Blotanical: A simple analysis on popularity

Why join blotanical?

Early Mac 2009 was a non productive period in my life. I spent 3 days in Hospital Putrajaya, Malaysia for an operation. On the day of discharge, Doctor Hari, an extremely nice guy with excessive professional demeanour slipped a 2 week medical certificate into my hands. So I was expected to recuperate at home barred from going to work for two weeks! Yes I enjoyed the brief moments as I peep through the side window checking from far how my garden and plants faring during my absence. Yes, Kakdah had extended her help tending to my needs and the plants as well. The kids were away crowding only during weekends.

Then to rekindle the passionate bond with gardening, the idea of creating a blog arised . I bumped into two local blogs, by Lili of Blossom and FJL of Blog Garden, and it was much of Lili’s remark that I decided to join Blotanical. For Lili to be given a red star, I guess she very much deserved it….

Then there were rituals of welcomes from a number of blotanists. For a while due to password mixed-up, I just cant get on with the whole spectrum of Blotanical feature. Stuart gave a link to redo my password….. Things moved from then on. There are so much to see and read.! For the blog “my little vegetable garden” I sort of put a target of one post each day…. I wouldn't know how long can I adhere to this strict and tough performance target; a post each day! As for me, putting things in this gardening blog is good as a permanent record of how gardening interest and outcome slides along the timeline.

TheManic Gardener

About two weeks after being accepted as blotanist, on 22nd of mac Kate of theManic Gardener asked me to look at the popular page and click at page 2. As a newbie I wasn’t really paying attention to this particular feature of Blotanical before… and for all I know I saw Kate’s blog displayed… Subsequently Kate suggested that surely I had noticed mine too, side by side on the same page of popular section. Honestly, that was the first time popularity feature captured my mind as I try to ascertain Kate’s suggestion. I wasn’t paying much much attention to this for some time, busying myself looking at blogs through directory window… enjoying the pleasure of hopping from one continent to another, understanding their way of doing things and the season they are at…. Everybody seems to flash out their colourful flowers and buds… It was so capturing and spectacular! I was still recuperating at home then…. To be honest Kakdah and I had very few flowers to flash around, because veggie is central to our gardening activities ….

On the 4th of April, again Kate reminded me about the blog’s rise in popularity. Little did I realize, my blog was on the first page! …Soon I noticed the regular shift up and down during the course of the day, ranging from 50s to 60s. As usual Kate send a long message cut into 4 sections explaining about this myth of popularity. I clicked on help/forum menu to look for more answers. There was a section where stuart conversed with several blotanist, kate included, whats popularity all about……. For that and her very strong professionalism Kate too deserves the red star!

The myth of popularity

To my opinion, as a relatively new member of such an interesting congregation of gardening blogs spanning across continents, weather and seasons, popularity remains as the by product of blogging adventure, nothing more and nothing less. The administrator has put this feature in place to add some measure of excitement. The ranks are meant to place blotanist in some form of sections, which is good in a way. Otherwise blotanists cannot search through thousands in the list each time…. There are sections according to regions which is a great help to understand more about season , weather and the kind of crop planted there.

Most bloggers will hit and go, whereas some will stay longer and converse in comments and messages. Bloggers interact the way normal people would do ........ everyone seems to be very decent, supportive and very encouraging ....

Blotanical is an important forum and directory, supporting regional diversity and engaging gardening creativity!!

Now I am back at the workplace … but blotanical remains as an important source of reference and interactive network for the world of gardening ….

BLOTANICAL!