While we focus mainly on the inside of smart homes, our IoT Podcast Hotline got a call this week about the outside. Jeff left us a message explaining that his parents want to start a garden and he’s looking for a smart product that tells them when to water their plants. It sounds like Jeff’s parents need a soil moisture monitor or a full-blown irrigation system.
There are several options available to meet this need, but they’re not exactly inexpensive.
An irrigation system will actually water plants for you, which is very convenient. Blossom makes one of these and it starts at $75 for the system. It uses Wi-Fi for connectivity, so you don’t need a hub, and it programmatically waters the soil based on weather data for your area. The downside is that Blossom is really meant to replace an existing irrigation controller. Rachio makes a similar product that costs $149 or $229, depending on which model you get.
It’s actually not too difficult to make your own soil moisture sensor and the parts are less expensive than the above options. So if you’re feeling adventurous, you could follow these instructions using an Arduino Uno board and some wires. This project is really meant for indoor plant soil but does offer an option for outdoor use as well.
To hear Jeff’s question in full, as well as our discussion, tune in to the IoT Podcast below:
This is the final episode of The Internet of Things Podcast, and to send us…
This article was originally published in my weekly IoT newsletter on Friday August 18, 2023.…
This article was originally published in my weekly IoT newsletter on Friday August 18, 2023.…
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