Reminder Types - All Care Tasks

🎯 What You'll Learn

• 8 built-in types - Pre-configured reminder categories
• Smart defaults - Automatic frequency suggestions
• Custom reminders - Create any task you need
• Type-specific features - Special options per type

⚡ Quick Start

Understand reminder types in 2 minutes:

1. Most common: Watering 💧 (every plant needs it!)
2. Second most: Fertilizing 🧪 (monthly during growth)
3. Maintenance: Pruning ✂️, Repotting 🪴, Inspection 🔍
4. Custom: Any other task ✨

Result: Know which reminder type to use for any care task!

📚 Complete Guide

Built-In Reminder Types

PlantKeeper provides 8 pre-configured types with smart defaults.

1. Watering 💧

Most Essential Reminder

Default Frequency: Based on plant's watering schedule (set during plant creation)

Common Patterns:

• Daily (high-maintenance plants)
• Every 3 days (tropical plants)
• Weekly (most houseplants)
• Bi-weekly (succulents, cacti)

Smart Features:

• Auto-sync: Changes when you update plant's watering frequency
• Seasonal adjust: Increases in summer, decreases in winter (if enabled)
• Weather integration: Skips if rain forecasted (outdoor plants)

Notification Priority: High 🟠 (plants need water to survive!)

What Happens on Completion:

• Marks plant as watered
• Updates "Last Watered" date
• Resets "Next Watering" countdown
• Creates diary entry: "Watered"

Best Practice: Set realistic frequency, check soil before watering (don't trust calendar blindly!)

2. Fertilizing 🧪

Feed Your Plants

Default Frequency: Monthly (spring/summer), Paused (fall/winter)

Common Patterns:

• Weekly (high-feeders during growth season)
• Bi-weekly (moderate feeders)
• Monthly (most houseplants)
• Quarterly (slow growers)
• Seasonal only (spring + summer)

Smart Features:

• Dose tracking: Record fertilizer amount (e.g., "15ml liquid 10-10-10")
• Product field: Note which fertilizer used
• Seasonal pause: Auto-pauses Oct-Mar (dormancy)

Notification Priority: Medium 🟡 (important but not urgent)

What Happens on Completion:

• Logs fertilization event
• Updates fertilization schedule
• Creates diary entry with fertilizer details
• Tracks fertilizer type used

Best Practice: Start monthly, adjust based on plant response. Over-fertilizing is worse than under-fertilizing!

3. Pruning ✂️

Shape and Maintain

Default Frequency: Monthly or Quarterly

Common Patterns:

• Weekly (fast-growing vines)
• Monthly (regular maintenance)
• Quarterly (slow growers)
• Seasonal (spring shaping)

Smart Features:

• Pruning guide: Links to plant-specific pruning instructions
• Photo prompt: Encourages before/after photos
• Cutting tracker: Record if cuttings taken for propagation

Notification Priority: Low 🟢 (nice-to-do, not urgent)

What Happens on Completion:

• Creates diary entry: "Pruned"
• Can add notes (what was removed)
• Links to photos if uploaded
• Tracks pruning frequency

Best Practice: Prune during active growth season (spring/summer), use clean, sharp tools.

4. Inspection 🔍

Regular Health Checks

Default Frequency: Weekly

Common Patterns:

• Daily (high-value or struggling plants)
• Weekly (most plants)
• Bi-weekly (low-maintenance plants)
• Monthly (very low-maintenance)

Smart Features:

• Health checklist: Guided inspection (leaves, stems, soil, pests)
• Issue detection: Prompts for problems found
• Photo documentation: Encourages progress photos
• Trend tracking: Monitors health over time

Notification Priority: Medium 🟡

What Happens on Completion:

• Updates "Last Inspected" date
• Creates diary entry: "Inspected"
• Can update health status if changed
• Flags issues for follow-up

Best Practice: Inspect while watering (2-in-1 efficiency), look at underside of leaves for pests!

5. Repotting 🪴

Give Roots More Space

Default Frequency: Annually (spring)

Common Patterns:

• Every 6 months (fast growers)
• Annually (most houseplants)
• Every 2 years (slow growers)
• One-time (no recurrence)

Smart Features:

• Size guide: Suggests pot size increase (2-4 cm larger)
• Soil type: Reminds of preferred soil mix
• Signs checklist: Root-bound indicators (roots out holes, water drains too fast)
• Seasonal timing: Suggests spring (best time)

Notification Priority: Medium 🟡

What Happens on Completion:

• Logs repotting event
• Can record new pot size
• Creates diary entry with photos
• Resets next repotting date

Best Practice: Repot in spring (active growth), go up only 1-2 pot sizes at a time.

6. Pest Check 🐛

Early Detection

Default Frequency: Bi-weekly

Common Patterns:

• Weekly (during pest season: spring/summer)
• Bi-weekly (year-round monitoring)
• Monthly (low-risk plants)

Smart Features:

• Common pests guide: ID spider mites, aphids, mealybugs, scale
• Treatment links: Direct to pest treatment instructions
• Plant Doctor: Quick access to AI diagnosis
• Isolation reminder: Reminds to quarantine if pests found

Notification Priority: Medium 🟡 (becomes High 🟠 if pests previously found)

What Happens on Completion:

• Creates inspection diary entry
• If pests found: Logs pest type, creates treatment plan
• If clear: Marks as healthy
• Tracks pest-free streak

Best Practice: Check underside of leaves, stems, soil surface. Catch pests early = easier treatment!

7. Measure Growth 📏

Track Development

Default Frequency: Monthly

Common Patterns:

• Weekly (fast growers, propagations)
• Bi-weekly (moderate growers)
• Monthly (most plants)
• Quarterly (slow growers)

Smart Features:

• Measurement form: Pre-filled with last measurements
• Growth calculator: Shows growth since last measurement
• Photo reminder: Encourages progress photo
• Milestone alerts: Notifies when milestones reached

Notification Priority: Low 🟢

What Happens on Completion:

• Opens growth record form
• Saves height, width, leaf count
• Updates growth charts
• Creates diary entry: "Measured"

Best Practice: Measure same day each month, after watering (leaves fully extended), from same reference points.

8. Custom Task ✨

Anything Else

Default Frequency: User-defined

Common Custom Reminders:

• Rotate Plant 🔄 - Weekly (even light exposure)
• Clean Leaves 🧹 - Monthly (dust removal)
• Mist Leaves 💦 - Daily (high-humidity plants)
• Check Humidity 💧 - Weekly (tropical plants)
• Apply Neem Oil 🛡️ - Bi-weekly (pest prevention)
• Transplant Seedlings 🌱 - One-time
• Harvest Herbs 🌿 - Weekly (edible plants)
• Change Water 💧 - Every 3 days (propagations)

Smart Features:

• Fully customizable: Title, description, frequency
• Icon picker: Choose custom icon
• Priority: Set importance level
• Template-able: Save as template for reuse

Notification Priority: User-defined (Low, Medium, High, Critical)

What Happens on Completion:

• Creates diary entry with custom task name
• Can add notes and photos
• Reschedules based on your frequency

Best Practice: Use for tasks not covered by other types, be specific in title/description.

Type-Specific Features

Dosage/Amount Fields

Available For:

• Watering (e.g., "500ml", "Until drainage")
• Fertilizing (e.g., "15ml liquid fertilizer", "2 tbsp granular")
• Custom tasks (e.g., "3 sprays neem oil")

Benefits: Consistency, tracking consumption, reorder alerts

Seasonal Activation

Available For:

• Fertilizing (spring/summer only)
• Repotting (spring recommended)
• Custom tasks (e.g., "Outdoor - Summer Only")

How It Works: Reminder auto-pauses outside active season, resumes when season returns.

Weather Integration

Available For:

• Watering (skip if rain)
• Pest Check (increase in humid weather)
• Custom outdoor tasks

How It Works: PlantKeeper checks forecast, adjusts reminder or suggests skip.

Combining Reminder Types

Full Care Schedule Example

Monstera Deliciosa (Medium Maintenance):

1. Watering 💧 - Every 7 days
2. Fertilizing 🧪 - Monthly (Apr-Sep)
3. Inspection 🔍 - Weekly
4. Pruning ✂️ - Quarterly
5. Repotting 🪴 - Annually (spring)
6. Pest Check 🐛 - Bi-weekly
7. Measure Growth 📏 - Monthly
8. Custom: Rotate 🔄 - Weekly

Total: 8 reminders for comprehensive care

Minimal Care Schedule Example

Snake Plant (Low Maintenance):

1. Watering 💧 - Every 14 days
2. Fertilizing 🧪 - Quarterly (spring/summer)
3. Inspection 🔍 - Monthly

Total: 3 reminders (perfectly manageable!)

💡 Tips & Tricks

Start with Essentials

New to Reminders? Start with:

1. Watering (must-have)
2. Inspection (catch problems early)
3. Add more as you get comfortable

Don't Over-Schedule: Too many reminders = notification fatigue

Use Templates by Plant Type

Succulent Template:

• Water: Every 14 days
• Fertilize: Quarterly
• Inspect: Monthly

Tropical Template:

• Water: Every 3-5 days
• Fertilize: Monthly (growing season)
• Inspect: Weekly
• Mist: Daily (custom)

Prioritize Correctly

Priority Guidelines:

• 🔴 Critical: Overdue watering on wilting plant
• 🟠 High: Regular watering, pest treatment
• 🟡 Medium: Fertilizing, inspection, pruning
• 🟢 Low: Measurements, optional tasks

Benefit: Focus on what truly matters when short on time.

❓ Common Questions

Q: Can I have multiple reminders of the same type?

A: Yes! Example:

• "Quick Water" (every 7 days)
• "Deep Soak" (monthly)

Both are Watering type but different purposes.

Q: Which reminder type is most important?

A: Watering 💧. Plants can survive without fertilizer, but not without water. Start here!

Q: How many reminders should I create per plant?

A: Depends on plant and your commitment:

• Minimum: 1 (watering)
• Recommended: 3-4 (water, fertilize, inspect, measure)
• Comprehensive: 6-8 (all types)

Start small, add more as needed.

Q: Can reminder types have different notification methods?

A: Yes! Configure per type:

• Watering: Push + Email (critical)
• Fertilizing: In-app only (less urgent)
• Measurements: No notifications (do when convenient)

Q: Do I need all 8 types for every plant?

A: No! Use what makes sense:

• High-maintenance plants: 6-8 types
• Low-maintenance plants: 2-3 types
• Adjust based on your routine

🔗 Related Topics

Essential Reading

• Creating Reminders - Step-by-step setup guide
• Managing Reminders - Edit, pause, delete

Related Features

• Reminders Tab - Plant-specific reminder management
• Notifications - Configure alert preferences

Workflows

• Daily Care Routine - Use reminders effectively (future doc)
• Care Consistency - Maximize reminder benefits (future doc)

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