The Best Gardening and Outdoor Apps

With the bank holidays approaching, now is a great time to get outside and tidy up your garden, balcony or decking area. However big or small your space is, it's easy to make the most of it with some of the latest smartphone and tablet apps. They can help you do everything from planning the perfect bedding areas to remembering to water your plants.

Sun Seeker

We've all had that occasion when we go out on our wrought iron balconies or sit in the garden to catch the sun only to realise the garden's now in shade. There is now a way of combating this issue with the Sun Seeker app. This is a fantastic resource if you want to know which parts of your garden will get the sun and when. It helps you plant the right varieties in the best spots and lets you know the path of the sun at various times of the year. The augmented-reality option allows you to use your camera to see exactly where the sun shines at different points in the day.

Weed ID

If you want to know the difference between a weed and a flower, then this app is ideal, even for those with the most basic of gardening knowledge. It has details on 140 species that grow in the UK and 1,000 images to help you identify what's in your garden.

mySoil

There's nothing worse than planting bulbs or seeds only to find that they don't grow successfully because of your soil type. The mySoil app tells you what the properties of your soil are based on where you live. It includes details on the type, texture, pH level and organic matter.

Garden Manager

This is the perfect app for gardeners who are always forgetting to water or feed their plants. You can spend hours planning the ideal display to view from your wrought iron balconies or patios, but if you never get round to caring for them they can quickly die. With this app you can set alarms and reminders so that you don't miss anything. It also enables you to make notes and keep a check on the progress of your plants.

NatureGate

Simply take a photo of a particular plant's leaf and this app will give you details on it. It can also identify species of butterflies and birds, so you'll know exactly what's in your garden.