Stuff Gadget Guide - UK - Issue 5 (2022-01)

● INDOOR GARDEN TIPS

GARDEN GADGETS

69

Create a botanical garden of compact crops, hydroponic harvesters and

smart soil without leaving your house/flat/apocalypse-proof isolation capsule

e know full well that

not everyone has

a garden. In the UK,

83 % of people live in urban

environments (globally it’s

55 %) and London is largely

considered the first European

megacity. According to the

Royal College of Psychiatrists,

the risk of depression is

20 % higher in urbanites...

but incidence of depression

is clinically proven to be lower

when people have access

to greenery.

Clearly you’re not going

to fit Sherwood Forest in your

one-bed flat, but smart garden

maker Click & Grow says even

indoor plants can improve

health, reduce stress, boost

air quality and generally make

us all a bit more chipper.

Hit me baby, one more thyme

The Smart Garden 27 is the

largest setup of Click & Grow’s

three-model range and can be

used for growing fresh herbs,

fruit, vegetables or any other

plants without trudging to an

allotment. It’s a guaranteed

harvest too, because it takes

all-year-round care of the

light, water and nutrients

so your crops won’t come

a cropper. Click & Grow also

claims its gardens use 95%

less water than traditional

agriculture and offer faster

growing cycles – without the

need for GMOs, pesticides or

herbicides – so perhaps this

really is the future of farming.

Against all pods

The Smart Garden 27 works

like a capsule coffee machine.

Pop in a biodegradable pod of

what you want to grow, and

the LED grow-lights and self-

watering reservoir do the rest.

Inspired by NASA technology

for growing plants in space,

the garden also uses Smart

Soil that releases nutrients

in sync with each plant’s life

cycle... unless you’re cultivating

another Audrey II from Little

Shop of Horrors.

VERITABLE

CONNECT

Sporting an LED

colour spectrum

adapted specifically

for edible plants,

this indoor garden

doesn’t just aid

quick growth – it’s

claimed to develop

flavours too. The

tank holds three

weeks’ worth

of water.

£259 / veritable-

garden.co.uk

AVA BYTE

The Alexa-enabled

Byte can grow five

full-sized plants

with an automated

lighting/watering

schedule, and even

adds an HD camera

for monitoring and

creating timelapse

videos in case

people really do

want to know how

your garden grows.

$399 /

avagrows.com

GARDYN

A vertical planter

that doesn’t require

soil or sunlight,

the Gardyn uses

‘yCubes‘ containing

all the ingredients

for growing healthy

veg. AI detects if

your yield needs

more water or light,

and we think walls

of lettuce look

pretty stylish too.

from $899 /

mygardyn.com

ROTOFARM

Inspired by NASA,

the Rotofarm

rotates 360° every

46 minutes. Why?

Because gravity

can apparently

restrict growth. The

hydroponic system

uses biodegradable

seed pods for

everything from

wheatgrass (ooh,

fancy) to kale (ooh,

even fancier).

£370 / bace.co

LEGROW

INDOOR

PLANTER

This Lego-like

stack of cubes

can be expanded

to build a network

of shrubbery using

LED grow lamps

and humidifiers.

The pots even

include USB ports

for charging your

phone if you get

lost in the tropics.

from £39 / legrow.co

AEROGARDEN

HARVEST

ELITE SLIM

Designed for tight

spaces, the Elite

Slim hydroponic

harvester is just

11cm thick. Despite

its diminutive size

it’ll grow six pod

plants five times

faster than soil, and

it comes in a sexy

brushed steel finish.

£150 /

aerogarden.com

DRY A LITTLE

TENDERNESS

Don’t drown

your plants by

overwatering them,

you fiend. It’s the

biggest killer of

houseplants and

a kneejerk reaction

to the first sign of

a problem. Water

once a week in

summer and every

fortnight in winter.

GROW OVER

TO THE DARK SIDE

Most houseplants

are tropical and

used to living

under large

canopies of trees,

so they can cope

with low light. If

you’re planting

a succulent (like

a cactus or zebra

plant), try sticking

it near a window.

LOVE ’EM

AND LEAF ’EM

Try fertilising your

houseplants twice

a year (during

spring and

summer), and give

them a wipe with

a damp cloth – in

the wild, the leaves

would usually be

cleaned naturally

by windy and rainy

conditions.

CLICK & GROW

SMART GARDEN 27

INDOOR LEAGUE

WE’RE ALSO WILD ABOUT...

€600 / clickandgrow.com

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