Sorting Flower Plant Heights

[bossgard]

George and Other Forum Members:

I?m trying to make it easier for me to sort my flower plant inventory into three height groups.

The groups are titled BORDER (6? to 18?), MID-BED (18? to 48?) and BACK GROUND
(48? to 72?).  With me as the gardener in GA004S01 GARDEN AREAS AND PLANT PROFILES, I?ve created three new ?make believe? garden beds and named them accordingly, to the respective heights. I then am sorting my plants into the three height beds by checking their heights as entered in GA100S36 WORK WITH PLANT PROFILE and locating them into those beds in the same screen.

I then go to GA034S01 REPORTS and print or search the three new BED lists for the information I want. Is this the best way to get this information?

I don?t see a uniform way that I can accomplish the same thing in making a GA006S01 QUERY with
Global Editing. The measurements are not always consistent in terminology.

Toby

[ideasguy]

Hi Toby. Good to see you are finding ways to make the software work for you.

Its quite acceptable to do exactly as you have done - very good thinking!
Its an alternative way to Global Editing.
Its actually a very quick and easy way to categorise your plants.
As you say, you can do it all in one screen - GA100S36 - enter dimensions, and slot them into the correct "Garden Area".
Moreover, you can easily view the lists (e.g. using GA037) and print them using the standard reports.

I think you have already used Global Editing. For others, heres a demo to explain:
http://www.ideasgenie.co.uk/demo9.html
and heres a useful document:
http://www.ideasgenie.com/uig/cpclassifs.htm
(GOSH  Look at the date!)

If you have the Master Database handy, have a look at how Ive set it up.
In GA003:
In Cultural Requirements/Properties: Height Bands
In Grades: Edging, Front of border, Middle of border, Back of border
and finally in Qualifiers, they are all set to Suitable for

You then associate your plants with the respective Grade (or indeed Grades - some may be used in more than one part of the border)
You don't need to enter dimensions to do this.

In the Query program you can do a search for any one (or more) of the Grades.
In screen GA006S02, click the Print button

You may wish to give it a try (as a test) and see how that would work for you Toby.

[bossgard]

George and Other Members of Forum:

Evidently I have not customized my IG Pro Software to American Standards. When I bring up GA100S30PD, I do not get quite the same screen shot that you have reproduced in ?Ideas Genie ? Software for Plants and Gardens ? Demo9-8?.

At the top of the screen you have radio buttons on FEET and INCHES, and to the right of that you have radio buttons for DECIMALS and FRACTIONS. I do not have those. The FROM and TO areas are there, but not the boxes with the FRACTIONS (1/4 , ½ , ¾) I am assuming if I could click on the radio button for DECIMALS , I would get some changes in that area.

I would like to work with the demos, particularly 9-8 and 9-9. Where did I go wrong?

-Toby

[ideasguy]

Start the Preferences program, GA198.
At the top of the screen you have a Unit of Measure pop-up.
Change the setting to Imperial.
Then try the global editing. You should now see all the controls for Feet and Inches, and Fractions/Decimals as in the demo here:
http://www.ideasgenie.co.uk/dem9-8.html
Does that get you going?

[bossgard]

That gets me going!
Thought it was something like that, but didn't want to fool around with it.
Funny, it didn't show up someplace else by now.

Now I can go back to the demos.

Thank you, George!

- Toby

[ideasguy]

Well done Toby! Dont be afraid to experiment as you go along.

[bossgard]

Another question or two, George:

I?ve decided not to use my original idea of creating the three new garden areas to keep track of plant heights and use the HEIGHT BANDS as you have written in the IG Pro Software using GA003 PLANT CULTURE/PROPERTY CLASSIFICATIONS.

When I want to work with my plant profiles, I usually start with GA004S01 GARDEN AREAS AND PLANT PROFILES, click on PLANT PROFILES, and double click the plant I want to work with. This is where I have been entering the PLANT DIMENSIONS (Height, Spread and Flower Sizes).

Most of this information is entered using the descriptions from various sources, such as nursery catalogs, seed packets, plant labels, etc. Those dimensions can appear in varied formats, including but not limited to: 12? to 18?, 6 to 8 inches, 2-1/2 to 3 feet, 10?, 32 inch, 1 foot, 36 ? 60 inch, etc., etc.

If I am thinking correctly, I should cease this (bad!) habit, because I don?t think the QUERY PROGRAM (GA006) will work with those types of entries. (or Will it?) Rather than clicking on PLANT PROFILES, as in above 2nd paragraph, I should click on PLANT SIZES and enter my plant?s dimensions there. They seem to be done by default, and can only be entered one way whether I use either inches or feet. (Keeping in mind the the use of ?Text? and ?Sizes?, also.)

Is this the proper thinking? Or, should I go back to my old ways?

Also, my thoughts about the QUERY PROGRAM; it is the ?icing on the cake?, that brings all the plant profile information at my finger tips to use. What a deal!!

- Toby

[bossgard]

I?m finding that Global Editing, GA003 and GA006 are coming together for me.

The Height Bands for my plants list have been entered through GA003 using inches.
A change in edit regarding abbreviations changes Front of Border to F06-18, giving me
an aid to enter them more accurately. A Query through GA006 ?Height Bands Suitable
for Front of Border? brings up 28 Annuals, 2 Biennials, and 22 Perennials using ALL
of my plants. The list looks quite accurate.

Another Query ?Color Group Categorize as Blue? brings up 5 Annuals, 2 Biennials,
7 Perennials and 1 Vine.

I?ve also changed the abbreviations in Blooming Times so that Early Spring is now
F-ESpr. The ?F? indicates the month of February. A Query on that brought up 2 Perennials.

I believe that Global Editing has a place in Vegetable Growing. ?Vegetable Sow Outdoors
Requires A-Late Spring? brings Garden Peas from my vegetable list.
The vegetable data is easy to enter because it can be done by Genus.
The ?A? stands for the month of April.

A great combination of gardening programs!

-Toby

[ideasguy]

Thats great Toby, and well done!

Setting up the Plant Properties and Plant Care classifications for Global Editing allows users to stretch their imagination and make full use of those configurable parameters. You've done just that!

Heres my introduction to understanding the basics before starting to define your own personalised classifications:
http://www.ideasgenie.com/uig/cpclassifs.htm
When you've read over that you are ready to play with GA003, under the Files tab in Ideas Genie Pro.
Fun for all!

[bossgard]

George:

After working with GA003, GA004 and GA006 for the past several days, I have this rather strange feeling that there has been somewhat of a reversal of roles of IG Pro and me. I used to think that IG Pro was in charge and telling me what data goes where or what to do, but now I think that I (the user) am in control. I can manipulate IG Pro data to do what I want it to do. Am I making sense?

And, finally I have someplace to put all the tidbits (you call them blobs) of information that wind up in files or boxes in my office.

One minor thing that you might do. In GA006S02, the button below INCLUDE on the right side of the screen, the next button down is in Yellow Color, which at least on my monitor is unreadable. I drug the HELP (?) button across it to tell me what it says. No help! I got brave and clicked it anyway, and now I realize it is PREVIEW, which is very necessary, and also makes the Query Statement visible to print.

Also, in the document you referred to in your previous posting, Plant Culture/ Property Classifications, 5th paragraph, you mention creating ?a reference to each individual source?. And then mention the phrase ?More on all of that in another section?, can you direct me to that ?another section?. That sounds helpful. I don?t think it is part of this paper. (??)

- Toby

Malcolm asked one time how many plants are in my data base. To answer Malcolm, there are Begonia tuberosa ? 61, Vegetables ? 140, Flowers ? 239. Not necessaryily growing at all times.