Weighing in at about 30 pounds the encyclopedia Flora comes with a CD .
I have not tried to import / export the information into a spread sheet but it may be worth the try.

On another thread it was mentioned that EXCEL spread sheet software was very effective at keeping track of plants in one's garden.

I have the Sunset CD and it comes in handy for quick handouts/ print outs to clients who require simple maintenance tips ect... about their hort- garden installation and plant list ( which usually is handed over to their maintenance gardener and ends up in the compost bin somewhere along the line ) - hence , I don't put much effort into these unless I know it is going to be appreciated and well used.

Check out Horticopia, http://horticopia.com/ . It can do all that and more. It is a great way for clients to see and understand the plants you will be using or give them a choice of plants to use on their project.

Kirk

When I started out I thought that would be great too. BUT, the software costs thousands of dollars. And you'll be hard pressed with the margins in this business to keep itupdated. Aside from that if you have print offs of every plant for every client you get the client and yourself wrapped up in an obsession about every detail. Pare down and do with less. I use a vector program called freehand which is actually software for page layout and other misc graphic design projects. Colour catalogues are great for clients to give them an overview of the plants you usually use. If they want specific info, and they usually don't becuase they havn't a clue how to read plants (that's why they are calling you) send them a couple photos via email if they really need to be sold. The client doesn't give a damn about zones and soils etc. They want to see a beautiful photo of what will be in their yard. Most importantly focus on the plants outside! That is where you get your business. Through word of mouth on the gardens you do for people.