Connect Kiro to the PlantDemand MCP Server

Kiro is Amazon’s spec-driven AI IDE. It supports remote HTTP MCP servers through its agent configuration, which means the PlantDemand MCP server can be added the same way as any other remote MCP server.

Before you start

  • An active PlantDemand account with at least one plant configured
  • A Server-Api-Key generated for your account (see SOP 4.1)
  • Kiro installed and working with at least one MCP server already (or this is your first MCP setup — that is fine too)
  • Verify the curl examples in the quickstart work from your network before configuring the client

Configuration

Add the following configuration to Kiro:

{
  "mcpServers": {
    "plantdemand": {
      "url": "https://plantdemand.com/mcp",
      "headers": {
        "Server-Api-Key": "${PLANTDEMAND_SERVER_API_KEY}"
      }
    }
  }
}

Step-by-step setup

  1. Set the PLANTDEMAND_SERVER_API_KEY environment variable in your shell profile (or as a workspace secret).
  2. Open Kiro and go to the MCP / agent settings panel. Add a new MCP server entry with the configuration shown above (or edit the underlying configuration file directly).
  3. Save the configuration. Kiro will probe the MCP server and surface the available tools in the agent panel.
  4. Restart the agent session if the tools do not appear immediately.
  5. In a Kiro chat, ask “use the PlantDemand MCP server to list my plants” to verify the connection.

Verifying the connection

After connecting, ask Kiro:

“List the plants I have access to in PlantDemand.”

If the assistant returns a list of plants, the connection is working. Try a follow-up:

“What is on the schedule for plant [your plant ID] tomorrow?”

Troubleshooting

  • MCP server not appearing: Confirm the JSON syntax in the configuration file. Check the Kiro documentation for the exact configuration path, as it can differ between versions.
  • Authentication errors: Verify the environment variable is set in the same shell that launched Kiro, and that the curl quickstart examples work from your machine.
  • Tools available but not called: Mention “PlantDemand MCP” explicitly in your prompts until Kiro learns the pattern. Adding it to a workspace-level agent rule helps.

Where to go next