Limited and Disappointing
Response from developer
Thank you for the detailed feedback, and I’m sorry the app felt frustrating for your project. We're a small team building Sow, feedback like this is exactly what shapes our roadmap. I have some good news: based on your feedback we released an update that includes several things you asked for: ✓ Bloom times included in the "Plants / Objects" menu ✓ Group scale and delete functions in Plant Editor ✓ Improved selection, dragging, resizing controls in Plant Editor ✓ Adding plants now auto-adjusts their dimensions based on their real world size Plant auto-detection (to remove existing plants, for example) from an existing photo is on our list but requires deeper work to get right. We're also working to expand whats included in the My Plan/Garden Planner. Your suggestions are great, you're clearly the exact type of experienced user we're building this for. Sow is improving quickly, if you're open to being a beta tester for upcoming features, I'd love to connect: dan@usesow.com Update when you get a chance and let me know how the new release is working out. 🌱
Nice App, But AI? Really?
Response from developer
Thank you for the thoughtful feedback — and for caring about the environment. We share your concern about environmental impact. To clarify a misconception: the vast majority of Sow's features don't use AI. Its a minority of the experience, used selectively for things like design inspiration — features many of our users find genuinely valuable for getting outside and doing more with their outdoor spaces. On the duplicate plant listings — that's fair and helpful feedback. We've just released an update that should fix this. We hope you'll give Sow another look. If you have any other suggestions or feedback, we'd love to help - our team can be reached directly at hello@usesow.com.
Great idea but needs work
First, an iPhone screen is too small to design and manage a property on. Potentially having an iPad version would help but it likely also needs a web-based login so you can work on a full screen.
Second, despite a button to upload my own floor plan, I did not find a way to do this successfully. That button just generated another map based on the Google Maps screenshot. The problem with the Google Maps screenshot is it’s dated and before my major renovation. So nothing applies.
Next, even if I went with the “automatically generated” layouts, I didn’t see a way to edit and remove or adjust the plants it suggested. Maybe I gave up too quickly but that just means the UI isn’t intuitive enough.
It’s too game-ified. I’m not looking to win badges or compete against other players. That’s what games are for. I’m looking to design and manage the landscaping of my properties.
Wishing you guys luck in making this an even better app in the future. It’s a great idea. 💡
Response from developer
Thanks for the thoughtful feedback, Peter. We hear you on the challenges of designing/managing on an iPhone screen. Just so you're aware, we have a web version (usesow.com) available that you might find easier to use. Hope you get a chance to try it out and let us know what you think. The app has also been updated so you can now use any image on your phone, so you aren't blocked when standard Google Maps screenshots get outdated. Would love to hear more if your open to it. We move quickly on user feedback, feel free to email us anytime at hello@usesow.com 💚
Addictive
Response from developer
Thanks for the review, we're glad you're enjoying it!
Cool idea but AI is bad.
Response from developer
Hi there, thank you for the feedback and trying Sow. We have pet-safe plant filters in the app, but your right, they were too hard to use/discover. We've made them better integrated into the design workflow and easier to find: tap the green + button, choose Tag Design, and you'll see a Pet Safe badge. Including that tag will make sure every plant in your design is pet-safe. Hope you'll give it another try for your pup's garden — it should work the way you expected now. 🌿 We'd love to hear how its going at hello@usesow.com (or any other feedback you may have!).
Useless
Response from developer
Hi Donna, Thank you for the feedback — and I completely understand the frustration of seeing an empty lot where your home now stands. Sow relies on third-party satellite imagery providers, so unfortunately we don't have control over how frequently those images are updated. I'm sorry this impacted your experience. The good news is that most of Sow's features work independently of the satellite view — you can upload your own photos of your yard to create designs, browse plant recommendations tailored to your space, and use the seed calendar to plan and track what you're growing throughout the season. I hope those tools still make Sow worthwhile for you, and thank you for giving it a try! If you have other feedback or feature ideas, I'd genuinely love to hear them — reach out anytime at dan@usesow.com. As a small team, every user's input has a real chance of shaping what we build next.
Wish it auto-saved designs
1. Many of the plant images are not full plants, just a snippet of the plant’s flowers or a cluster of branches. This makes it really hard to visualize the actual size and shape of a plant. I have just been substituting other varieties in this case but it’s really annoying.
2. I wish the editor auto-saved your design. Today I spent an hour on one design, got a phone call and went back to it after only to find it had not saved my progress. All my other editing apps (like Canva, etc) auto-save works so this doesn’t happen.
Response from developer
Thank you so much for this, we're happy to hear it's standing out compared to what else is on the market. You've hit on two things that we've also been super focused on. 1. Plant images — you're right, a lot of them were closer shots of the plants. We've recently updated our library with thousands of new images that are all full height images of plants. Hope you find them useful! 2. Editor design saves — good news, the editor now auto-saves! You don't need to worry about manually saving, it will always save what you've done so its ready for you to pick back up later. Thanks for the great suggestions. We'd love to hear more about your experience if your open to it, reach out anytime at dan@usesow.com. We'd be happy to share previews about whats coming up next. 🌱 Thanks again for giving Sow a try!
Handy around the yard
Response from developer
Thanks so much for the kind words and the 10/10! 🌱
Best app for landscape planning!
Response from developer
Thanks for the review! So glad it feels like real landscape planning to you.
Would give zero stars
Response from developer
Hi Katie — really sorry for the rough first impression! We caught a launch bug and pushed a fix to the App Store right away. I hope you'll give Sow another shot after updating. And if you ever need anything, we're always here at hello@usesow.com.
Apps closes immediately after opening
Response from developer
Thanks for reporting this, and I’m really sorry about the crash. A recent update caused the app to close on launch for a short time, but we’ve already fixed it. Please update to the latest version and try again. If anything still isn’t working, feel free to email me directly at dan@usesow.com and I’ll help. If the issue is resolved, we’d really appreciate it if you’d consider updating your review.
Terrible
Response from developer
Hi Amber — thank you for the honest feedback, and I'm sorry it didn't click for you. We'd love to help you get a better result. One thing worth knowing — Sow has a manual design tool ("Plant Editor") that let you place plants exactly where you want them, so you're not reliant on a layout you don't like. Feel free to reach out at dan@usesow.com — happy to help troubleshoot and get you designs you're happy with.
Did not work
Response from developer
Hi Jess — sorry about that. We looked into it and you happened to coincide with an outage on a third-party service Sow relies on. It's been rock solid since. We've made the app now clearly communicate when this service is down so, if it happens again, you won't be left wondering whats going on. Hope you'll give us another shot. Feel free to reach out at dan@usesow.com with any other feedback, we want to make sure you have a great experience.
Setting up an account was frustrating
Response from developer
Thanks so much for sharing this, and I’m sorry the sign-up process got stuck for you. We know how frustrating it is to have to restart onboarding, and that’s not the experience we want for anyone trying Sow for the first time. We’ve improved account setup now so this shouldn't happen again. We really appreciate you sticking with it and continuing to try out the app.
No way to change your mind
Response from developer
Thank you for this detailed feedback, and I'm sorry for the confusing experience. First, to put your mind at ease: you will not be charged. The X button doesn't start a trial, it simply takes you to the free version of the app. No payment method was collected, so there's nothing to cancel on your end. That said, your feedback is valid. We've made the in app experience clearer now. If you'd like to give us another look, the app is completely free to use without a subscription. Either way, we appreciate you taking the time to write this review.
All in One Design & plant care App! Game changer!
I do designs for clients , as well as maintain a fairly large garden myself . I’m also a mother to 2 boys & a blue heeler- and being able to design easily from my phone is a must, while also keeping tracking of my own garden layout and tasks is incredible. The designs also allow you to download a pdf packet which shows a bloom calendar , and plant care guide for clients ! Absolutely incredible ! 10/10
Response from developer
Jennica, thank you for this incredibly detailed review - we're a small team building Sow, feedback like this is exactly what shapes our roadmap. I have some good news: we just pushed an update this week that includes several things you asked for: ✓ Bloom calendar PDF export - with photos and plant names ✓ Plant names visible in the calendar view - no more clicking each colored box ✓ Undo/redo in the plant editor ✓ Plant locking - so you stop accidentally warping things (tap the lock icon to try it out) ✓ Better zoom/pan/resize - you can now move around easier while zoomed in and plants can shrink smaller Landscape orientation is on our list but requires deeper architectural changes - it's coming. Your other ideas are also great - showing plants across all four seasons, export seasonal care instructions and purchase options - I've added them to the longer-term roadmap. You're clearly the exact type of professional we're building this for. If you're open to being a beta tester for upcoming features, I'd love to connect: dan@usesow.com Update when you get a chance and let me know how the new features work for your workflow. 🌱
So much potential & I like the direction
Hi guys! So- I do garden designs and installations for clients. I’m also a mom to 2 boys and a blue heeler with my own garden to up keep as well so doing designs on my phone is so helpful. Currently, I use Freeform & remove background images myself in order to create my designs . I then create my own bloom calendar for the clients , as well as a reference key by manually labeling each plant by letter so the client knows which plants are which. I have been looking for an app that does what I need it to do, and this is the first app I have come across that is heading in the right direction . First off, I want to say that this app has the largest selection of varieties and hybrids of plants that I’ve seen so far. And I love all of the different mail-order shops that are integrated into it as I’m familiar with many of them, but overall, the app isn’t quite there yet but it’s close. I tried the AI feature and it was not good at all. The scale was incredibly off and placement was so random- So I ended up using the “Plant Editor” feature as it is very close to what I currently do with my designs in free form. I did enjoy the AI “auto enhance” feature within the editor. Most suggestions below are pertaining to the Plant editor feature.
Here are some basic things that I feel the app is lacking:
-offer the option for the background photo to be landscape when uploading, not just a perfect square. This is a landscaping app after all right?💁🏼♀️(most important and might be a deal breaker for me)
-don’t automatically add every single saved version to “designs” as it clutters it up. Allow for the user to select which version to save to their designs (and then as you currently have, choose from there which design to post to the feed).
-Allow for the user to upload their own plant photos with backgrounds removed.
-Many of the plants that are very short , cannot be shrunk small enough to be of proper scale to the background image. Like lewisia for example.
-Back button in the plant editor.
-Allow for shadows and cropping of existing plant images.
-Allow plants to be “locked” into place so I’m not accidentally warping them when moving them around.
-Allow the user to move around in the design while zoomed in . I had to keep zooming out, then moving right or left and zooming back in, in order to edit the design up close . I was not able to zoom in close to the outer edges of the background photo.
-Gearing the app a bit more towards people who do designs for others - not just themselves .
-Having the bloom calendar show which plants it is referring to in one view vs having to click on each colored box to see what plant the colored box is referring to.
-The ability to export the bloom calendar as a pdf (with photos and plant names).
-The ability to export seasonal care instructions - as well as basic care instructions for all plants included in a particular design.
-A digital export of all above requests , along with the stores of which clients could purchase those plants with direct links.
-What no other plant design app or software offers: If you are able to include photo/plant options of what each plant looks like in all four seasons (4 plant photos per plant), and be able to also filter through plant photos by season as well, that would be incredible and would be able to provide a realistic look for each season, instead of showing all plants included bloom at the same time , making designs look so busy. I have been searching for an app that can show me fall foliage and what plants look like not in bloom, to provide a better estimation of bloom succession rather than having to reference a bloom calendar. And then down the road, to have the ability to play a little loop video to show how the plants will change between the seasons would be so amazing!!
-Map feature didn’t work well either as it just showed Google Maps & was way too “far away” in order to edit with the given tools in anyway.
So much potential & I like the direction
Here are some basic things that I feel the app is lacking:
-offer the option for the background photo to be landscape when uploading, not just a perfect square. This is a landscaping app after all right?💁🏼♀️(most important and might be a deal breaker for me)
-don’t automatically add every single saved version to “designs” as it clutters it up. Allow for the user to select which version to save to their designs (and then as you currently have, choose from there which design to post to the feed).
-Allow for the user to upload their own plant photos with backgrounds removed.
-Many of the plants that are very short , cannot be shrunk small enough to be of proper scale to the background image. Like lewisia for example.
-Back button in the plant editor.
-Allow for shadows and cropping of existing plant images.
-Allow plants to be “locked” into place so I’m not accidentally warping them when moving them around.
-Allow the user to move around in the design while zoomed in . I had to keep zooming out, then moving right or left and zooming back in, in order to edit the design up close . I was not able to zoom in close to the outer edges of the background photo.
-Gearing the app a bit more towards people who do designs for others - not just themselves .
-Having the bloom calendar show which plants it is referring to in one view vs having to click on each colored box to see what plant the colored box is referring to.
-The ability to export the bloom calendar as a pdf (with photos and plant names).
-The ability to export seasonal care instructions - as well as basic care instructions for all plants included in a particular design.
-A digital export of all above requests , along with the stores of which clients could purchase those plants with direct links.
-What no other plant design app or software offers: If you are able to include photo/plant options of what each plant looks like in all four seasons (4 plant photos per plant), and be able to also filter through plant photos by season as well, that would be incredible and would be able to provide a realistic look for each season, instead of showing all plants included bloom at the same time , making designs look so busy. I have been searching for an app that can show me fall foliage and what plants look like not in bloom, to provide a better estimation of bloom succession rather than having to reference a bloom calendar. And then down the road, to have the ability to play a little loop video to show how the plants will change between the seasons would be so amazing!!
-Map feature didn’t work well either as it just showed Google Maps & was way too “far away” in order to edit with the given tools in anyway.
Response from developer
Jennica, thank you for this incredibly detailed review - we're a small team building Sow, feedback like this is exactly what shapes our roadmap. I have some good news: we just pushed an update this week that includes several things you asked for: ✓ Bloom calendar PDF export - with photos and plant names ✓ Plant names visible in the calendar view - no more clicking each colored box ✓ Undo/redo in the plant editor ✓ Plant locking - so you stop accidentally warping things (tap the lock icon to try it out) ✓ Better zoom/pan/resize - you can now move around easier while zoomed in and plants can shrink smaller Landscape orientation is on our list but requires deeper architectural changes - it's coming. Your other ideas are also great - showing plants across all four seasons, export seasonal care instructions and purchase options - I've added them to the longer-term roadmap. You're clearly the exact type of professional we're building this for. If you're open to being a beta tester for upcoming features, I'd love to connect: dan@usesow.com Update when you get a chance and let me know how the new features work for your workflow. 🌱
Dead Internet Theory!!
I really want to like it, but
Response from developer
We're sorry to hear we haven't met your expectations. The app has had several improvements which make it faster and more stable. You can also easily change your address or use your own satellite images in the Map Editor. If your open to it, we would love to hear more about which plants you felt were not classified correctly (or any other suggestions or areas for improvement); accuracy in our library is critical and we are always looking for ways to improve the user experience. Our email is hello@usesow.com. Thanks for trying Sow and for your feedback!