High-tech gardening

Flower & Garden Magazine, Dec, 1995 by Julie L. Favetti, James K. Lewis

"How to Remove a Tree Stump," "Tips on Lawns and Lawn Mowers" and "A How-To Book of Herbal Health" are just some of the programs available on Gardening. It also contains a plant database and a program on planning your vegetable garden. You will find a wealth of helpful information for gardening, farming, composting, herbs and even a game called "Stop Gophers from Overruning Your Lawn." See Table 4 for additional information on Gardening, Sprout! and Forever Growing Garden.

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NEW TOOLS

Once you find the right software product to help with your gardening, it can provide you with gardening expertise, quality pictures and superb plant references. Whether you grow vegetables or flowers or both, one of these products can help you perfect your garden.

GARDENING ON LINE

Having garden trouble? Then, start up your computer, connect your modem and find help on line.

It's simple: The "line" is your telephone line and a modem is a device that links your computer to the telephone line and, ultimately, to other computer users. An easy rule of thumb to follow when purchasing a modem is simply to buy the fasest modem you can afford. Doing so will save you money in the long run.

Many gardeners meet on line via one of the commercial on-line services -- America Online (AOL), Prodigy or CompuServe. Each service has its own gardening discussion groups and can link you to the Internett, an informal, worldwide network of millions of computer users. (Originally created for scientist, the Internet today is used more for recreation and commerce.)

It's easy to join an on-line service. You can try them out, then decide which one offers the best deal. In general, each sevice charges an $8 monthly fee that includes four or five "free" hours of on-line activity. Beyond that, they charge about $3 for every hour you're connected. Some offer extra services for an additional fee.

To find garden topics on line, just enter a "keyword." On AOL, type "Gardening," then click on "Out door Activities" to find more than 50 ongoing gardening discussions on such topics as herbs, bonsai, regional gardening, container gardening, tropicals, bulb, pests, trees, lawns and vegetables. Type "Go Gardens" or a similar keyword on CompuServe and Prodigy.

At first, the Internet can make an Enligsh garden maze seem like child's play, and it's easy to get lost. No problem -- just turn off your modem and try again. (There are scores of instructional guides to the Internet; check your local bookstore or library to learn more.)

The firs step to "surfing the 'net" is to gain access. If you are not already conected (as many are) through school or work, it's easiest to use one of the on-line services. Some communities, like mine, have no-cost community "freenets." Commercial Internet services provide access for a fee. Unlike the on-line services, most of these offer nothing else, but with the vast Internet spreading out before you, who needs more?

Check out the "gophers," or databases, which offer, among other things, agricultural extension service advice, horticultural guides, soil science information, forest and three help, the National Agricultural Library, The Library of Congress and access to agricultural reseach centers all over the world. Or you may take part in wide-open discussions in he "newsgroups." Most Internet providers offer access to thousands of newsgroups, with topics ranging from molecular biology to Star Trek. Garden-related newsgroups include misc.rural, rec.ponds, rec.arts.bonsai, rec.gardens, rec.gardens.orchids and rec.gardens.roses, to name just a few.