PlantApp is a plant observation and identification app that allows users to upload photos of plants, get automatic identification suggestions via the perenual API, and share their observations with a community.
This repo contains the backend API built with Node.js and Express.js, connected to MongoDB and Firebase Storage, and secured with JWT authentication.
- Base URL: [https://plantapp-2mp9.onrender.com]
- API Docs (Swagger UI): [https://plantapp-2mp9.onrender.com/api-docs/]
- 🔑 User Authentication – JWT-based login & signup
- 🌍 Public Observation Feed – browse recent plant posts
- 📸 Observation Posting – upload plant photos (stored on Firebase) with name, location, and notes
- 🌿 Plant Identification – powered by perenual API integration
- 📜 Activity Feed – see your own plant observation history
- 🔎 Search & Filter – by plant name, location, or date
- 🧪 Testing – functional tests with Mocha, Chai, Chai HTTP, and Faker
- 📖 API Documentation – via Swagger
- Backend Framework: Node.js + Express.js
- Database: MongoDB (Atlas)
- Storage: Firebase (for images)
- Authentication: JWT
- Middleware: CORS, Helmet
- API Docs: Swagger
- Testing: Mocha, Chai, Chai HTTP, Faker
- API Client: Postman (for manual testing)
plantapp-backend/
│── src/
│ ├── controllers/ # API controllers
│ ├── db/ # Database connection
│ ├── errors/ # Custom error handlers
│ ├── middleware/ # Auth & security middleware
│ ├── models/ # Mongoose models
│ ├── routes/ # Express routes
│ ├── util/ # Utility functions (Firebase, helpers, etc.)
│ ├── app.js # Express app setup
│ ├── firebase.js # Firebase storage config
│ ├── server.js # Entry point
│ └── firebase-key.json # Firebase service account key
│── tests/ # Functional tests # Environment variables (not committed)
│── .env.example # Example env vars
│── .gitignore
│── .node-version
│── package.json
│── package-lock.json
│── swagger.yaml # API docs (Swagger)
│── README.md
Clone the repo
git clone https://github.com/Code-the-Dream-School/jj-practicum-team-1-back.git
npm installCreate a .env file based on .env.example and add your keys:
MONGO_URI=your_mongodb_connection
JWT_SECRET=your_jwt_secret
JWT_LIFETIME=value
FIREBASE_KEY=your_firebase_key
PLANTNET_KEY=your_plantnet_api_key
PERENUAL_KEY=value
npm run devnpm run testYou can explore endpoints via Swagger UI. Or test with Postman using the base URL:
https://plantapp-2mp9.onrender.com/api/v1Auth POST /api/v1/auth/register – Register new user
POST /api/v1/auth/login – Login & get JWT
Plants GET /api/v1/plants – Public feed of observations
POST /api/v1/plants – Create new observation (auth required)
GET /api/v1/plants/:id – View single observation
PUT /api/v1/plants/:id – Update observation (auth required)
DELETE /api/v1/plants/:id – Delete observation (auth required)
We use Mocha + Chai + Chai HTTP + Faker for functional and integration tests.
Run all tests:
npm run testPlant observation images are stored in Firebase Storage.
Plants metadata (name, notes, location, etc.) is stored in MongoDB.
JWT tokens are issued on login/register.
Protected routes require Authorization: Bearer in the header.
We integrate with the Perenual API for automatic plant identification.
Jaguar Team 1(Code the Dream)
MIT License – feel free to use and contribute.