Observations

An observation is a timestamped note about something you noticed in your garden. It can be tied to a specific planting or asset, or left general. Observations build up a history that the AI uses when proposing tasks, and that you can look back on across seasons.

The list

Each card shows the type, the note, and the date; tap a card to expand it and see what it’s about (the linked bed or planting) plus the weather captured when you logged it. Photo attachments are coming. The type vocabulary now covers Health, Harvest, Weather, Intervention, Pest, Disease, Soil, and Watering, and you can filter the list by type.

Observation types

Logging an observation

The fastest way is Capture note — describe what you saw in plain language and GardenOS extracts the observation for you to confirm.

To log manually:

1. Go to Observations in the sidebar.
2. Tap New observation.
3. Set the type.
4. Write your note.
5. Optionally link it to a planting or asset.
6. The date defaults to today — adjust it if you are logging something from earlier.
7. Save.

What makes a good observation

• Be specific about what you saw. “Yellowing on lower leaves of the kale in Bed 2” is more useful than “kale looks bad.”
• Name the variety if you know it. The AI uses variety context when proposing responses.
• Record harvests with quantities. Even rough estimates (“about 300g of beans”) build useful yield data over time.
• Note unusual weather. A late frost or a week of heat affects what needs doing next — logging it connects cause and effect.

The observation log

The Observations page shows your full log, newest first. Each entry is linked to its planting or asset if one was set.

Search, sortable columns, and a Filter & Sort button sit in the toolbar. The button opens a drawer holding the sort order and the filters (Type and Date): tick several values in Type to match any of them (OR), across fields they all apply (AND), and each Type value shows how many observations it would match. Date takes an After / On / Between comparison — pick After a date for the old “last 30 / 90 days” view, or Between two dates for a window. Tap Show items to apply. Active filters also show as removable chips below the toolbar; clear them to see everything. Observations show all types and all dates by default.

In the card view, a long note is trimmed to two lines. Tap a card to expand it and read the full note and its weather stamp. Read-only members can expand to read too. Your view choice and a Roomy/Compact density toggle sit in the toolbar and stick per page on this device. In the table view, a Columns button lets you choose which columns show and reorder them, also saved per page.

To change entries, tap Edit at the top; it works in both views. In the table view the cells become editable (including the note) while click-to-sort and your filters stay active; in the card view each card’s type and date become inline fields. Each change saves on its own.

Automatic weather stamp

When you log an observation, GardenOS snapshots your garden’s current conditions — temperature, sky, humidity, and any rain — and stamps them onto the entry. Expand a card to see the line under the note. This happens on its own, so the log documents itself: months later you can see it was 94°F and dry the week a tomato started wilting. It needs your garden to have a location set (Garden settings), and it is best-effort — if the weather service can’t be reached the note still saves, just without the stamp.

Tips

• Observations feed the AI proposer. The more you log, the more the proposals reflect what is actually happening in your garden — not just the generic schedule.
• Log harvests consistently if you want to compare seasons year over year. Even a rough count or weight is better than nothing.
• The Capture note shortcut makes it easy to log on the go without opening the app. Set it up once and dictate observations hands-free.