Balconeers, Patio-gardeners, terrace-owners, let·s breathe life back into this forum!
The thread "Do you think this is kind of a sorry forum????" showed that we are still some that care about this forum, and want to see it thrive again, even if others think it is dead. As someone said, the container garden forum is great if you want to know about how to build gritty soil, but we are also some, that simply care about creating a beautiful garden, and don·t have the landscape to set it in. Personally, I don·t have a garage to store 7 kinds of soil amendments, so the container forum is not for me anymore, and I would hate to see this forum die.
That·s why I·m starting this thread... to see if we can come up with ideas for making this a thriving forum once more!
Of course no one is here to answer other peoples questions, if there is nothing here, they want to check out. But a forum can be so much more, than just asking a question, and getting an answer from the others. It IS that, but not ONLY that!
I was thinking... to get this forum going again... perhaps this year, we could do experiments and kind of "blog" about them. For instance, I·m going to put a few sempervirums in all my pots, simply to see how they·ll do in different conditions. I·ve read that they might rot if planted with water loving plants, but will they also rot, if I put some gravel in the topsoil where I plant them? Will the melon leaves provide too much shade, and will they just look ridiculous next to Thai basil?
Others could jump in on your thread and experiment along with you, or comment if they thought you could do something a bit better, or simply say, "Great job!". Perhaps someone is trying out a bog-pot or is growing a rose in a shaded area? Perhaps someone is trying out 6 different ways of starting moonflowers? -Or decided to try soaking the sweet peas in yoghurt instead of water? How did that turn out? Someone might simply show us, how they put together their home-made self-watering system or how they made an Adirondack chair for their patio out of bear traps and elastic bands! Who is willing to plant the 3 sisters in a pot, complete with a dead fish and all - just for the heck of it, and to see if it smells and attract flies? All of these things tend to show up in the "show-us-your-pictures"-thread, that emerges every summer, where they kind of drown out. -Not that I don·t enjoy that thread, but it would be even more enjoyable if there where a lot more people around to join in! -and there wont be, if that is all this forum has to offer.
You could show of your pictures, of the cup-holder you installed on the railing, so the wind don·t knock over your coffee all the time, or the violets that got over-watered by the neighbour, while you went away on weekend, and now you just need 20 broad shoulders to cry on... TELL US! And comment on the stuff you read, so that people are encouraged to come back and start new threads.
What do you think? Am I on to something, or have I just gone completely bunkers? Do you have any other ideas for how we can get this forum rolling again?