to easily see that it is empty, use a clear vase to fill it up. An added bonus is that you can add food directly to the water, so every time she waters your plants, they get some plant food. An extra pro tip is to ask Google Assistant to remind you to top up your water every three days, or as often as you think you’ll need it.

Second, provide warmth

Now that we’ve taken care of water and food, let’s take care of other comforts for your plants: shelter, warmth, and love.

Your houseplants need enough warmth to survive the winter, even if you’re not at home. There are several ways to deal with this, but since you are most likely not heating the entire house, the best way is with a heat mat or directional heating from a space heater . First, you’ll want to know when the plants need it, and the best way is with a smart thermometer. The Meross smart temperature and humidity sensor does just that. This is a small puck that you put next to your plants and it will report temperature and humidity to your hub like Google Home at regular intervals.

If you have a heating mat or heater, you can plug it into a smart socket (I like Meross smart sockets the best). Now you will write an automaton to turn on the heat when the temperature falls below a certain threshold. For example, you go to Google Home, click on an automation, create a new automation, and then use the temperature sensor as a trigger. Make sure you also set the heater to turn off automatically when the temperature rises above the set threshold. Together they will keep your plants warm but not too roasty.

You can do the same with a fan, but houseplants are rarely afraid of the heat.

Lastly, make sure your plants have love and light.

If you have grow lights , you can automate them turning on and off at sunrise and sunset using the time settings as a trigger.

Finally, since there is evidence that plants enjoy being talked to, you can set up your automation to read a record of you praising the plants or system at regular intervals. Heck, they can sing to your plants or read a book to them. Plants love company.

If you’re actually going out of town and aren’t just ignoring your plants from across the room, the best way to see what’s happening from afar is with a video camera, and Blink has some inexpensive ones that allow you to zoom in. on your plant children to keep track of their progress.