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WordPress Plugin Installation

Install the Phytopedia WordPress plugin to display educational content on your WordPress site.

Requirements​

Before installing, make sure you have:

  • ✅ WordPress 5.0 or higher
  • ✅ PHP 7.4 or higher
  • ✅ MySQL 5.6 or higher
  • ✅ Phytopedia account and API key

Installation Methods​

  1. Download the Plugin

    • Go to admin.phytopedia.co
    • Navigate to Downloads → WordPress Plugin
    • Download phytopedia-plugin-v2.2.1.zip

  2. Upload to WordPress

    • Log in to your WordPress admin panel
    • Go to Plugins → Add New → Upload Plugin
    • Click Choose File and select the downloaded ZIP file
    • Click Install Now

  3. Activate the Plugin

    • Click Activate Plugin after installation
    • You'll be redirected to the setup wizard

Method 2: Manual Installation via FTP​

  1. Download and Extract

    • Download phytopedia-plugin-v2.2.1.zip
    • Extract the ZIP file to a folder named phytopedia

  2. Upload via FTP

    • Connect to your server via FTP
    • Navigate to /wp-content/plugins/
    • Upload the entire phytopedia folder

  3. Activate

    • Go to WordPress admin → Plugins
    • Find Phytopedia in the list
    • Click Activate

Setup Wizard​

After activation, you'll see a 6-step setup wizard:

Step 1: Welcome​

Introduction to Phytopedia features and benefits.

Step 2: API Connection​

  1. Enter your API URL: https://admin.phytopedia.co
  2. Enter your License Key (from admin portal)
  3. Click Verify License
  4. ✅ Connection successful!

Step 3: Layout Settings​

  • Choose Primary Color for your site
  • Select Default View: Grid or List
  • Enable/disable Dark Mode

Step 4: Sidebar Configuration​

  • Show Left Sidebar: Categories and tags
  • Show Right Sidebar: Daily facts and related articles

Step 5: Content Settings​

  • Articles Per Page: Default is 12
  • Show Breadcrumbs: Enable navigation breadcrumbs
  • Show Related Articles: Display related content

Step 6: Complete​

  • Review your settings
  • Click Finish Setup
  • You're ready to go!

Quick Configuration​

If you skip the wizard, manually configure these settings:

Connection Settings​

Go to Phytopedia → Settings → Connection:

API URL: https://admin.phytopedia.co
License Key: [Your key from admin portal]

Click Test API Connection to verify.

Layout Settings​

Phytopedia → Settings → Layout & Design:

  • Primary Color: #2e8555 (or your brand color)
  • Secondary Color: #25c2a0
  • Accent Color: #FC6736
  • Default View: Grid
  • Enable Dark Mode: Yes
  • Show Left Sidebar: Yes
  • Show Right Sidebar: Yes

Verify Installation​

After setup, verify everything works:

1. Check Plugin Status​

  • Go to Phytopedia → Dashboard
  • You should see:
    • ✅ API Connection: Active
    • ✅ License Status: Valid
    • ✅ Categories Synced: 11

2. Add Shortcode to a Page​

Create a new page and add:

[phytopedia_categories]

Preview the page - you should see category cards.

3. Test Daily Fact Widget​

Add to a sidebar or page:

[phytopedia_daily_fact]

You should see a random educational fact.

Troubleshooting​

Plugin Won't Activate​

Error: "Plugin could not be activated because it triggered a fatal error"

Solution:

  1. Check PHP version (must be 7.4+)
  2. Increase PHP memory limit to 256M
  3. Check error logs: wp-content/debug.log

API Connection Failed​

Error: "Could not connect to Phytopedia API"

Solution:

  1. Verify API URL is correct: https://admin.phytopedia.co
  2. Check your license key (no extra spaces)
  3. Ensure your server can make outbound HTTPS requests
  4. Try Test API Connection button again

Categories Not Displaying​

Error: Empty category grid or "No articles found"

Solution:

  1. Go to Phytopedia → Settings → Connection
  2. Click Sync Categories Now
  3. Wait 30 seconds
  4. Refresh your page

CSS Styles Not Loading​

Error: Plugin displays but looks unstyled

Solution:

  1. Hard refresh browser: Ctrl+Shift+R (PC) or Cmd+Shift+R (Mac)
  2. Clear WordPress cache (if using caching plugin)
  3. Go to Phytopedia → Settings → Advanced
  4. Click Clear Plugin Cache

Daily Facts Not Showing​

Error: "Failed to load daily fact"

Solution:

  1. Check API connection is active
  2. Verify shortcode: [phytopedia_daily_fact]
  3. Try adding random="yes" parameter: [phytopedia_daily_fact random="yes"]
  4. Check browser console for JavaScript errors

Manual Database Setup​

If the plugin doesn't create tables automatically:

  1. Go to phpMyAdmin
  2. Select your WordPress database
  3. Run this SQL:
CREATE TABLE IF NOT EXISTS `wp_phytopedia_cache` (
  `id` bigint(20) NOT NULL AUTO_INCREMENT,
  `cache_key` varchar(255) NOT NULL,
  `cache_value` longtext NOT NULL,
  `expires_at` datetime DEFAULT NULL,
  `created_at` datetime DEFAULT CURRENT_TIMESTAMP,
  PRIMARY KEY (`id`),
  UNIQUE KEY `cache_key` (`cache_key`)
) ENGINE=InnoDB DEFAULT CHARSET=utf8mb4;

Replace wp_ with your WordPress table prefix if different.

Next Steps​

Once installed, explore these features:

  1. Shortcodes Reference - Available shortcodes
  2. API Overview - Learn about the API

Need Help?​

Plugin Version: 2.2.1 Last Updated: November 2025