Using technology to ensure safety and facilitate social interaction, mon- itoring and learning
Technology in gardening is becoming increasingly popular to get more people in- terested in taking up gardening as a hobby and to make it convenient and easy to maintain plants. New start-ups that utilize sensors, aeroponics and hydroponics in gardening technology are establishing themselves in many places, making this some- thing the Countway Community Garden could also consider.
We propose creating a simple smart phone application and a website to facilitate the use of technology in accessing the garden, fostering social interaction, sustainable gardening and the growth of healthy plants.
Safety
The phone application incorporates several features, including individual pro le pag- es and unique identi able barcodes for members to scan when they want to enter the garden. While Harvard University students and faculty may be allowed to en- ter the space on Monday to Friday from 9 am to 6 pm using their HUID to enjoy their breaks, members could be allowed access after o cial hours and on weekends through the smart phone app barcodes that identify them.
Social Interaction
The app also fosters social interaction by matching new and existing members who might want to share the workload of tending to their plants and making friends at the same time. In addition, a monthly calendar of events at the garden, available both on the app and on the website can facilitate participation in the activities of the garden. These could include the celebration of festivals or holidays like Halloween or the promotion of healthy eating through farmers’ markets. A booking feature is also available for members who would like to book the space to run their own events on certain days of the month.
Finally, to involve other members of the local community that do not belong to Har- vard, our monthly calendar of events will incorporate visits from local partners such as students from the Roxbury Tutoring Center where Harvard students often volun- teer to tutor middle and high school students from Roxbury.
Monitoring
By incorporating information on the weather and smart gardening technology that provides updates about the level of sunshine, water and fertilizer into the app, we propose to make tending to plants easier and more interactive and fun for members of the garden. Smart gardening technologies are relatively new to the market, but there are several such as the Wise Garden Advisor, the Nimble Plant Protector and the Eccentric Garden Doctor that can be adapted for this purpose and cost under $100 for the devices that monitor the plants’ vitals. Through these devices, members can receive noti cations on their phone when their plants require attention. By piloting the use of technology in gardening, the Countway Community Garden could serve as a concept center for other community gardens in the Boston area to begin utilizing technology to improve the maintenance of their gardens and to foster social interaction amongst members. Learning Fostering knowledge is one of the key goals of the Countway Community Garden and we hope to do this through the use of QR codes on each plant bed (Image 12), that individuals can scan using their apps, which directs them to the website where further information about the relevant plant can be found. In addition, with special home page features on the app such as the tip of the day and recipe of the day, mem- bers can create their own library on the app with interesting tips, recipes and plant information that they save.
