What's happening to the forum?

[alan refail]

Is it just my imagination, or is there a lot less activity on the forum than there used to be? There seem to be fewer visitors and topics are viewed much less often.
I am tempted to ask why people don't visit the forum and make posts - but they wouldn't see the question, would they?
What are other people's feelings? Perhaps the forum needs more exposure in the magazine.

[oldherbaceous]

Morning Alan, it's plain to see.
It's not just you, or even me.
I'm sure this happens, once in a while.
But we just carry on, with a cheeky smile.

I'm not sure, why this should be.
Maybe it's you, or even me.
We try and help, where we can.
But things go wrong, with the best made plan.

Our little slot, in our magazine.
Seems to be smaller, than it's ever been.
I suppose they find it, hard to judge.
As you won't give, and i won't budge.

But with your photos, and useful links.
You are a winner, thats what i thinks.
So is it you, or is it me.
Oh i don't know, and i'm off for tea.

[Catherine]

That's a very good little ditty OH. I must admit I have not been on the forum much recently. I have posted one or two items and then not had time to come back and check on them. My email has not been working properly recently and I have not received notification that there have been replies posted on my items. I will endeavour to do better.

I think there are times when the forum goes quiet but I am sure it will pick up again soon. It usually does.

[Elaine]

Dear OH. Very good little ditty, that! Poetic as well as everything else.....your talents are endless!

I have only been posting on here since February and I have noticed there seems to be fewer people contributing. Someone pops up and I think, "there's a name I haven't seen for a while".
I usually log on every day and it doesn't take as long to read the posts as it used to. As for the magazine, you are most definitely right in saying the amount of coverage the forum has, has decreased. Before we got this infernal machine in January, I always used to read the forums contributions and wonder about the many odd names.....I knew nothing of user names in those days!

Still being a relative newcomer to the forum, I assumed the gardening season had something to do with the decreased activity on here...folk being too busy gardening to be sat at the computer?

Cheers.

[Elaine]

Hi Catherine, I didn't pinch your "little ditty" bit, honest! Your post came up before mine. Great minds think alike!
And I still haven't worked out how to use the "quote!".!
Cheers.

[glallotments]

I'm still here even though I was blacklisted yesterday for a while.

Must say what with the manure problem I have visited quite a lot of forums in the past 18 months or so and this is by far the best and least bitchy!!

I don't post on one forum in particular as someone on it sent me an offensive email when I dared to correct something she had said - I was proved correct in the end though!!

Maybe the forum is quieter as in many ways activity on the plot is quieter at this time of year. I am finding less to put in the dairy that I write each week on my website

[Elaine]

I have to admit that I found one particular forum a bit too much. Some of the topic discussions got rather heated and the responses downright rude. I don't bother with it much , just pop on now and again to see what''s happening. It was a bit "cliquey! too.

I can do without that!
Cheers

[goldilox]

. . . and I'm still here too

Haven't had much time to read the forum recently - just had a whole month of visitors. Next ones arrive Wednesday.

Mind you, the last lot were rather special in that they were father (a regular visitor) and his daughter who he hadn't seen or heard of for over 40 years!! She was 5 when he last saw her.

Ted arrived with a wonderful tale of how his nephew had been surfing the web and came upon a name he recognised, so he contacted her. They established they were cousins and she asked if he could help her find her father as she'd been searching for him for years. He passed on Ted's phone no. and they've been in touch now for just about a month. Anyway, we thought it would be a nice idea for them to have their first meeting on neutral ground over here in France, and the next thing she was on a flight over.

Sad story of a father not really allowed contact with his children (he has 2 sons too), but with a lovely ending!

How's that for your Sunday afternoon fairytale? Except it's true.

Will try to visit a bit more often now the weather's finally cooling down.

Can't comment on what's going on in the mag as I haven't received the October issue yet, and so far no-one in the subscription dept. has answered my e-mails

If there's anyone out there in Kitchen Garden land, could you please stir your subs dept up and send me my magazines please??? End of grump - going out into the sun to paint a picture.

And yes, I agree, OH's little poem was very good.

Chris

[Westi]

I agree the forum is a bit quiet but no idea why. It is great the way
you can feel safe asking any question knowing you won't get a
degrading response, obviousy visited by some excelent growers who
are happy to share their experience, it hasn't been highjacked by an
elite group and it creates some excellent debates between people who
are knowledgeable and receptive to others views.

If there is one thing I think it could improve on is the forum headings as
sometimes I am not sure where to post a question although I know now
it doesn't really matter as it gets answered wherever but it did put me
off a bit initially. Although the mag has taken over Organic Gardening
it obviously hasn't tempted any of their readers onto the forum so a bit
of a plug might be good to grab some of these and some of the many folk
who have been bitten by the GYO bug.

Great poem OH

Westi

[macmac]

I'm still here, I've been reading every day 'just didn't have anything to contribute until now.The OH has just read todays paper and Dix's Field allotment in Brixham have had hundreds of pounds worth of produce "stripped" from their site by thieves obviously stealing to sell Grrrr
One plotholder said he had seen a chap who claimed to be collecting soil samples to test for radiation but foolishly didn't challenge him.
Is this what we've all got to look forward to ? If there's anyone on this forum from the site you have my sympathies,I hope they catch the.....can't think of a bad enough title well not one I should post on here

[glallotments]

I have to admit that I found one particular forum a bit too much. Some of the topic discussions got rather heated and the responses downright rude. I don't bother with it much , just pop on now and again to see what''s happening. It was a bit "cliquey! too.

I can do without that!
Cheers

Sounds like the one I got the email from. That was a bit cliquey too. It was really difficult to follow as it kept starting new threads for the same subject - then when I posted something I was told rather stroppily that it had already been siad elsewhere. Someone else I know got the same treatment.

Lovely story Goldiloxs.

[Elle's Garden]

Ok, I know what it is - little lap tops with small keys resulting in short cuts that I don't know about scrapping my posts before I can finish. This is my 4th attempt to post my views

I enjoy logging in as often as possible, the welcome has been so friendly, the advice is well informed, kindly presented and even those with dissenting views do so politely. I would love to meet you all in the pub!

I have been a bit busy over the last couple of weeks with a rather frightening (for me) birthday, but as I now have a greenhouse I shall be picking your brains in the coming weeks.

Signing off carefully now in the hope I am successful this time!

[Catherine]

Great minds Elaine

[pongeroon]

I think we may all be posting more in the winter when its dark and raining!
I really like this forum because everyone is so nice most of the time.

Other forums I have an interest in can become quite nasty for little reason, and some are very misogynistic. I think the internet brings the worst out in some people because they know there is no comeback as it is anonymous if you want to be.

So big up the garden massive, innit.

[glallotments]

It is sometimes difficult to know whether someone is a male or female anyway, isn't it as the pen names don't always give the game away.