I am at once a techno-geek who loves playing with the newest and best in the world of technology. I am also a closet “tree-hugger” who dreams of one day living off the grid and supporting my fmaily from the crops and animals I raise. The new buzzword for that is “homesteading.”
This season, I am bringing the two worlds together. I will be writing later this week about mapping your garden and the importance of doing so, as well as hsaring my map for this season with you. However, as I am spending yet another rainy, cold, spring day locked in away from my garden, I went searching for apps for my phone to help with my plans for this year.
While, as with most things, there ar more apps for the iPhone and it’s derivatives than for the android (my personal phone) there are several for each. What follows is a list of some of the better apps for the iPhone that I ran across. They vary in cost from free to 10-15 dollars. If you have a personal favorite, be sure to let me know.
1) 
Botanical Interests by Netframes
Of those who have reviewed this gardening application on the iTunes store, all have given it 5 stars. If you have a vegetable garden at home or are thinking of starting a vegetable garden, this app may be just the one you are looking for to help you with gardening success.
Learn “tips and tricks” for helpful advice for gardening successfully, create a list of your favorite veggies and plan your garden with nearly 300 different “botanical high quality varieties.” Get comprehensive growing and harvesting information on any variety and send questions directly to Botanical Interests, the company behind the application that is a producer of organic vegetable seeds.
I really like the interactive nature of this app and the fact that I have an expert at my disposal makes the price tag a little more bearable.
Cost: $5.99
2) Pocket Garden by At Media
Calling all vegetable gardeners! This app is ideal for identifying and tips for growing hundreds of types of vegetables in your garden. Quite literally from Artichoke to Zucchini, you can easily scroll through seed types to find the exact varietal you want to learn about and/or grow.
In the My Garden section of the application, you can keep track of all the vegetables in your garden, make notes on each varietal and monitor the expected harvest date of your veggies.
This app also has a free version you can trial before buying the ad-free version.
Cost: $0.99 (or Free with the Ad Supported Version)
3) Garden ToDo by Building Rainbows Software
I quit carrying a pen and paper about 12 years ago when I got my first palm pilot. This app is for me because it allows me to take copious notes without carting around a pocket protector pen and pad. With this app, you can quickly organize gardening tasks by priority, time entered or even customize the order based on your own needs. Assign pics of your garden from your phone for specific tasks for the scroll wheel and cover flow options.
When entering new tasks, you can choose options from the scroll wheel or enter tasks manually, making this application great not just for your garden, but also for indoor tasks as well.
Cost: $1.99
4) Gardening by Jeff Hale
I am terrible about remember when my average day of last frost is, or when I see the “uber-gardeners” gettign their plants in the ground (I learn alot from spying on my neighbors 🙂 ) Additionally, i am alwasy lookinf for new plants. For example, I was watching “Chopped” on the Food Network with Ms. Gardener this week ans we saw a vegetable that we want to try…it is a cross between broccoli and cauliflower. So, for people like me who really need help with new plants and who seem to always forget, this application keeps a database of plants along with instructions on how to care for them. This application helps with knowing how to plant your seeds or seedlings and average harvest time of each varietal.
You can add plants to your personal garden list and keep track of each plant until you harvest them. This application also allows you to create todo lists and keep a journal (along with pics) of your garden’s progress.
Cost: $1.99
5) iPlant by Lundgren Consulting, LLC
If you read this blog regularly, then you know I am a firm believer in working with your landscape not fighting it. Sometimes, though, I don’t know if a new species in my yard is invasive, or if it may help me ward off some other plant or insect. So for all those times you wonder if the plant that just brushed across your leg was poison ivy (yikes!) or a blessing that only looks like a weed, this app helps you identify more than 300 different types of plants.
This application goes into detail about plants common, scientific (Latin) and alternative names along with descriptions, common usage and value (medicinal vs. food) and any warnings that might be associated with the plants.
This reference application would come in handy in the kitchen, on hikes and in the garden, and with more than 150 photos, it’s sure to be a breeze to find the plant you need.
Cost: $1.99
6 ) iGarden USA by NanoSoft, LLC
This is another application to help you plan and track your garden. It gives advice on the best planting dates for each US climate zone based on where your phone is located. You can also learn the best planting practices for each type of plant in your garden. After you’ve got your seeds planted, use the garden tracker to monitor your garden’s process and get ready for the estimated harvest date.
This application was recently updated, and the update includes lots of new features that make this application more informational and easier to use.
Cost: $4.99
7) Finally, this final app is more for desktops but It is still beneficial in that it can help you actually plan out your garden by type and variety and help keep you on track once you head out and start getting your hands dirty. Last year was my first year for mapping and it helped tremendously. I will share more on how to map your garden later this week.
Till then, enjoy the first week of spring.
http://download.cnet.com/Vegetable-Garden-Design/3000-18499_4-10665705.html
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