Gadgets help you care for lawn, and nature too

Our habits at the spigot can be just as careless. Collectively, we douse our lawns with more than 7 billion gallons of water in just one day. As much as half of that is wasted due to evaporation, wind, or runoff.

Things have gotten better. Many people have swapped out gas-guzzling machines for electric ones and old-fashioned, motorless mowers are all the rage.

But here’s a way to really keep up with the Joneses: A hybrid, robotic lawnmower and plants that twitter when they’re thirsty.

Say goodbye to toiling behind a hefty gas-guzzling mower. Say hello to your new best friend, the battery- and solar-powered robotic mower. This happy helper zips across the lawn, cutting work time, emissions and, of course, the grass.

Husqvarna’s Automower Solar Hybrid zig zags across the lawn within the boundaries of a wire that the user has staked in the ground. It maneuvers around obstacles with its lip sensor, which makes it reverse course when it nudges the oak tree or side of the house. To protect people and animals from a robot attack, the blade stops the moment it senses a bump or if the mower is lifted. The solar cells extend the battery life anywhere from 10 percent to 30 percent, and when the mower has puttered out, the 22-pound device crawls back to its base to recharge for another cycle.

Other similar products include Kyodo America’s LawnBott and Friendly Robotics’ Robomow. Robotic mowers cost between $1,000 and $3,000.

Emissions from gasoline-powered devices such as trimmers and leaf blowers, which are currently unregulated, are significant, says the US Department of Energy. Electric alternatives exist, but to many, they don’t make the cut because of battery limitations for some and lack of portability for those that are not cordless.

Lehr Inc. offers propane-powered lawn equipment such as the Eco Trimmer and the new Eco Blower, which will be made available just in time for the fall foliage. The company says its Eco Trimmer already meets new EPA regulation standards that will take effect in 2010 and 2011.