Taken from Lynne’s weekly column ‘Green Scene’ for the Western Mail
6th July 2019
Talking Tertill
I have been inundated by questions about the gardening robot I wrote about in last week’s column. As it’s Wales, people aren’t asking where they can buy one from, but are asking far more practical questions laced with a healthy dose of Welsh scepticism. How does it know a plant from a weed? How do you keep it in the garden? Does it get stuck?
Created by a roboticist, (I bet you didn’t have that option in career’s advice), and with unique design elements and a variety of sensors, Tertill (as it’s been named) patrols the garden daily, avoiding plants and obstacles while looking for weeds to eliminate.
It apparently differentiates between a plant and a weed on the basis that weeds are short, and plants are tall. A plant tall enough to touch the front of Tertill’s shell activates a sensor that makes the robot turn away. A plant short enough to pass under Tertill’s shell, though, activates a different sensor that turns on the weed cutter. And, “because Tertill’s approach is height-based, you can put one of the provided plant collars around short plants until they are tall enough for Tertill to recognize. Until then, when Tertill approaches the collar, it will recognize it and turn away.”
I think Tertill would just turn away from my garden, as some of my weeds are taller than I am, thanks to the great Welsh weather.
How does it remove them? Won’t the weeds just grow back?
Tertill whacks weeds using a spinning string trimmer, which cuts the weed off near the ground. The weeds obviously need to be small for it to cope with initially, but as the weeds are prevented from developing they eventually give up and die.
There needs to be at least a short barrier around your garden to keep Tertill from wandering away and it uses a clever combination of bouncing away from, and sometimes following, obstacles and plants.
I suspect it will also provide hours of fun for an inquisitive dog.
Tertill doesn’t run continuously, it’s far too savvy for that. As it is always charging from whatever sunlight is available, that’s only enough energy to run for about an hour or two per sunny day. So it will wake up every 20 minutes or so, and if there’s enough energy it will run for a little bit, and if not, it will check again later.
Personally, I think this attitude ought to be acceptable for all gardeners.
Tertill uses four-wheel-drive, which enables it to move through soft soil, sand, and mulch, and also helps it climb slopes. After judging Blaenau Gwent in Bloom for years, I suspect some of the Welsh valley gardens may prove an exception here. It is solar powered so no charging needed, it is waterproof so no need to bring it in when it rains, and it uses Bluetooth to talk to your Smartphone – which is more than I can do.
Clever it may be but I still can’t see it catching on in Wales.
Save Your Seed
As herbaceous plants and wild flowers start to go to seed now, try to collect that seed and use it to increase your flower power for next year. All too often, flower heads are left to go to seed over paths and patios and where they are not wanted. That’s a waste of plants and energy in removing them next year. Simply shake the seeds into your hand or a paper bag or envelope or scatter directly where you want them to grow.
You could also swap seeds with friends and neighbours, or at school, or even put them in a little envelope and give them as a gift. It’s lovely to get potential plants from a friend or relatives garden as a present. Make sure you label the envelope though, so the recipient knows if they are getting Granny Bonnets or Scotch Bonnets!
Let’s Talk
On the 25th July I will be speaking in the Horticultural Marque at The Royal Welsh Show in Builth Wells. As always, whenever I agree to these talks, it seems an absolute age before the event and it’s is put in the ‘in the future tray’ of my head.
Now it is only a few weeks away and I am going to be speaking about new and innovative gardening products, with a definite lack of new and innovative gardening products to talk about.
Any ideas? Don’t say ‘Tertill’; I need more than that!
After reading all about the weed-whacking roaming robot, I can’t help thinking that whilst this year I am looking for innovative gardening products to talk about, in ten years time it could be an innovative gardening product that is giving the talk!
Hope to see you at the Horticultural Marque on the 25th July at 11.00 am.
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