Solar lawnmowers... at least they're quiet

As a teenager, I spent several hot and sweaty summers mowing lawns, and it was no picnic. Back and forth, back and forth, up hills and down, and you can be sure I never thought about the sickening emissions I was breathing in the whole time.

I've never really believed that little robotic lawnmowers have the oomph to get the job done. As for solar-powered electric lawnmowers, well, consider me a skeptic.

Still, it's fun to have a look at the Husqvarna Automower Solar Hybrid as described by SmartPlanet.com. Husqvarna is a well-known European manufacturer of all sorts of outdoor equipment, and it already has experience with automatic mowers.

The claim is that the solar panel on top of the mower will deliver an hour's worth of mowing before a recharge is needed. When it's winding down, it returns to its little charging dock. Husqvarna claims the mower can cover up to 18,000 square feet as defined by a wire perimeter that you have to set up around the area to be cut. At about $4,000, the Automower Solar Hybrid may be more of an expensive conversation piece than a rough-and-tough lawnmower, but at least it doesn't belch the acrid exhaust that I spent my teen years breathing.

Don Willmott's blog posts are provided by LifeWire, a part of The New York Times Company.