or is it me? I've posted 3 to 4 questions lately here and have zero replies. I've found that some of these website with forums have very old posts, nobody really using them but I see recently added posts here. Anyone else have the same experience?

I think it's because it such a huge site, it's hard to visit ALL the sub-forums and threads every single visit, so there are not posts every day on every sub or thread. I've only been a member for a couple of years, but that's my observation. I tend to just visit 4-5 sub-forums regularly, the ones I'm most interested in, and occasionally delve into new subs when I have the time. But FWIW, this website is a LOT more active than my Houzz Texas Gardenweb site these days. There I'm lucky to see a dozen posts a day there and those comments/questions are posted (nowadays) by a very few members. As recently as a year ago it was a fairly active forum. I thought COVID quarantinine would increase member posting, but it seems to have had the opposite effect on that forum. I've not seen that change on this forum.

whirichardson said:or is it me? I've posted 3 to 4 questions lately here and have zero replies. I've found that some of these website with forums have very old posts, nobody really using them but I see recently added posts here. Anyone else have the same experience?

I think it really depends on which subforum you are posting in. Some are far more active than others.

there are just too many sub-forums

Have you checked your discussions? I saw one without a reply, and although I didn't have any suggestions, I replied.

The forum list page indicates the date and time something was last posted to each forum. I doubt many gardeners visit all of them but each has something going on, and as said, some are more active than others. Folks' interest in various plants varies. The slower forums still have merit because one can have a reaaaaaalllly long discussion and watch the progress of something over the course of years without too much trouble finding the discussion periodically.

Traditionally, garden forums are about as seasonal as actual gardening, just ramping up for the season at this time of year from the usual winter sluggishness. And forums are not like FB, where 76 people say the exact same thing within 18 minutes. Here it's more usual to just click the thumb-up and not add another post unless one has something additional to say.

If you ask a question about a specific plant, try to put the botanical name in the subject line if you know it. That will save time and confusion.

In case you haven't checked them out yet, please allow me a minute to point out some of my fav things about this site. The plant database is outstanding, and under constant maintenance, updates, and receiving new contributions every day.
https://garden.org/plants/

You can add plants that you own, or want, or used to have to a personal list that this site will store for you for free. Each plant has an "add this plant to your list" button to make list-building easy. This eliminates the need for saving those plastic tags that come with plants, trying to make a list on your device that could be lost, or old-school paper list, or risk of forgetting if you were going to just remember your plants' names. You can add notes to each plant for anything you want to remember. If your list gets complicated, you can make sub-categories for anything like a to-do list, to track which are in your landscape vs. potted houseplants, early vs. late bloomers - whatever categories you might personally have for plants on your list.

Best luck with your peppers!

The dahlias sub forum is busy!

I look at the question forum every day, but know very few answers. There are just so many plants in so many climates and they have so many problems. If I have a suggestion, even a lame one, I reply.
I also look at greenhouse and hydroponic forums if there is something new, but have very little to contribute.
Tomatoes, peppers, melons and general vegetables are popular, and of course, lots of traffic in the Sandbox.

I have found lots of info within the forums. it depends I guess on what you're looking for. I could easily spend an entire day jumping from forum to forum. learn something new every day.

I have been here for years and find the larger my garden and busier I get the less time I have for the computer .
However I do visit many forums in season Like the iris popping now and then the daylily, then the dahlias..............
and I park on herbs one of my favorites and perennials to see whats blooming and what other gardeners are doing.


There is a lot to learn here, the opportunity to be helpful to other gardeners,and to show off your garden.

Hope you can find your place in this wonderful garden of ideas.


Cinda

I'm really surprised you had that experience, because there are hundreds of us dying to talk garden or houseplant or oak tree... I'm so glad you didn't give up!

A lot of the specific sub- forums aren't as active as the more general "help I've never had a plant before And I don't know where this belongs" general forums,

But I do get best advice from the Specific sub forums, even if you're question can sometimes get lost in ongoing conversations. The nice thing is, people who don't know, don't talk gibberish, so they may read your question, but if they don't know, won't clutter up you're thread with "who knows, hope you figure it out" posts, and that's excellent internet etiquette.

Perhaps your postings are so unusual no one knows the answer????

I'm not sure I understand, these are all the threads you started and each one has replies.
https://garden.org/users/threa...

If you have an interest in aroids we are ALWAYS looking for fresh faces

Calif_Sue said:I'm not sure I understand, these are all the threads you started and each one has replies.
https://garden.org/users/threa...

Whats funny was after I posted this question here I started getting some replies about my Peppers, etc. Someone moved it to the Veggies forum. Maybe using "Ask a question" is not the right way to get answers. I have used some of the forums that seem to be the best option for my questions and searching subjects is helpful too.

Another thing maybe someone can help me here, I posted this question and I didn't have any notifications that so many of you replied? I didn't see that there were replies in the little bell thing for System messages. Most forums I belong to have email notification as the default when you post to the forum or like my Reddits.

But thanks for providing some feedback and encouragement here!

System messages is only for letting you know you got a thumbs up for a post, a confirmation that an image or data details you added have been added to the database, or a message from the site/admin, not to let you there have been replies to your threads. For that, you need to always start at the Home page and all new posts for your threads or any threads you have commented it show up at the top.
If you want to add additional comments to your thread after you have already read them (so now they will not be at the top of the Home page until someone else adds to it) you can go to your profile (the little blue person icon at the top) and click on your posts and then threads you started.

At the bottom of any page is the Help using the site which I've linked for you here.

Also, the Ask A Question is one of our most active forums so it's a great place to post. Admin then often moves the threads to the relevant forum but only of it's active enough, otherwise it can just sit there without any response. The reason to move it out of the AAQ forum is because it's such an active forum that the new posts quickly slide down as more and more new threads are started. By moving certain threads like veggie questions, they are also helpful to future visitors that may have similar questions and now they are all in one specific forum.

whirichardson said:
Most forums I belong to have email notification as the default when you post to the forum or like my Reddits.

Only the AAQ forum has the option to request an email when you get a reply as so many new members start there and often it's their only post. I believe it also continues with email notifications even if that thread question is moved to another forum.
There is no way I would want an email each and every time I post in any forum and it gets a reply!

whirichardson said:


Another thing maybe someone can help me here, I posted this question and I didn't have any notifications that so many of you replied? I didn't see that there were replies in the little bell thing for System messages.
But thanks for providing some feedback and encouragement here!

Click on the dude next to the bell; then click on "your posts" and you will see which post you put have a new post.

RpR said:
Click on the dude next to the bell; then click on "my posts" and you will see which post you put have a new post.

Or you can just go to the Home page.

Calif_Sue said:

Or you can just go to the Home page.

"Your posts" gives dates and is far easier than scanning waaaaay down the home page.

RpR said:
"Your posts" gives dates and is far easier than scanning waaaaay down the home page.

If someone has a new post to their thread, it's at the very top of the Home page.
You only have a lot of scanning 'way down' if you are following or have commented in a lot of threads and forums (threads in your Thread Watcher:) but the question here was regarding your own threads you started. .