The concept of a garden is appealing to many of us, but the idea of taking the time to care for a full garden? Not so much. For those of us who have busy lives and are lacking a green thumb (I’ve even killed a cactus or two), there aren’t many options. At least that’s what we thought until we saw the brilliant Click & Grow ($70), designed by Mattias Lepp. With a combination of aeroponics, hydroponics, sensors, processors, and software, Lepp created a electronic planting system that requires neither soil nor gardening talent. Each Click & Grow starter kit comes with the pot itself and a Busy Lizzy (impatients seeds) flower cartridge. Users then insert 4 AA batteries, fill the pot’s reservoir with bottled water, and place the pot in a place that receives indirect sunlight. After just two weeks, your plant should start to grow.
Users will have to refill the pot’s water reservoir about once every month, but the pot will display a notification so we’re hoping that most people can handle that kind of mild responsibility. The Click & Grow system is reusable as well. If you’d like to change out your plant, all you have to do is replace the cartridge, fill the reservoir again, and your magic plant will begin growing. The seed cartridges are available for about $10 in variations like French Marigold, Mini Tomatoes, Chilli Pepper, and Basil Mix. Whether you consider yourself a garden type or not, there’s nothing quite like having fresh flowers or useful plants like tomato and basil in your home to brighten things up.
