I knew of the existence of a few applications developed in Quebec. However, I admit to having been prejudiced against these technologies… after the coffee story.
What was my surprise to find that these applications are now not only powerful enough for me to use them for my own garden, but also, eventually, in my job as a landscaping designer!
The green hand
Basically, this application is a calendar for the vegetable garden. Simply enter the name of a vegetable plant in the search tool and choose from the many varieties of seeds. Your selections will appear in a calendar with dates for indoor sowing, transplanting, transplanting, harvesting and other tasks appropriate for each crop.
The calendar is automatically adapted to the weather conditions based on your location. You can even synchronize everything with your electronic calendar so you don’t forget anything. It is possible to create a seed list and a calendar for your vegetable garden in just a few minutes!
The app also contains a virtual assistant, powered by artificial intelligence, that can answer your questions about gardening, fruit trees or vegetable gardening.
Not only did the assistant handle my requests with precision, but the creators of La main verte, Alexandre Toulemonde and Pier-Antoine Gilbert, can also intervene in the conversation if necessary (which they did for me, while preparing pancakes and sipping coffee), because artificial intelligence still has its limits.
La main verte also offers a soil analysis service, which allows you to send a sample of the soil from your garden via Canada Post and receive detailed results, as well as training to assist you in interpreting the results. . Added to this is a tool to calculate the compost or fertilizer needs of your vegetable garden, depending on the crop and surface area chosen.
For me, however, the genius of this application lies in the fact that the choice of plants is made from the catalogs of artisanal seed producers located in Quebec. It also includes a link to their website to order them online. As you know, purchasing locally produced seeds promotes regional biodiversity, strengthens the local economy and offers varieties adapted to local conditions.
Green Thumb is available at a cost of $3.99 per month or $34.90 per year. A trial, limited to five varieties, is also available free of charge.
Herbal tea and Garden
Tisane et Jardin also offers the possibility of building a growing calendar from a list of vegetable plants. Its main advantage lies in the fact that you can design your garden yourself.
With surprisingly easy-to-use tools, the app allows you to create a scale plan of your land. Once the plan is completed, you will choose the plants with an advanced search tool.
It allows you to filter the application library according to criteria such as the type of plant, its use, the degree of sunshine, water needs, the nature of the soil, the desired size, resistance to diseases, medicinal properties. , ecosystem services, lark!
You can therefore make a selection based on the conditions of your garden as well as your needs, with your fingers in your nose. Subsequently, Tisane et Jardin automatically creates a task calendar based on your selection. You can even assign tasks to those around you, such as your children or, if you are a professional, your work team.
The application automatically produces a list of plants with the quantities established according to your drawing. This information can then be transmitted to the partner Quebec seed company website to place an online order.
Although powerful and multifunctional, Tisane et Jardin remains intuitive and easy to use. I have yet to see, even with software for professionals, such an advanced plant research tool, combined with a drawing application.
A version of a garden plan, with no limits on the number of plants you put in it, is even available for free. Paid versions at $4 or $10 per month, with 5% off annual licenses, offer more features.
As with La main verte, the designers of Tisane et Jardin, Audray Pépin and Michel Leduc, listen to their users to improve their applications or answer their questions.
INTERVIEW OF THE WEEK
- Some sowing to do in mid-April: dill, kale, coreopsis, dwarf dahlia, garden stock, marjoram, snapdragon, parsley, tomato.
- When thinning vegetable seedlings like lettuce, onion, cabbage and Swiss chard, remember that most are edible.
- If you are growing your seedlings in front of a window, rotate them a quarter turn clockwise when watering them, to prevent them from facing the sun.
- Insects wake up in our homes as the days get longer. If you have them on your indoor plants, give them a good shower once a week until they are gone.
ANSWERS TO YOUR QUESTIONS
Have questions for the lazy gardener? You can submit them by email to [email protected]
Q I bought a wintergreen two years ago around Christmas with the intention of replanting it in my yard in the summer to harvest the leaves and make herbal tea. However, I did not know how to maintain it properly and the plant dried out. Last year I bought two plants and they dried out again. Can I find, outside of the holiday season, a plant or seeds that I could sow directly in the ground next summer?
—Gabrielle Dussault
R I’m sorry you had such difficulty with your wintergreen (Gaultheria procumbens), also called wintergreen. Your difficulties are probably caused by a lack of atmospheric humidity. If you try this again, get a humidifier!
Luckily for you, wintergreen is available in garden centers outside of the holiday season. In truth, this plant, native to eastern Canada and the United States, including Quebec, is more common in the garden than as a Christmas decoration. It will prefer a location in the shade or partial shade. If it is watered during its establishment, it will even grow at the foot of conifers.
You can also obtain seedlings from several Quebec artisanal seed companies. It’s a little late to sow indoors this year since wintergreen requires 90 days of cold stratification to germinate.
If you still want to try the experiment, scatter the seeds on damp potting soil, place them under a dome or plastic bag and refrigerate. After 90 days, expose to 14-16 hours of daily light and remove the dome after germination.
Transplant the plants when they are three centimeters high and acclimatize them in spring before planting them outside.
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Q I put my seven fig trees dormant in the cellar in a cool, dark place for the winter. I read that you need to water once a month during the off season. How should I water my plants enough? I don’t want to wake them.
—Ed Blais
R Watering once a month is a good rule, but there are always exceptions! It would be best to check the moisture in the soil occasionally by sticking your finger in it. When the soil is dry to the touch, water moderately, just enough to moisten the soil without saturating it.
Since your fig trees are dormant, their roots don’t absorb much water, and potting soil that’s too wet can cause their roots to rot. Avoid exposure to light and temperature variations so as not to wake the trees prematurely.
As spring approaches, watch for signs of revival, such as new growth, and gradually bring them back into the light when they do.
HORTICULTURAL CALENDAR
To add horticultural activities offered in the greater Quebec region to our calendar, write to us at [email protected].
Tips and tricks for growing in Quebec
The organization Les Orchidophiles de Québec will hold the conference “Cultivation tips and tricks” by Patricia Caris on Tuesday April 16 2024 (from 7:30 p.m.). The event will take place at the Marie-Guyart room at the Center Le Montmartre in Quebec (located at 1679, chemin Saint-Louis). Prices: free for members, $10 per adult, $5 per student. Info: orchidophilesdequebec.ca
Landscaping courses in Quebec
The Société d’horticulture de Québec will offer a series of six courses entitled “Planning your landscape” by landscape architect Alain Lorange. These training courses will be given every Wednesday from April 17 until May 22 2024, from 7:30 p.m. to 10 p.m. They will take place at the Marchand Community Center, in Quebec (located at 2740, 2e Avenue Est). Prices: $125 for Society members ($220 for a couple), $150 for non-members ($255 for a couple). Registration deadline: April 17, 2024. Info and registration: 418 871-1665, [email protected], shq-jardinage.com
Dandelions in Sainte-Foy
The Sainte-Foy Horticultural Society will organize the conference “Dandelion versus lawn: a story of love, hate and mower” by Claude Lavoie, biologist and director of ÉSAD, the Tuesday April 23 2024, from 7:30 p.m. The activity will take place in room 121 of the Intact Assurance Ice Center of Quebec (located at 999, avenue De Rochebelle). This free conference is offered by the City of Quebec and organized in collaboration with the Horticultural Societies of Quebec and Beauport. Prices: free. Info: shsf.ca, 418 658-9844 or [email protected]
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