Planting a garden or laying down sod for your yard is the easy part. Keeping that foliage appropriately hydrated, that’s the real challenge—and it’s one that just keeps going and going, only getting more complicated as the seasons change. In recent years, interior smart home technology has spilled outside, and you’ll now find dozens of wireless watering systems on the market that can take some of the confusion and complexity out of irrigating your plants. Whether you have a sophisticated in-ground sprinkler or drip irrigation system or you rely on an old-fashioned hose, multiple smart watering solutions are readily available. The good news: We’ve got you covered no matter what type of outdoor environment you have. Be sure to check out our other guides to backyard tech, including the Best Smart Bird Feeders, Best Grills and Smart Grills, Best Flat-Top Grills and Griddles, Best Coolers, and Best Pool Cleaning Robots. Across the board, smart watering solutions are fundamentally designed around scheduling. While you can always initiate a manual watering run with one of these systems, their real value is in setting up a recurring schedule so you can basically forget about them. The best systems offer sophisticated scheduling tools that let you water on your chosen days of the week or month, along with the time of watering and the amount of water you want to deliver. Best of all, the more sophisticated solutions include what’s now commonly known as “weather intelligence,” a fancy way of saying they will check the internet for local weather conditions and adjust watering based on whether it’s going to rain or freeze. Many systems will also work with wireless soil monitors to give you even finer control over ground moisture levels—and help you conserve as much water as possible. If you already have an in-ground watering system with a traditional timer attached, upgrading to a smart irrigation system is pretty simple. You simply remove your old controller and replace it