Garden Bloggers’ Idea Gallery Updates

By Nancy J. Ondra – Posted in: Miscellaneous

Forsythia viridissima Kumson Jan 17 08

I appreciate all of the feedback that many of you have shared about the Garden Bloggers’ Idea Gallery. This resource is only as good as the posts you all write about the art of garden blogging, so I’m thrilled that you keep posting and sending me links. Here are a bunch of links that have been added over the past month.

More Memes and Contests

While most of us in the northern hemisphere are thinking about spring, there’s still a fair bit of winter to endure. If you want to whine about how cold it is in your area, drop by Frigid Friday at Mr. McGregor’s Daughter to share a comment or link and get some sympathy.

Nearly a year ago, VP at Veg Plotting started Out on the Streets, a meme focusing on topics relating to public plantings. Every few months, she does an update, and she plans to continue this series in 2010. You can find the original OOTS post here and the most recent one here.

Leaf lovers will be delighted to hear that Pam at Digging has started a monthly meme called Foliage Follow-Up as a complement to May Dreams Gardens’ Garden Bloggers’ Bloom Day. Post pictures of whatever pleases you foliage-wise on the 16th of every month and leave a link at Digging so others can find you.

Pam also created Bloggers’ Celebration of National Parks to celebrate the beauties of these special places. Checking out the list of links submitted by bloggers all over the world is a great pick-me-up on a dreary winter afternoon.

As you’ve probably noticed, we’ve started a new year of the GGW Picture This Photo Contest. The winners of this month’s theme, Winter’s Beauty, chosen by Alan Detrick of Alan and Linda Detrick Photography, will be announced on Wednesday, January 27. Fran has many more pros lined up to judge Picture This for 2010, so check back often to find out the new monthly themes and see the entries.

Anyone know of any other new memes or contests? Leave us a link below, please.

More Image Ideas and Blogging Resources

If you’ve visited Robin’s Nesting Place, you’ve admired her amazing images of backyard birds. She shares some of her winter photography pointers in Backyard Bird Photography Tips.

Many of us use WordPress, Blogger, or Typepad as our blogging platform, but those aren’t the only options. In a comment on Choosing a Blogging Platform, Anna (Flowergardengirl) explains why she chose Iweb for her new site, Decorate a Garden.

Freda at Defining Your Home, Garden and Travel offers advice to Blogger bloggers who want to add ID information to their posts in How to Automatically Add Your Blog Name to Each Post. Wondering why you should bother? She explains why in We Won the Battle Against the Blog Content Thieves.

For me, one of the most exciting finds in compiling this idea gallery has been the posts by Jean of Jean’s Garden on using the free program Windows Live Writer for creating blog posts for a variety of platforms: Drafting Blog Posts with Windows Live Writer and Taming Images with Windows Live Writer. I can’t begin to tell you how much less frustrating it is putting posts together now! It escapes me how this program makes it easier to put together WordPress posts than WordPress can, but so it is. Apparently it works just as well for other blogging platforms. It’s also makes it incredibly simple to add watermarks and special effects to your photos, and to incorporate cool features like aerial maps. I found this one of my place as it looked about three years ago – pretty cool.

Map picture

On Cameras

I’ve also added a new page to the Idea Gallery: Selecting a Camera and Accessories. There aren’t nearly as many links as I’d hoped to find, but I’m sure there are more out there, so please let me know if you’ve already written or run across additional blog posts about cameras, tripods, and other photography-related equipment.

Nancy J. Ondra

Nancy J. Ondra

Nan gardens on 4 acres in Bucks County, Pennsylvania. In the firm belief that every garden ought to have a pretentious-sounding (or at least pretentious-looking) name, she refers to her home grounds as "Hayefield." There, she experiments with a wide variety of plants and planting styles, from cottage gardens and color-based borders to managed meadows, naturalistic plantings, and veggies--all under the watchful eyes of her two pet alpacas, Daniel and Duncan.
Nancy J. Ondra

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Sylvia (England) January 25, 2010, 5:40 am

Nan, another link for you – just in case you haven’t seen it. http://www.hankmoorlag.blogspot.com/2010/01/capturing-birds-in-flight.html I thought it was a interesting and helpful post.

Best wishes Sylvia (England)

Thanks, Sylvia – I’d missed that one. I’m thinking that a category for wildlife photography tips may be in order.
-Nan

Mr. McGregor's Daughter January 25, 2010, 10:09 am

Thanks for the mention! It hadn’t been frigid here recently, but we’ll be heading back into the freezer, so Frigid Friday will return this week.
There are only few days left to enter Dee’s contest at Red Dirt Ramblings to win a Fiskars reel mower. http://reddirtramblings.com/?p=14514. The deadline is January 31. The Queen of Mowing, Carol of May Dreams Gardens, has given this mower a glowing review.

Yikes, how did I forget Dee’s contest? I really appreciate the reminder, MMD.
-Nan

Gail January 25, 2010, 12:09 pm

Love this post! I post Wildflower Wednesday once a month any bloggers who want to join me in celebrating the wild flowers and natives in their garden are always welcome.
http://clayandlimestone.blogspot.com/2009/07/wildflower-wednesdayconeflowers.html ….is one of the past posts

gail

Terrific idea, Gail. I’ll add you to the memes page!
-Nan

GardenMad1 January 25, 2010, 6:27 pm

I am planning for the coming year and thinking of ways to get help from the “men” around me. I have three boys – the eldest is 26years old! Over the years I have done my best to interest them in all things gardening but the main response is one of laughter and derision and a kind of withering pity that I should be so excited at things that grow. The latest incredulity is that I should buy (seed)potatoes and them bury them so they rot in the ground in the hope of more in months to come! They cannot understand why we don’t just eat them now and buy more from the supermarket later – it would be cheaper! I think I am losing the battle, but I am still trying!

Good luck to you!
-Nan

shirl January 26, 2010, 4:30 am

Hi there Nan, sorry you haven’t heard from me in a while 🙂

Sorting out some tech posts myself so will let you know when they are done. Have posted on cameras see http://blog.shirlsgardenwatch.co.uk/2009/11/which-cameras.html This posting is more a list of what I use and perhaps not what you are looking for.

Just wanted to say you’re doing a great job with this 😀

Thanks, Shirl! I already have your Which Cameras post on the new Selecting a Camera and Accessories page; it’s exactly what I was looking for.
-Nan

commonweeder January 26, 2010, 8:40 am

This is an appreciation for all that you have done with this blogging advice. I appreciate the memes, because it helps me to look at gardens and plants around me with new eyes – and gives me new content. I’m also thinking about a new camera so I’m glad of your help there. I don’t travel very far so I probably won’t have anything about National Parks, but there are State Parks, and sometimes even an interesting local park. Food for thought.

Maybe you’ll write a post about your hunt for a new camera, or about whichever one you choose? Good ideas for more park memes, too. I’ll add it to the “coming up with ideas for posts” page – thanks!
-Nan

Cameron (Defining Your Home) January 26, 2010, 10:25 am

You’ve provide so many interesting and informative links for bloggers and gardeners.

Thanks for the mention about blog content thieves and the added security measure of automatically adding your name to your posts. I hope the advice will help others protect their work.

Freda (aka Cameron)

It was very generous of you to share your strategies for getting your situation straightened out. It’s unfortunate that stolen content is becoming more and more of a problem.
-Nan

Nancy J. Ondra January 26, 2010, 12:09 pm

Update: I just found a fun new meme at In the Garden, called A Rainbow Invitation. Rebecca invites fellow bloggers to post pictures of flowers in all the colors of the rainbow. What a treat while we’re waiting for spring. You can find her post and the list of participants here: http://prefertobeinthegarden.blogspot.com/2010/01/rainbow-invitation.html.
-Nan

VP January 26, 2010, 6:12 pm

So glad you’re picking up stuff from Shirl, Nan her camerawork and wildlife blogging is inspirational.

I see she hasn’t mentioned her plastic pot challenge from last year. It was a one-off meme, but Shirl is updating with news she finds out about how nurseries etc. are dealing with these. It might also provide a blog post idea for others too?

You’ll find a link on the right hand side of her home page 🙂

Thanks, VP! You’re right: Collecting lists of places that collect and reuse nursery pots would be a great projects for garden bloggers all over. Here’s a direct link to Shirl’s Plastic Plant Pot Challenge for inspiration.
-Nan

Dee/reddirtramblings January 28, 2010, 12:13 pm

Thank you for everything.~~Dee

Happy to do it, Dee!
-Nan

bloominrs January 29, 2010, 7:53 am

This may seem a silly question, but is there special etiquette for adding blogs to my blogroll? Do I need to ask permission before or just have at it?

That’s a good question. I’ve never thought to ask permission for those I’ve added to my lists, and I don’t think anyone’s ever asked for mine. It’s not like you’re taking anything; you’re actually giving the blogger a compliment. If you wanted to go an extra step and let the writer know that you really like their blog and are adding to your blogroll, I’m sure that would be appreciated, but it’s not necessary. All my opinion, of course; anyone else feel differently?
-Nan

bloominrs January 30, 2010, 8:58 am

Thank you Nan. Now I guess I will start linking away!

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