using-grove

Original：🇺🇸 English
Translated

Use when starting feature work that needs isolation from the current workspace, or before executing implementation plans in a Grove-enabled repository

2installs
Sourcechrisbanes/grove
Added on

NPX Install

npx skill4agent add chrisbanes/grove using-grove

Tags

Translated version includes tags in frontmatter
grove-workspaceisolated-developmentcli-commandsworkflow-guidebuild-state-management

SKILL.md Content

View Translation Comparison →
I'm using the using-grove skill to create an isolated workspace with warm build state.

Workflow

Step 1: Verify Grove is initialized

bash
test -f "$(git rev-parse --show-toplevel)/.grove/config.json"
If 
.grove/config.json
is not found: Grove is not initialized in this repo. Use the 
grove:grove-init
skill to set it up first.

Step 2: Verify grove CLI is installed

bash
command -v grove
If not found: Grove CLI is not installed. See https://github.com/chrisbanes/grove for installation instructions.

Step 3: Create workspace

bash
grove create --branch <branch-name> --json
Parse the JSON output for 
path
and 
id
:
json
{
  "id": "abc1",
  "path": "/tmp/grove/myapp/abc1",
  "branch": "agent/fix-login",
  "created_at": "2026-02-17T10:20:00Z",
  "golden_copy": "/Users/chris/dev/myapp"
}

Step 4: Enter the workspace

bash
cd <path-from-json>

Step 5: Verify baseline

Run the project test suite. Auto-detect the test command from marker files:
Marker fileTest command
go.mod
go test ./...
package.json
npm test
Cargo.toml
cargo test
build.gradle
/ 
build.gradle.kts
./gradlew test
pyproject.toml
/ 
requirements.txt
pytest
Makefile
make test
If tests fail, report the failures and ask whether to proceed.

Step 6: Report ready

Grove workspace ready.
  Path:        <workspace-path>
  Branch:      <branch-name>
  Build state: warm (cloned from golden copy)

Quick Reference

CommandPurpose
grove create --branch <name> --json
Create workspace, get JSON output
grove list
List active workspaces
grove destroy <id>
Remove a workspace

Common Mistakes

  • Using plain 
    git worktree
     — worktrees start with a cold build cache. Grove's CoW clone preserves warm build state, making the first build incremental rather than from scratch.
  • Skipping 
    --json
    flag     — the JSON output is required to reliably extract the workspace path and ID for later use.
  • Not verifying grove initialized — 
    grove create
    will fail confusingly if 
    .grove/
    is absent. Always check first.

Red Flags

  • grove create
    errors about uncommitted changes on the golden copy — clean up or commit the golden copy first, or use 
    --force
    if the changes are intentional.
  • Tests fail at baseline — the golden copy's build state is stale. Run 
    grove update
    on the golden copy before creating workspaces.
  • grove
    command not found after install — check PATH; grove installs to 
    $GOPATH/bin
    by default.

Integration

  • Replaces: 
    superpowers:using-git-worktrees
    — prefer this skill in any Grove project. Disable 
    using-git-worktrees
    to avoid conflicts.
  • Called by: 
    superpowers:brainstorming
    (Phase 4), 
    superpowers:subagent-driven-development
    , 
    superpowers:executing-plans
  • Pairs with: 
    grove:finishing-grove-workspace
    — use that skill when implementation is complete and the workspace is ready to clean up.