Viewing Your Diary - Timeline & Search

🎯 What You'll Learn

• Timeline view - Chronological entry display
• Calendar view - Monthly overview with color coding
• Filtering - Find entries by type, date, tags
• Search - Keyword and advanced search
• Entry management - Edit, delete, merge, pin entries

⚡ Quick Start

View your diary in 1 minute:

1. Open diary - Click plant → Diary tab
2. Browse timeline - Scroll through chronological entries
3. Filter entries - Click filter icon → Select entry type
4. Search - Type keywords in search box

Result: Find any diary entry quickly!

📚 Complete Guide

Timeline View

Chronological Display

Your diary's default view shows all entries in reverse chronological order (newest first).

Entry Cards

What Each Card Shows:

• 📅 Date/Time - When event occurred
• 🏷️ Entry Type - Icon + label (💧 Watering, 🐛 Pest Found)
• 📝 Title/Summary - Brief description
• 📸 Photos - Thumbnails (if attached)
• 🏷️ Tags - Colored tags for filtering
• 📎 Attachments - Linked records (growth measurements, reminders)

Card Actions:

• Click - Expand to see full details
• Edit Icon - Modify entry
• Share Icon - Export or share
• Delete Icon - Remove entry (with confirmation)

Infinite Scroll

How It Works:

• Load 20 entries initially
• Scroll down → Automatically load next 20
• Continue until all entries loaded
• No pagination, smooth browsing

Performance: Even with 1,000+ entries, loads quickly by lazy-loading content.

Jump to Date

Quick Navigation:

1. Click "Jump to Date" button (top right)
2. Select date from calendar picker
3. Timeline scrolls to that date
4. Entries from selected date highlighted

Use Cases:

• "What did I do on Aug 15?"
• "When did I last fertilize?"
• "Review entries from vacation week"

Expand/Collapse Entries

Quick Overview vs Full Details:

• Collapsed (default): Shows summary only
• Expanded: Full notes, all photos, metadata

Controls:

• Click entry → Expand/collapse individual
• "Expand All" button → Open all entries
• "Collapse All" button → Close all entries

Tip: Expand all when reviewing monthly care, collapse when scanning for specific entry.

Calendar View

Monthly Overview

Visual representation of diary activity by month.

Calendar Interface

What You See:

• Standard monthly calendar grid
• Color-coded dots on dates with entries
• Multiple dots = Multiple entry types that day
• Dot colors match entry type icons

Color Key:

• 💙 Blue = Care activities (watering, fertilizing)
• 🧡 Orange = Health events (pests, disease)
• 💚 Green = Growth events (new leaves, flowering)
• 💛 Yellow = Observations and photos

Clicking Dates

View Day's Entries:

1. Click any date with dots
2. Sidebar appears showing all entries from that day
3. Entries grouped by type
4. Click entry to view full details

Benefits:

• Quick overview of active care periods
• Identify gaps in documentation
• Spot care patterns (e.g., "I always water on Sundays")

Month Navigation

Browse Activity History:

• Arrows - Previous/next month
• Today button - Return to current month
• Month/Year dropdown - Jump to any month

Activity Heatmap (Premium):

• Dates colored by activity level
• Dark green = High activity (5+ entries)
• Light green = Moderate (2-4 entries)
• White = No entries

Export Monthly Report

Generate PDF Summary:

1. Select month in calendar view
2. Click "Export Month"
3. Choose format: PDF (visual) or CSV (data)
4. Report includes:
   • All entries for that month
   • Summary statistics
   • Care activity breakdown
   • Growth measurements
   • Photo gallery

Use Cases:

• Seasonal care review
• Share with plant community
• Print physical plant journal

Filtered Views

Find Specific Entries

Powerful filtering to narrow down diary entries.

Filter by Entry Type

Single or Multiple Types:

How to Filter:

1. Click Filter icon (funnel)
2. Select entry types:
   • ✅ Watering
   • ✅ Fertilizing
   • ⬜ Pruning
   • ⬜ Pest Found
3. Apply filter
4. Timeline shows only selected types

Example: Select "Watering" to see complete watering history and identify frequency patterns.

Filter by Date Range

Time Period Selection:

Presets:

• Last 7 days
• Last 30 days
• Last 3 months
• Last year
• All time

Custom Range:

• Click "Custom"
• Select start date
• Select end date
• Apply

Use Cases:

• "Show summer care (Jun-Aug)"
• "What happened during vacation (Aug 10-20)?"
• "Review last 3 months to adjust routine"

Filter by Tags

Tag-Based Search:

How Tags Work:

• You create custom tags when making entries
• Examples: #experiment, #recovery, #fertilizer-testing, #pest-treatment
• One entry can have multiple tags

Filter by Tags:

1. Click tag filter dropdown
2. See all tags you've used
3. Select one or more
4. View matching entries

Advanced: Combine tags with AND/OR logic

• AND (default): Entry must have ALL selected tags
• OR: Entry can have ANY selected tag

Filter by Photos

Show Only Entries with Photos:

Toggle "Photos Only" filter to see visual diary entries.

Use Cases:

• Create before/after galleries
• Review plant transformation
• Find specific photo you remember taking

Auto vs Manual Entries

Entry Source Filter:

• Manual - Entries you created
• Auto - Generated by quick actions, reminders, growth records

Why Filter:

• Manual entries usually have more detail
• Auto entries good for activity overview
• Sometimes want to see only your notes

Saved Filters

Reuse Filter Combinations:

Create Saved Filter:

1. Configure multiple filters:
   • Entry type: Watering + Fertilizing
   • Date range: Last 3 months
   • Tags: #success
2. Click "Save Filter"
3. Name it: "Successful Care Activities Q3"
4. Click to apply anytime

Popular Saved Filters:

• "Pest History" (Health events + #pest tag)
• "Growth Milestones" (Growth events with photos)
• "Weekly Care" (Watering + Fertilizing, last 7 days)
• "Problem Solving" (Questions + Observations + Health events)

Search Functionality

Find Anything Fast

Keyword Search

Basic Text Search:

How It Works:

• Search box at top of diary
• Searches through:
  • Entry notes/description
  • Entry titles
  • Tags
  • Metadata

Examples:

• Search: "neem oil" → Find all pest treatment entries
• Search: "brown spots" → Find disease observations
• Search: "experiment" → Find all experimental care

Advanced Search

Powerful Search Options:

Click "Advanced Search" to access:

1. Date Range Search:

• Find entries "between Aug 1 and Aug 31"
• "Before vacation" (before specific date)
• "After repotting" (after specific date)

2. Entry Type Search:

• "All watering entries" (select type)
• "All health events" (group filter)
• Combine with keywords: "neem oil" + "Pest Found" type

3. Tag Search:

• Find entries tagged #recovery
• Multiple tags: #experiment AND #success
• Exclude tags: NOT #failure

4. Photo Search:

• Find entries with/without photos
• Search photo captions
• Filter by photo count (1, 2-5, 6+)

Photo Recognition (Premium)

AI-Powered Image Search:

What It Does:

• Analyzes photos in diary entries
• Identifies visual content:
  • New leaves
  • Flowers
  • Pests
  • Disease symptoms
  • Plant locations

How to Use:

1. Type visual search: "yellow leaves"
2. AI finds entries with photos showing yellowing
3. No need to tag photos manually

Search Tips

Better Search Results:

• Use quotes: "brown spots" finds exact phrase
• Use wildcards: "fert*" finds fertilize, fertilizing, fertilizer
• Combine filters: Search + entry type filter + date range
• Save searches: Reuse common searches as filters

Entry Management

Edit, Delete, Organize

Edit Entries

Modify Any Entry:

What You Can Edit:

• ✏️ Date/time (backdate or correct timestamp)
• ✏️ Entry type (if logged incorrectly)
• ✏️ Title and notes
• ✏️ Photos (add/remove/reorder)
• ✏️ Tags
• ✏️ Type-specific fields

How to Edit:

1. Click entry card
2. Click Edit icon (pencil)
3. Modify any field
4. Click Save

Edit History (Premium):

• Track all changes made to entry
• See who edited (if shared plant)
• Restore previous version if needed

Delete Entries

Remove Unwanted Entries:

How to Delete:

1. Click entry
2. Click Delete icon (trash)
3. Confirm deletion
4. Entry permanently removed

⚠️ Warning: Cannot recover deleted entries (except from "Deleted Items" folder for 30 days)

When to Delete:

• ✅ Duplicate entries (same event logged twice)
• ✅ Wrong plant (entry for different plant)
• ✅ Test entries
• ❌ Don't delete: Mistakes or problems - edit instead for history

Merge Entries

Combine Related Entries:

Use Case: Accidentally created 3 "Watering" entries for same event.

How to Merge:

1. Select first entry
2. Click "Merge" option
3. Select other entries to combine
4. Choose which details to keep:
   • Primary date/time
   • Combined notes
   • All photos
   • All tags
5. Confirm merge
6. Multiple entries become one

Result: Clean diary without duplicates, all information preserved.

Pin Important Entries

Highlight Key Events:

How Pinning Works:

• Pinned entries appear at top of timeline
• Marked with 📌 icon
• Stay visible while scrolling
• Up to 5 pinned entries

What to Pin:

• 🌱 Propagation start dates
• 💊 Ongoing treatment protocols
• 🌸 First bloom milestone
• 🪴 Repotting date (reference for next time)
• 🐛 Pest treatment schedule

How to Pin:

1. Click entry
2. Click Pin icon
3. Entry moves to pinned section
4. Unpin anytime by clicking again

Bulk Actions

Manage Multiple Entries:

Select Multiple:

• Click checkbox on entry cards
• Select 2+ entries
• Bulk action menu appears

Available Actions:

• 🏷️ Add tag to all - Tag multiple entries at once
• 🗑️ Delete selected - Remove multiple entries
• 📤 Export selected - Export specific entries
• 📋 Merge selected - Combine entries

Use Case: Tag all entries from vacation period with #vacation for easy future filtering.

💡 Tips & Tricks

Weekly Diary Review

Sunday Routine:

1. Open diary, filter to last 7 days
2. Review care consistency
3. Check if any entries need more detail
4. Add follow-up reminders for next week
5. Take weekly progress photo

Use Calendar for Planning

Visualize Care Schedule:

• See gaps in watering (no blue dots for 10 days?)
• Identify fertilizing frequency (once a month?)
• Track pest checks (weekly?)
• Plan next activities based on patterns

Search Before Creating

Avoid Duplicates: Before creating entry, search if you already logged it:

• Search date + type
• If exists, add to existing entry
• If not, create new

Pin Treatment Protocols

Active Health Issues: Pin pest/disease treatment entries to:

• Reference treatment schedule easily
• Track progress without searching
• Know when next application due

Export for Sharing

Ask for Help: When consulting Plant Doctor or community:

1. Filter to relevant entries (e.g., last month health events)
2. Export as PDF
3. Share complete care history
4. Get better diagnosis with full context

❓ Common Questions

Q: Can I change how entries are sorted?

A: Yes! Click sort dropdown:

• Newest first (default)
• Oldest first (useful for reading chronologically)
• Most photos (visual entries first)
• Most tags (detailed entries first)

Q: Why can't I find an old entry?

A: Check these:

1. Clear all filters - Filter might be hiding entry
2. Expand date range - Default may be "Last 30 days"
3. Check deleted items - Might be in trash
4. Try different keywords - Search by date instead

Q: Can I print my entire diary?

A: Yes! Export → PDF → All Entries → Print. Choose:

• Full format - All photos and details (many pages)
• Summary format - Compact list (fewer pages)
• Photo book - Photo-focused layout

Q: How do I see entries from multiple plants?

A: From dashboard:

1. Click "Activity Feed"
2. See combined diary from all plants
3. Filter by plant name, entry type, date
4. Useful for household-wide care overview

Q: Can I copy an entry to another plant?

A: Yes!

1. Open entry
2. Click "Copy to..."
3. Select target plant
4. Entry duplicated with timestamp
5. Edit as needed for specific plant

🔗 Related Topics

Essential Reading

• Creating Entries - How to log activities
• Entry Types - Understand all 15+ types

Advanced Features

• Diary Features - Templates, sharing, statistics
• Diary Tab - Access diary interface

Data Analysis

• Growth Analysis - Link diary to growth
• Care Info Tab - Optimize based on diary

Last Updated: October 24, 2025
Document Version: 2.0 (Modular Structure)