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ECO FRIENDLY YARD WORK: Going green to get a gorgeous yard

The EPA says each year Americans clock in more than 3 billion hours using yard equipment-with a push power mower emitting as much hourly pollution as 11 cars and a riding mower, 34 cars.

Tending to the lawn and being kind to Mother Nature have been at odds since the first power mower was manufactured in 1919.

From the sprawling fields of rural America to the manicured lawns of suburbia, our ceaseless weekend obsession has wreaked havoc on the environment.

The worst culprits are emissions and water waste.

The Environmental Protection Agency says each year Americans clock in more than 3 billion hours using yard equipment -- with a push power mower emitting as much hourly pollution as 11 cars and a riding mower, 34 cars.

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 through evaporation, wind or runoff.

Things have gotten better. Many people have swapped out gas-guzzling machines for electric ones, and old-fashioned, motorless reel 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 batteryand 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 zigzags 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 the robot 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.

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 anywhere between $1,000 and $3,000.

. . .

Some other possibilities:

    * Eco Trimmer and the new Eco Blower from Lehr Inc. offers propane-powered lawn equipment. The blower 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.

The Department of Energy says that replacing gasoline with propane in small engines like lawn equipment leads to "substantial" reductions in emissions, though the full impact has yet to be quantified in studies.

    * Plant Sense's EasyBloom, an environmental sensor that costs $40 to $60 to analyze the sunlight, temperature, humidity and soil drainage.

Simply stick it in the soil for one day, then plug it into your computer's USB jack and behold the breadth of the gardening guru's wisdom.

Matching the data from the soil to the EasyBloom's library of plants, it suggests the best vegetables, herbs, trees, shrubs and flowers suited for your garden.

    * Cyber-Rain's XCI Controller ($570 to $675) is like your irrigation system's own Facebook page.

The system enables your sprinkler system and laptop to communicate wirelessly, pulling weather updates, tracking water usage and irrigating your yard accordingly.

The company estimates that users slash their watering time by about 38 percent, which can translate into savings of up to 40 percent on water bills.

    * Gardena Aqua Contour system ($395 to $675) is a single sprinkler head that can water an entire lawn up to 4000 square feet. The device is completely solar powered, with a back up lithium battery for cloudy days.

The sprinkler can be programmed to irrigate the unique shape of your lawn, launching water with customized precision in each area of grass.

Timers, rain sensors and soil moisture sensors can be added to the system to monitor moisture, prevent water waste and irrigate the lawn with little human prompting.

With only one sprinkler head that requires a single supply pipe, there's no need to tear up the whole lawn for multiple sprinkler heads and a network of pipes.

Oxygen -VS- Nitrogen
Oxygen leaks out of tires faster. Nitrogen maintains tire pressure longer than oxygen. The oxygen molecules in compressed air are smaller and leak out three to four times faster. NitroFill? generators filter the air we breathe through technically advanced membrane fibers to separate it from oxygen and water vapor.

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Increases Safety
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Saves Time, Money, and Tires
- Dramatically slows pressure loss from permeation
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Click here to visit NitroFill.com for more news, information and video clips.

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