Are you always forgetting to water your houseplants? Have you discovered your plant leaves are turning brown and found yourself frantically searching on Google for a quick-fix solution? Or have you forgotten to order a packet of seeds for the new containers in your garden?
Over the past year the number of Brits investing in new plants, and enjoying the mental and physical benefits of gardening, has risen significantly due to the pandemic. And whether you’re a seasoned gardener or a green-fingered novice, Amazon’s Alexa (the cloud-based voice service) could make your life a lot easier when it comes to gardening.
Used with an Amazon device in the home, Alexa is ideal for playing music, controlling smart home devices, and getting news, weather and traffic updates, amongst many other things.
But now we’re in summer, it’s the ideal time to turn your attention to outdoors and level up your gardening skills, with a little help from Alexa. Here’s how…
• ‘Alexa, remind me to water the plants’
There’s no judgment here, it’s so easy to forget to water your houseplants and it’s even trickier to get into a routine, however, you can set up a watering routine in the Alexa app to make sure you never forget the most important step in keeping a plant alive.
• ‘Alexa, order some sunflower seeds’
It takes just one simple command to get everything you need delivered to your door. Ask Alexa to order all the necessary garden tools, utensils and accessories.
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• ‘Alexa, ask Smart Plant what I need to do with my garden’
With the SmartPlant skill enabled on your Echo device, you can receive advice for your plants delivered to you through Alexa. Insights include descriptions of specific plants and monthly care advice.
• ‘Alexa, play my plant playlist’
Plant playlists? Yes, it’s a ‘thing’. In case you’re dubious, over the last 12 months Spotify reported almost a 1,400 per cent uplift in streams for its ‘Music for Plants’ playlist, so plant music is definitely on the rise. If you’re in need of some mellow vibrations while tending to your floras, simply ask Alexa for access to a collection of playlists perfect for the occasion.
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• ‘Alexa, cut the grass’
We know that mowing the lawn for 30 minutes can burn around 175 calories (we told you gardening was good for you!) but if you’re exhausted from the bi-weekly grass maintenance, set up the Bosch Robotic Lawnmower (Indego S+ 350) to work with your voice. It’ll take all the hard work out of cutting the grass.
Amazon
Bosch Robotic Lawnmower Indego S+ 350 (with App Function, 19 cm Cutting Width, for Lawns of Upto 350 Sq m) – Works with Amazon Alexa
£888.67
• ‘Alexa, will it rain today?’
Whether you’re planning to relax in the garden and have no cover, or you want to make sure your shrubs are getting all the water they need, Alexa can give you a report on rain levels.
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16 great books for gardening and indoor plant inspiration
Garden book
RHS How to Create your Garden: Ideas and Advice for Transforming your Outdoor Space
Adam Frost’s practical, no-nonsense approach will help you plan and build a garden that works for you. The Gardeners’ World presenter takes you step by step through the whole process, from simple garden design ideas to a full garden makeover.
Garden book
Modern Container Gardening: How to Create a Stylish Small-Space Garden Anywhere
Isabelle Palmer shows you how to make the most of every little space with a series of projects for small gardens, singular containers and window boxes, that can be completed in a day or weekend. Perfect for novice gardeners, Modern Container Gardening offers beautiful photography and clear step-by-step instructions.
Garden book
National Trust School of Gardening: Practical Advice from the Experts
£15.25
The National Trust employs over 500 gardeners with an extraordinary wealth of expertise. And now, in this in-depth guide, they pass on their wisdom and provide the answers any new and seasoned gardener is looking for. This book is intended to give you inspiration and confidence to make the most of your garden, without being overwhelmed with unnecessary technical detail.
Garden book
Veg in One Bed: How to Grow an Abundance of Food in One Raised Bed, Month by Month
Veg In One Bed explains how to build your bed and grow from seed, as well advice on planting, feeding, and harvesting. YouTube gardening star Huw Richards shows how to guarantee early success by starting off young plants on a windowsill and suggests what to grow in each part of the bed.
Garden book
The Complete Gardener: A Practical, Imaginative Guide to Every Aspect of Gardening
Monty Don offers straightforward gardening advice in this book, revealing the secrets of growing vegetables, fruits, flowers, and herbs, while respecting the needs of the environment by gardening organically. You can also enjoy a tour of his Herefordshire garden, including his flower garden, herb garden, kitchen garden, and more.
Plants book
RHS Practical House Plant Book
The Practical House Plant Book by the RHS contains a dozen step-by-step projects to help you assemble an eye-catching terrarium, create a floating kokedama ‘string garden’, or propagate succulents. Complete with 175 in-depth plant profiles, this is an essential practical guide for indoor gardeners.
Garden book
Small Garden Style: A Design Guide for Outdoor Rooms and Containers
£12.35
A small garden space – an urban patio, a tiny backyard, or even just a pot by your door – doesn’t have to sacrifice style. In Small Garden Style, garden designer Isa Hendry Eaton and lifestyle writer Jennifer Blaise Kramer show you how to use good design to create a joyful, elegant, and exciting yet compact outdoor living space.
Garden book
Charles Dowding’s No Dig Gardening: From Weeds to Vegetables Easily and Quickly: Course 1
£18.60
Charles Dowding, innovator of no dig, teaches you everything you need to know about this method of organic gardening. With 19 chapters, you’ll learn how to use no dig on different soil types, recognise and massively reduce the different types of weeds, know the difference between soil and types of compost, and grow an abundance of vegetables using the no dig method.
Plants book
In Bloom: Growing, harvesting and arranging flowers all year round
£16.69
Get all the inspiration you need for planting cut flowers, and fill your home with colour and the gorgeous scent of the garden year-round with In Bloom. Clare Nolan reveals her secrets for growing a bountiful harvest as well as styling spectacular homegrown displays in this beautifully designed book.
Garden book
RHS Complete Gardener’s Manual
The RHS’ Complete Gardener’s Manual will help you choose plants that will thrive in your space, design a border for year-round colour, grasp different pruning techniques, discover how to protect your veg patch from pests, and make the best compost.
Garden book
Wildlife Gardening: For Everyone and Everything
£10.19
Do you want to attract more bees, birds, frogs and hedgehogs into your garden? In Wildlife Gardening for Everyone and Everything, Kate Bradbury teams up with the Wildlife Trusts and the RHS to help you discover how you can make your garden, balcony, doorstep or patio a haven for garden wildlife. You’ll find handy charts, practical projects and fact files.
Plants book
My House Plant Changed My Life: Green wellbeing for the great indoors
Gardener and TV presenter David Domoney is a firm believer that indoor plants can make ‘a practical and emotional contribution to our wellbeing’. In this book, David explains the hard science behind the positive effect of the humble houseplant on wellness, and provides expert tips on how to keep your plants thriving, plus shares his top 50 life-enhancing houseplants.
Garden book
RHS Encyclopedia of Garden Design: Planning, Building and Planting Your Perfect Outdoor Space
If you’re looking for new garden ideas, the RHS Encyclopedia of Garden Design will guide you from planning to planting, such as choosing the correct materials for your structures and assessing your drainage, to laying patios, making ponds, and planting perennials.
Garden book
How to Create an Eco Garden: The practical guide to sustainable and greener gardening
£11.29
This planet-friendly book is filled with ideas for creating your own eco garden on any scale, from a small courtyard to a large garden or allotment. Discover organic techniques that improve biodiversity, learn the value of using recycled and reclaimed materials for landscaping, and take on simple projects such as making a pond and a wildlife hotel.
Plants book
RHS Encyclopedia Of Plants and Flowers
Drawing on expert advice from the RHS, this best-selling reference book – organised by colour, size, and type, rather than as an A-Z directory – will help you select the right varieties for your outdoor space.
Garden book
Build a Better Vegetable Garden: 30 DIY Projects to Improve your Harvest
£11.58
Joyce and Ben Russell have devised 30 kitchen garden projects, devised to either extend the season, protect crops from pests or improve yields. These projects transform your vegetable plot into somewhere more productive, more attractive and more secure.
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