Bloom Clock/How bloom clocks work

Bloom clocks are always works in progress, and improve steadily over time as more logs are added. Traditionally, a bloom clock is kept by a particular person (or group of people) for a particular place (such as a garden, park, or preserve). The Wikiversity Bloom Clock is unusual in that it's intended as a global bloom clock for every plant and every region.

As logs are added to a bloom clock over time, they improve in three ways, becoming ever more sound, complete, and accurate.

Soundness
"Soundness" is actually a logical or mathematical concept, but applies very well to bloom clocks. A clock can be called "sound" when its predictions (e.g., that a particular plant will bloom at a particular time in a particular region) are true. This property of the clock relies solely on the reliability of the contributors.

Completeness
"Completeness" is another logical and mathematical concept, which likewise applies well to bloom clocks. A clock can be called "complete" when every plant that's blooming at a particular time and in a particular place is predicted to do so by the clock. This property of the clock relies on the volume and frequency of contributions.

Accuracy
"Accuracy", in this sense, means that the clock makes ever finer distinctions in both time and place. For example, knowing that a particular plant will bloom somewhere in North America during the summer could be both sound and complete (but not particularly accurate), but knowing that a certain plant will flower during the first week of June in Paris is accurate. Accuracy relies both on the reliability of the logs and the volume and frequence of contributions, and for a global clock like this one will also need contributors from as many regions as possible. The more accurate the clock, the harder it is to make it sound and complete.