AI is all the rage these days, as artificial intelligence finds its way into just about every aspect of human work and play. Whether this is good or bad is a bit beyond the scope of our simple gardening blog, but we can talk a bit about AI and gardening and how AI tools are used in gardening. As with all gardening tools, AI can be effective if used correctly and safely. So let’s dig in and talk about AI and gardening!
What is AI, Actually?
There’s a lot of hype and disinformation around AI, so let’s take a moment and talk about what it is, and what it isn’t. Artificial intelligence can mean many things, but as used with things like ChatGPT, Claude, and the like, AI is more properly labeled LLM for “large language model”. LLM in turn is a kind of machine learning in which complex algorithms process large amounts of text information in order to generate responses to question and queries from their human users. So essentially they’re a kind of search engine that creates human-sounding responses based on the data they absorb chiefly from online sources.
The Strengths and Weaknesses of AI
AI has a lot going for it as a search tool. It synthesizes large amounts of data into easy-to-read responses and can answer questions in human-sounding language. It feels human, which is why some folks have started pseudo-friendships with AI chatbots. We can’t recommend that, because while AI has its strengths, it also has some drawbacks.
AI lives to please, in that it’s programmed to give you the responses you want without much regard for accuracy or helpfulness Gardeners who are interested in herbalism and herbal medicine have probable heard the warnings about AI-generated herbal manuals or guidebooks, many of which contain inaccurate or dangerous information. In the course of our research for this article, we couldn’t find examples of dangerous advice in gardening, but we did find plenty of examples of inaccurate advice that would result in unhealthy plants or a struggling lawn. We also found plenty of examples of good AI-generated advice that would be quite helpful and effective in application.
Using AI for Gardening
So, is AI a good source of gardening information or not? The only honest answer is “it can be”. There are a number of possible uses for AI in gardening. It could be used to help with scheduling of garden tasks and reminding us when we need to water, add soil amendments, or when to start seeds or transplant seedlings. As a source of information, some cooperative extensions have launched purpose-built gardening chatbots to help users find answers to their gardening questions. These can be quite useful, as they’re implemented by a cooperative extension service and designed to provide responses that are “unbiased, research-based, and peer-reviewed” in order to ensure accuracy and safety.
Regardless of the AI tool in question, should you choose to use AI for gardening advice we recommend considering it as a starting point. By that we mean AI can be a great way to find other sources of information which are vetted, reviewed, and accurate. Gardening is ultimately about the relationship between people and plants, so using tested advice from reliable sources is the best approach. AI can be the gateway to that as a research assistant, but not as a direct source of advice. So, for example, asking an AI for sources—“Where can I learn more about petunias?” rather than direct advice—“Tell me how to grow petunias?”—will likely get you better results. And as with all gardening advice—even ours—checking multiple sources of information and comparing them is always a smart move.
Gardens in an AI World
AI/LLM isn’t going away, but how we related to it and use it will evolve over time. Here at Gardzen, we’re proponents of the philosophy that AI is a tool, and its usefulness should be considered as such. When used in a safe and informed manner, it can be great. When used carelessly, it can be dangerous. AI isn’t something to be afraid of; by making informed decisions in our gardens and elsewhere we can us it to augment human efforts and share human knowledge.
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