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HortipriseKnowledge BaseAI Assistant (Sage)
Complete guide to Sage — the full-screen AI assistant workspace with chat, plant health image analysis, demand forecasting, downloadable PDF reports, and usage history
Updated 2026-06-18
15 min read
Meet Sage, your AI assistant
Sage is Hortiprise's built-in AI assistant — a full-screen workspace where you can chat about your nursery, analyse plant health from photos, forecast demand, and revisit everything you've run before. It replaces the older tabbed "AI Hub" with a cleaner, chat-style experience.
What you can do with Sage
- Chat: Ask about your orders, inventory, customers and more in plain language
- Image Analysis: Upload plant photos to detect diseases with confidence scores and treatment advice
- Demand Forecast: Predict upcoming demand from your own sales history
- Usage & History: Reopen past analyses and forecasts at any time
- Download reports: Export branded PDF reports from any analysis or forecast
Opening the workspace
Two ways in
- Sidebar: Click "AI Assistant" in the main dashboard sidebar
- Floating chat: Open the chat bubble (bottom-right of any page) and click the expand icon to jump into the full workspace — your conversation comes with you
Understanding the workspace layout
Layout
- Sidebar: Hortiprise logo, "New chat", the AI Hub tools (Chat, Image Analysis, Demand Forecast, Usage & History), your recent chats, and "Back to dashboard". Collapse it to a slim icon rail to focus on your work.
- Header: The Sage identity and a "New chat" button.
- Main panel: The active tool — chat, image analysis, forecasting, or history.
Access & your plan
Which tools you see depends on your subscription, exactly like the rest of the app:
- Chat and Usage & History are always available.
- Image Analysis appears when your plan includes plant health analysis.
- Demand Forecast appears when your plan includes demand forecasting.
- Admins and internal users see every tool. The backend always enforces your plan, even if a tool is shown.
Tool 1: Chat with Sage
What it does
Chat is a conversational assistant that can answer questions about your nursery data and help you navigate the app. Ask things like "What's my current inventory status?", "Show me my recent orders", or "Who are my top customers?".
How to use Chat
- Start typing in the message box at the bottom, or tap a suggested prompt on the welcome screen (Recent orders, Inventory status, Top customers, Sales this month).
- Press Enter to send (Shift+Enter for a new line).
- Your conversation is kept for the browser session, so you can close and reopen the chat without losing it.
- Click "New chat" to start fresh. Past conversations appear under Recent in the sidebar — open one to continue, or rename/delete it from its menu.
Tool 2: Image Analysis (Plant Health)
What it does
Image Analysis uses computer-vision AI to inspect photos of your plants and detect diseases, pests and other issues — returning the plant name, disease, severity, a confidence score, the affected area, and a full treatment plan.
How to use Image Analysis
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Add photos:
- Click "Upload" to choose files, or use camera capture on mobile to snap a photo directly.
- You can add multiple images at once; each appears as a card in the queue.
- Supported formats: JPG, PNG, WEBP — up to 10 MB per image.
- For best results use clear, well-lit photos that focus on the affected leaves.
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Run the analysis:
- Click the "Analyze N photos" button. Photos are processed one by one — nothing is sent until you press it.
- Each card shows its status (pending, analysing, done, or failed). You can retry a failed image or remove any image.
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Review the result for each image:
- Summary: plant name, detected disease, severity, confidence and affected area
- Disease detection: cause and symptoms
- Treatment recommendations: cultural practices, chemical treatment, prevention tips, and organic controls
- If the AI can't identify a plant or disease, you'll see a "No plant issue detected" note — try a clearer photo.
- Download the report: Click "Download report" to export a branded PDF containing the photo, the findings, the treatment plan and a disclaimer (see "Downloadable reports" below).
Tips for better analysis
- Use clear, focused, well-lit images (natural daylight is best).
- Fill the frame with the affected leaves, stems or fruit.
- Add a few angles of the same plant for a fuller picture.
- Always confirm critical treatment decisions with a qualified agronomist.
Tool 3: Demand Forecast
What it does
Demand Forecast analyses your own sales and order history to project upcoming demand, so you can plan production and inventory with confidence.
You need data first
Forecasts are built entirely from your recorded sales & orders. Without enough order history a reliable forecast can't be produced — keep logging your sales to improve accuracy over time.
How to use Demand Forecast
- Choose a forecast period: 1 week, 1 month, 3 months or 6 months.
- Pick crops (optional): All crops are included by default; tap crop chips to focus on specific ones.
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Set options:
- Account for seasonality — factor in seasonal patterns.
- Weather-aware — enhance the forecast with weather; enter a location when enabled.
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Generate forecast and review the results:
- Projected growth percentage and the period covered
- Historical performance: total sales, orders, items sold and average order value
- Projected demand chart over the selected period
- Recommendations and a written summary
- Download the report as a branded PDF, or click Regenerate to run it again.
Getting accurate forecasts
- Record orders consistently — more history means better predictions.
- Re-run forecasts regularly to keep production aligned with demand.
- Enable seasonality (and weather, with a location) for seasonal crops.
- Compare forecasts to what actually happened to build trust over time.
Tool 4: Usage & History
What it does
Usage & History keeps a record of every plant analysis and demand forecast you've run, so you can reopen past results on the go.
How to use it
- Browse the chronological list of past runs, each showing the feature, a short preview, when it ran, and how long it took.
- Filter by All, Plant Health or Demand Forecast. The cards at the top show how many of each you've run this month.
- Open any item to see the full result re-rendered exactly as before — including the original photo for plant analyses.
- Download the report for any past analysis or forecast straight from the detail view.
- Use the pagination controls to move through older entries.
Tip
Note: only your most recent uploads are guaranteed to keep their stored image. Very old analyses may show "Image no longer available" while still keeping the full text result.
Downloadable PDF reports
Branded, shareable reports
Both Image Analysis and Demand Forecast let you download a professional PDF — from the live result or from Usage & History. Every report includes:
- The Hortiprise logo and a "Generated using Sage via Hortiprise" header
- The full findings (and the plant photo for image analysis)
- A contact footer with email, phone and address
- An AI disclaimer reminding you to seek professional guidance
Reports are generated in your browser and download instantly.
Best practices
Get the most from Sage
- Analyse plant health proactively — early detection prevents big losses.
- Run demand forecasts monthly to keep production on track.
- Keep your orders and sales up to date — they power both forecasting and chat answers.
- Reopen past runs in Usage & History to track trends over time.
- Always validate AI recommendations with agricultural expertise.
- Download and file reports for record-keeping and team sharing.
Troubleshooting
Common problems and solutions
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Image won't upload:
- Check the file size (max 10 MB) and format (JPG, PNG, WEBP).
- Ensure a stable internet connection.
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"No plant issue detected":
- Use a clearer, well-lit photo focused on the affected area.
- Try a different angle.
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Forecast won't generate:
- You likely don't have enough order history yet — record more sales and try again.
- Confirm your plan includes demand forecasting.
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A tool isn't showing:
- Image Analysis and Demand Forecast appear only when your plan includes them. Upgrade your plan or ask your admin.
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Report image missing in history:
- Older images may no longer be stored; the text result is still available and downloadable.
Important disclaimer
AI is a tool, not a replacement. Sage is highly capable but its results can be inaccurate or incomplete. Always verify critical decisions with a qualified agronomist or advisor — especially for pest/disease treatment, major production changes, and significant business or financial decisions. Treat AI insights as one input among many.