8 best garden planning apps to try this spring

If you have big plans for your garden this upcoming year, you may want to consider using a helpful gardening planner to relieve some stress. There are many gardening apps out there, but which ones are the best to use? Find the best garden planning apps by reading below.

All garden planning apps come with different features. Those features will cater to different gardeners; you just have to find the one that suits your needs. Whether you want a free app or an annual subscription to help with your harvest, there’s something out there for you.

Keep reading to learn about the apps that are free vs. paid and the features they offer you. You will love these garden apps and will be grateful to have some in your back pocket as you begin your gardening tasks.

1. Gardena’s myGarden Planner

The Gardena mygarden Planner planner helps you plan your landscape using different surfaces that you drag and drop on the app. This web-based planner was created in the UK and features a top view of the garden for your convenience. Drag grass, paving stones, and other elements to create a garden before you begin planting. One nice thing about this app is that it gives you approximate sizes for mature plants, so you know what will fit and what won’t.

2. Smart Gardener

Smart Gardener is a vegetable garden planning app. It requires a minimal subscription fee but allows access to many gardening planning tips. The app takes you from the concept to harvest with sizing and placement of crops. It also has a “to-do” list to remind you when to water, weed, sow, and harvest your plants if needed. Many users appreciate the journal and photos section of this app.

3. Garden Planner at Territorial Seed

Territorial Seed’s Garden Planner app is perfect for planning your seasonal vegetable garden. The application helps you draw up vegetable garden plans with an annual subscription. You get to interact with other gardeners on the app and find helpful tips and tricks along the way. Track what you have planted and how you have fertilized, watered, and harvested, so you don’t forget. This app tracks your personal climate as well.

4. Small Blue Printer’s Garden Planner

The smallblueprinter.com Garden Planner was created by developer David Doull of Artifact Interactive. This adorable app allows you to design your own garden landscape using draggable elements. Move trees, buildings, fences, bushes, decks, and more to design your dream garden. Maximize the space in your garden using the sizing features. There is a free trial to get you started, and their purchasable features are reasonably priced. There’s never been an easier way to create your dream garden.

5. Garden Manager

Garden Manager is a new vegetable garden planning application. This is a fairly new app that helps you manage your harvesting dates and crops. When you get started, a virtual gardening coach walks you through how to use the app, so it’s very user-friendly. There are three levels of subscriptions to choose from, each with decent pricing points. The app is tied to your local weather station to update you on conditions as needed. Many users report enjoying the simplicity of this app.

6. Kitchen Garden Planner at Gardener’s Supply

The Kitchen Garden Planner from Gardener’s Supply is another great edible garden-organizing resource. You can start with pre-designed plans or designed your own. It’s easy to save and print your design or email it to a friend. The app comes with great planting tips as well as suggestions for how many seeds to plant. Users enjoy the free and simple use of this app.

7. Armitage’s Great Garden Plants

Armitage’s Great Garden Plants App is a good app for finding and choosing ornamental plants for your garden. Allan Armitage, Ph.D., created this app after being a professor at the University of Georgia. Use the app to lay out your ornamental landscape and even set up houseplants for success. The app also has tips for deer, pests, and native plant varieties. It has a great disease and pest database that users can explore.

8. Leafsnap

Leafsnap is a fantastic tool to help gardeners identify plants that are already in your garden and what they need. Using the photo feature, take a picture of your plants, and the app will give you information about the plant. The app was developed by the University of Maryland, Smithsonian Institute, and Columbia University using a botanist database full of knowledge. Get all the information you need about the plants in your garden space to keep them all healthy and thriving.

Create your perfect garden plan, garden journal, or crop rotation using a variety of tools from these online and mobile apps. Each has a variety of different tools and features that suit the needs of all gardeners. Take a look at the links and determine which apps will be most beneficial to you and your growing garden as you head into spring. Good luck and happy gardening!

FAQs

Resources

• How Like To Know It (LTK) Works, How To Use It, And Who To Follow
• Social Media
• The Science Of Gardening: An Online Gardening Course For Plant Lovers
• Online Gardening Courses: 40+ Garden Classes To Take At Home

References

• Michigan State University: Plant identification? There’s an app for that—actually several!
• University of Florida: Mobile and Web Applications from the UF/IFAS Center for Landscape Conservation and Ecology
• University of Connecticut: Rain Garden App