Solar Botanic promises to produce power from fake trees

British company Solar Botanic believes it has the answer to collecting wind and solar energy without devastating the aesthetics of landscapes.

Now in the development phase, Solar Botanic hopes to produce artificial trees capable of collecting energy.

No joke. The leaves take in sunlight like a real tree, but instead of using the energy through photosynthesis to make the tree grow, the light energy will go into the grid. Likewise, when wind rustles the branches, Solar Botanic trees will turn the kinetic energy created into more wattage.

In the same way, Solar Botanic hopes to make desert carpets, which would blend right in with nature while turning the scorching sunlight into electricity.

The company’s Web site, www.solarbotanic.com, highlights the benefits of this greener than green design. Not only do the solar trees create energy, but they also provide shade, sound proofing and wind shelter just like in the Garden of Eden.

While Solar Botanic’s idea is progressive and deserves applause, it seems to be a little ahead of its time.

Wind and solar energy are still a tiny piece of the energy puzzle because no one has found a way to really make it work. Solar Botanic is dealing with one of the major issues – that is the unsightliness of many solar panels and wind turbines – but they’re missing out on several other problems.

For example, how do you keep electricity users satisfied when there’s no wind or sun, as this Washington Post story points out? Or how do you transport the electricity from areas where there’s lots of sun and wind to cloudy, mild parts of the country?

At first glance, Solar Botanic’s proposal sounds like a green gold mine. The brains behind the outfit imagine highways lined with the faux trees.

But until the solar and wind energy industries find a way to make their products work in general, it would be a good idea to stay away from catchy spinoff schemes.

Until then, I’ll stick with the CO2-breathing, roots-in-the-soil real thing.