My Google Reader
March 20, 2008
Woohoo! First day of spring!
I really like reading gardening blogs. What I don’t like is manually checking them day after day to see if there is a new post like a garden junkie needing a fix. Some bloggers are once-a-week types while others are more spotty which is fine. Though for me, I realized I was getting too impatient and was checking each site everyday. That’s when I started using Google Reader. Here’s a screenshot:
I have a Google email account and I love it. It’s so much nicer and easier to use than a Hotmail or Yahoo account. I also use a lot of other cool Google programs like Picasa for organizing my photos, Docs and Spreadsheets for sharing and collaborating on documents in real time, Google Earth for amazing mapping and Google Talk for instant messaging. I’m a big fan. So it made sense for me to start using Google Reader to organize my blog feeds.
I like that it’s fast, I don’t need another log in name or password, it shows the new posts clearly and I can mark everything as read with a button once I’m done. There’s other things you can do in Google Reader like apply labels and share items which I don’t use, at least not yet. Here are the blogs that I currently have in my Google Reader:
LOCAL
- Naked Tomatoes – a blogger that I met through GardenWeb
- Ottawa Hortiphilia – a blogger that I met through Plantcycle
- The Realm of Queen Sharbot – another blogger from GardenWeb
NATIONAL
- 1-2-3 Go Garden! - southern Ontario
- My Roots Run Deep – Toronto, Ontario
- Northern Exposure Gardening – La Ronge, Saskatchewan (Canadian Zone 1)
- Playing in the Dirt – near Toronto, Ontario
INTERNATIONAL
- A Caribbean Garden - the Caribbean
- Bifurcated Carrots – Amsterdam, Netherlands
- Bliss – southern Netherlands
- May Dreams Gardens – Indiana, USA (USDA Zone 5)
- My Sister’s Garden Blog – northern New York state, USA
- Seeded – Toledo, Ohio (USDA Zone 5)
- Soilman’s Allotment Blog – a fun, colloquial British garden blog
- The Balcony Garden – Milan, Italy
I realize now after putting this list together that I like reading about gardening in far away and exotic places and that I should be reading blogs from USDA Zone 4 to compare to my Canadian Zone 5. It’s easy to add subscriptions and I’ll definitely be filling it out as I find new blogs and re-visit old favourites.
Anyone got a blog they really like and think I should read?
March 20, 2008 at 7:58 am
GardenWeb – I’d never heard of it. I assume it’s this site you’re talking about: http://www.gardenweb.com
It looks helpful – thanks for the tip!
March 20, 2008 at 8:51 am
Hi Gillian,
Yes, GardenWeb has a list of forums that I like to check out as well as a Canadian-specific forum.
Kathy
March 20, 2008 at 5:37 pm
I just set up Google reader as well, only because someone who was subscribed to my blog was having a problem and I wanted to find out what it was all about. It is quite good and I will be adding more blogs to it this weekend.
March 21, 2008 at 10:31 am
Hi Kathy,
Thanks for the link! I totally love the name of your site, and will return the linky love on mine.
Thanks,
Amy.
March 22, 2008 at 2:47 pm
I use Google Reader, too, and would go nuts without it, trying to keep up with different blogs. Although, it can also be addicting to add more and more blogs to it because it makes it so easy to keep up with posts.
March 23, 2008 at 11:50 pm
Hi Kathy,
My blog complements your blog. Mine is called “Water When Dry.” Follow that by yours–”I Wet My Plants,” and the two could be a children’s primer reading book! LOL.
Aiyana
March 24, 2008 at 6:24 am
Crafty Gardener, I love those cute bird houses! I have one of those gourd bird houses and will be putting it out this spring to see if it attracts any homeless birds.
Aiyana, wow, what a beautiful desert garden! I love your photos! I really like reading about gardening in such different environments than mine.
I’ll be adding both of your blogs to my Google Reader!
March 25, 2008 at 12:32 pm
Hi Kathy,
I’m flattered that I was already on your list. Thank you for including me!
I’m not quite as systematic as you with my blog reading and tend to use the “current” list on Blotanical to see what catches my eye. Though I do check in here regularly
As the number of really good blogs increases though, maybe something like Google reader is going to become essential. I shall check it out – thanks for the tip-off!
April 7, 2008 at 8:11 am
[...] insulin, anyone? 7 04 2008 So, after Kathy’s post on I Wet My plants, I broke down and signed up for Google Reader. And I gotta tell you, it really [...]