April 2025
Research, UX/UI Designer
Personal Project
Greenthumb
Plant care rooted in simplicity and support
Timeline
Role
PROBLEM
New plant owners feel overwhelmed and unsure how to care for their plants. Existing apps are either too technical or outdated. This leads to user frustration, plant neglect, and low app retention.
The key problems identified were:
Poor app usability for beginners
No community or support system
Difficultly diagnosing plant issues
New plant parents often lack the tools, support, and knowledge to care confidently
“How might I build trust between the user and the app as a reliable plant care companion?”
SOLUTION
Solving plant care challenges with Greenthumb
Greenthumb is a user-friendly platform designed to make plant care accessible and enjoyable for beginners. By providing clear guidance, personalized care routines, and a supportive community, Greenthumb helps new plant owners build confidence and establish lasting plant care habits.
Greenthumb simplifies plant care through:
Personalized care plans based on plant type and environment
Simple, calming interface with guided tips
Community support to build trust and connection
How the problem was addressed:
Personalized Care Plans
Tailored care schedules and tips based on the user’s plants, environment, and lifestyle.
Drives daily active use
Community Support
A built-in community offers guidance and motivation from fellow plant owners.
Increases session time and creates emotional buy-in
Key Insight from Competitive Analysis:
Existing apps each offer something valuable, but none fully support the beginner journey, Planty lacks depth, Blossom overwhelms with information, and Plant Parent feels outdated. Greenthumb fills this gap with a clean, calming design, personalized care, and community support making it the ideal solution for young, busy plant lovers seeking ease, encouragement, and connection.
Smoothing Interface
Simple design for easy navigation and clear instructions.
Makes the app more likely to be recommended or shared
RESEARCH
User Persona & Competitive Analysis
User Interviews
I interviewed 4 new plant owners (ages 18–30). Found that:
Users want clear, consistent guidance
Overwhelm leads to low app usage
People crave reassurance and a supportive space
Research Questions:
What challenges do beginner plant owners face when caring for their plants?
How do users currently manage and track plant care tasks like watering or repotting?
What motivates or discourages users from maintaining consistent plant care habits?
What features do users find most helpful or frustrating in existing plant care apps?
INSIGHTS
PROJECT OVERVIEW
Greenthumb is a beginner-friendly plant care app designed to simplify routines, build user confidence, and encourage long-term engagement through personalized plans, intuitive design, and a supportive community.
Main Insights
Beginners feel overwhelmed by too much technical information and lack confidence in knowing if they’re doing things right.
Inconsistent advice and reminders across apps lead to confusion and poor plant care habits.
Users want simplicity and clarity, with easy-to-follow care guidance tailored to their specific plants.
There’s a desire for encouragement and connection, not just features users want reassurance and a sense of community.
These insights highlighted that a better user experience could directly improve long-term user retention and increase satisfaction metrics that are vital to the growth of a subscription-based or freemium plant care app.
USER PERSONA
DESIGN
Designing Greenthumb: Simple, Soothing, Smart
These early wireframes prioritize usability, focusing on key actions like plant care tracking, daily reminders, tailored plant information, community engagement, and an easy onboarding process, all in a minimalist design.
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Personalized Care Plan
Community
Support
Intuitive
Interface
Custom schedules based on plant type, environment, and user habits
Clear, actionable tips tailored to each plant’s needs
Smart reminders to stay on track with watering, repotting, and more
Supportive tone and design that makes beginners feel welcomed
In-app forum for users to ask questions, share tips, and connect
Simple UI with gentle visuals and calming colors
Easy onboarding to help users get started without confusion
Easy-to-follow navigation focused on primary tasks
TESTING & IMPROVEMENTS
User feedback highlighted the need for a smoother entry point, so a sign-in screen was added to improve onboarding and personalize the experience. Minor layout tweaks were also made based on usability testing to enhance clarity and flow.
PROJECTED IMPACT
If implemented, Greenthumb could significantly improve user engagement and plant care consistency for beginners. Based on trends from similar wellness and habit-building apps, I estimate:
These projections are based on average improvements seen in apps like Finch and Plant Nanny when they introduced personalization and habit tracking features.
25%
Increase in daily engagement
from personalized reminders
40%
Higher user retention after
4 weeks due to community support
50%
Fewer plant care mistakes
after first month of use
FINAL PRODUCT
Here are some of the key screens:
UI DESIGN
CONCLUSION / LESSONS LEARNED
Greenthumb was designed to empower beginner plant owners with guidance and community while also supporting business goals like user retention, engagement, and long-term growth. Through thoughtful design, the app creates value for both users and the business behind it.
During this project I,
Added community support to build trust and long-term loyalty
Built features that help users stay consistent and improve retention
Kept the design simple and calm to make it easy to use
Conclusion
What I would do differently?
1) Document design iterations more clearly. I’d keep better records of design changes and why they were made to show my thought process.
2) I would also outline specific goals for each design phase to stay more focused and intentional throughout the process.