Re: GPS for Garden Design

**H*@aol.com**

That really depends on how accurate your map has to be.   I've always 
wished I could plant a perennial, take a gps fix and enter into my  plant 
database/inventory.  This would help me update my notes on a specific  plant simply 
by using the 'go to' function the next year or five years from the  date of 
planting to find that specific plant and update my notes.   Unfortunately 
the GPS resolution on consumer units is such that there is usually  a minimum 
of 15 feet margin of error...sometimes more.  That can be a big  area in a 
garden when you're looking for a small plant.  On the other hand  if you are 
working on a five acre property and you'rre trying to find a tree or  shrub 
fifteen feet may not be an issue at all.

As it is I have a GPS on my DSLR that imbeds a GPS fix on each  picture.  
This can be helpful when I'm out in the wild shooting wildflowers  and native 
plants in the field and need to locate the same spot at another time  of 
the year or another year to reshoot the same plant.  But  again...fifteen foot 
margin of error.   That's not  critical when I'm looking for a large colony 
of wild orchids on the forest floor  that covers 200 square feet...but it 
is an issue when I'm trying to find an  isolated Painted Trillium that only 
occupies one square foot.

Not exactly the perfect answer to your question though...just  some issues 
to consider if you do a program that claims to do what you  need.

Andrew Messinger
The Hampton Gardener is a  registered trade mark and is published every 
Thursday in The Southampton Press,  The Press and the Easthampton Press

In a message dated 5/23/2010 6:53:39 P.M. Eastern Daylight Time,  
catriona@catrionatudorerler.com writes:

Does  anyone know of a GPS system that's accurate enough to use for 
mapping  gardens?
Thanks,
Catriona

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