will my cucumber and cantaloupe cross.
how do I prune my tomatoes
does (insert vegetable here) (insert variety here) taste yummy.
why is my (insert vegetable here) optional(insert variety here) dying.
how often to I water (insert vegetable here)
how much do I water (insert vegetable here)
when do I water (insert vegetable here)
I think did something stupid when planted (insert vegetable here)
what is eating my (insert vegetable here)

Great idea! IF folks would just read all the FAQs here or use the search and read the previous discussions - since this one will slide off the front page too eventually. ;) But they usually don't so every time we try this it just fades away too.

But to add to your list there is

(1) all the Companion Planting questions each spring despite the fact that it is a very small school of thought in vegetable gardening and has its own forum anyway.

(2) but then Squash has its own forum too as does Beans and Onions & Garlic and Organic Gardening and Container Gardening, Seed Starting, etc. all have their own forums. And all these forums have their own sets of Frequently Asked Questions too with tons of info in them.

(3) How do I pollinate my plants by hand?

(4) What can I do about SVB (Squash Vine Borers?

(5) Where is the best place to buy/order seeds?

Check out the Garden Web Marketplace for links to all the registered vendors and the Rate & Review Vendors forum for the names of the places to avoid.

Dave

Might be a good place to mention the Garden Watchdog, which lists and rates many mail-order seed and plant sources.

We all need a crash course in plants' sex education.
Flowers are the sex organs;
seeds are the babies;
Edibble part of the fruits (may include seeds too) is the food and preservative for the babies.
Pollination (sex act) can only affect the babies.lol

cyrus

Hey Dave! I didn't know there was a forum for Squash! You've already steared me to another source of info I hadn't seen before. This post will help the repeats...lol...

--guilt-ridden Amber

You know.... gardeners love to talk about gardening, but there is a limit to the topics available to talk about. If you try to forbid the beginners from asking newbie questions, you will soon find that the forum runs out of things to talk about.

If the noobs bother you, scroll down and don't read their posts. You certainly are not obligated to type out a response.

I don't find the search feature to be all that helpful. Often the answer has been posted, but in the body of a post and not in the title and it doesn't come up with a search. Or else, so many posts come up with a search that it is a big task to wade through pages of them, and then still not find the answer.

what should I add to my soil to fix (Insert problem) when a soil test is the way to go
when should I plant (insert plant) when it's 9 times out of ten printed on the back of the pack of seeds

I always do a search before asking a question, but like Oregon said, sometimes depending on the question, it can be difficult or cumbersome to find the answer. I also have a bevy of gardening books which I read almost nightly, and can understand how people might feel put upon when asked questions that could be easily answered if a person simply bought a book and did a bit of studying. Beyond that, though, I hope the people here don't mind the questions. I've learned quite a bit from this forum and many people on the boards have helped me with a number of quandaries and dilemmas. I've been assuming that those who don't want to be bothered with it simply ignore the posts.

I'm a newbie gardener, and was so excited to find gardenweb and all the helpful people on it.
I've asked a lot of questions you've all heard before I'm sure.
Reasons: I'm new and don't know what I'm doing.
I'd like to connect to others who have first hand experience....hoping they'd be happy to pass it on and share.
I use someone else's computer (don't own one) and it is dial up, with numerous problems. I can't check faqs, or do much researching as it kicks me off the net every 5 min. Just to post this, it'll have to log me back in. It is sloooooow.
So, if I ask a quick question that I'm sure you've all seen a thousand times, thanks to those in good spirits and with patience respond.
Thanks!!!!!!!

As a frequent "post first, check the faqs later" poster I appreciate the fact that none of you seem to mind repeating yourselves!! In fact most are downright gracious. I have enjoyed reading your responses. I think the repeating questions do give newer members an oppourtunity to give their opinions or maybe something relating to that post has advanced or changed. Anyway thanks for making me feel included and for answering my repeats!!! It really has helped tremendously as there is no other resource that I have available to me that responds so quickly with very useful advice!!!

Well using the FAQs and search are great for the "most asked questions", but as someone said and I have noticed, it can be a pain to look back on a zillion posts to try to find an answer to a specific question.
There are a ton of veges/fruits and a ton of problems/questions. FAQs can't answer every one.
I thought the purpose of this board is to be able to ask questions, be it from a newbie OR an oldbie!
Heck! I've been at it for about 9 years and I still have PLENTY of questions! NT

Yes, and a search often turns up outdated advise. I go to the harvest forum often, and questions about canning and preserving are the main fare there. I did a search for processing directions on a very popular salsa and went by that to process it, only to find out the guidelines had been changed. Also, there is always new blood on the forums, and they can sometimes answer a question better than those previously. I have been around since there was only about ten forums and they all could be read in an hour, lol. There have been a wealth of really knowledgeable people come on board since then, some of whom are specialists in the field being discussed. Why wouldn't we want to hear their slant on things?

Amen...to all you people who just simply want to ask questions and get good, relevant and timely answers...I certainly don't mind answering questions (of course,I don't happen too have many answers ;-), but if I did,I wouldn't mind a bit...and BTW... Yes, this search engine sucks buttermilk... So ask away,there are always some nice gardeners out there who want to be helpful with the knowledge they have gained through experience... We Love You Newbies, it wasn't too long ago,that each and every one of us was a noob ;-)

Have a wonderful gardening season everyone WOO HOOO ;-)

Ask away, I like to be a motor mouth some times. To tell you the truth when I first started using GW I was lucky I could type out a question let alone find the FAQ. so ask newbie ask. This site would dry up from lack of traffic if not for the new postings. What fun would that be? I am a life long gardener but a new webber.

Curt#

Wow,I finally place to ask all my "dumb" questions, and you refer me to a FAQ page? I have books and books and books on this stuff. Is it so wrong to seek human contact on the subject for once? I will keep asking my dumb questions, and I hope those more experienced know that you should feel honored people like us are seeking you out. I only wish one day to return the favor to a youngin' like myself oneday.

As a newish gardener I enjoy reading all the posts as it helps me test what I think I know or have learned so far. And of course I have plenty of questions of my own. Everyone's help is super appreciated!

No one said the questions were "dumb", just that they are repeated and answered over and over. That's why many of the experienced gardeners here got together to write the FAQs - they aren't just something taken out of a book somewhere - and a lot of work and thought went into writing them. ;)

But of course - post it if you wish. The worst that will happen is that someone will link you to the FAQ, if there is one, rather than re-type all the same info for the umpteenth time. Better yet, read the FAQ first and then post any additional questions it may not answer to your satisfaction.

There really is at least 2 sides to every issue. ;)

Dave