software & technology – Planet B Gardens

remote hive monitor

Now that the outdoor garden is done for the season, time for more indoor projects. I decided to try my hand at building a remote beehive monitoring system from (almost) scratch. My goal is to build a system that monitors hive weight, temperature and sound levels inside the hive, bee comings and goings (via external camera), ambient temperature, and motion (in case the hive gets knocked over or otherwise disturbed). If all goes as planned, that data will get fed wirelessly to an online dashboard that keeps track of trends over time. I can also set up email or text alerts to let me know if the hive gets tipped or if something else out of

November 17, 2016

spring garden planning

Playing with ideas for the spring garden. There are several cool garden planning programs online. I tested a few and settled on GrowVeg.com. I like the ability to put in structural elements like walkways and raised beds, pergolas, and irrigation (not yet in the plan above). You can also plan for crops in succession and filter by month to see what will be in ground at that time. You can also filter fruits, flowers, vegetables, and herbs to show only those that are typically easier to grow in your zone. 2015 will be the first year with new gardens at Planet B, no doubt accompanied by a huge learning curve. Will keep

January 26, 2015