FAQs are the bane of these forums. Many people ask for and beg for FAQ's, but even for that, they can only be made by those who create the posts there. Its quite a daunting task to make a FAQ, if it has to contain many subjects well beyond the simple word 'herbs'. Suggest that getting a couple of books on basic herbs will help quite a lot. We just cannot recommend any herbs without first knowing if the person growing them has big or small space, appropriate weather conditions, and the desire to grow these and care for them. Also, some people plant herbs not thinking about what to use them for or what to do with an overage amount. About everything you asked above can be answered by using the SEARCH engine here. Although its not the best, it does help in bringing up many posts that a simple word like 'beginner', or 'medicinal' would show.

ksrogers, I bet you get invited to lots of parties.

Note, I didn't ask or beg for it to be done for me. I offered to help do it. BIG difference.

FAQs are a great starting place and help eliminate redundant questions. FAQs are daunting to put together because you have to know the subject to do it. Compiling searches makes it easier.

The main point you missed is that one must know what to ask in order search tools to be effective. A typical noob will does not always know what to ask. And then searches require hours of reading to come across the wisdom that could have been shared in a FAQ, IFF one cared enough to do it.

I've been around this forum for many years, and if there's one thing I've learned, it is that NOBODY is likely to use an FAQ!! With the possible exception of yourself, that is.

I think there are several reasons for this. First, there are just SO MANY different herbs to learn about. It's possible to write volumes about each one, and why do it when there are literally millions of websites and books out there with the information?

I think an FAQ on this forum would be so long and so cumbersome, it would be overwhelming for most people to read, let alone set up!

Second, people LIKE to have their individual questions answered. It's the personal touch they're after. Even if they did read a FAQ, they'd still post what they believe is their unique question!

Third, although the search facility here is not so great, if you type in 'parsley', then click on the 'this forum' button, you're guaranteed to get a lot of threads to investigate, which you can browse through, and from which you'll learn a great deal.

Heck, given the countless times I (and others) have answered the same question over and over, it seems that not only would people NOT use an FAQ - they seem allergic to the search function as well!

As Ksrogers has said, an FAQ about herbs would need to contain an enormous amount of information - not only about climate required, whether they're in pots or in garden, but also a thousand other questions, including myriad uses of each herb, its mature size, the soil conditions it prefers, the bugs that can attack it; how, when and which parts to harvest; how to store the harvest; even recipes - and much more.

All that information is here - all you have to do is search for it. Here's an experiment. I've searched for 'parsley' and this is the result - 19 pages of threads!

Now you do the same, using 'entire site' and see what you come up with! Better than any FAQ, I'll wager!

Here is a link that might be useful: forum search results for 'parsley'

I guess that plan is cancelled.

Thanks.

Too bad. Being an herb NOOB myself, I dived into this page expressly because of the "FAQ" term being used - with the hope of quickly answering my basic questions. I can google my way through countless pages, but without knowing the value of the info provided. I rely on the members of these forums for their hands-on expertise and "normal" willingness to share.

I'm truly surprised at the initial answers you received. Your question list showed thoughtfullness and breadth of ideas. Don't get discouraged. Go put your hands back in the dirt - I am!!

BTW - I've got a bunch of pots overflowing with herbs on my deck and wanted to find out about harvesting, drying, frezzing, storing, etc.

Didn't mean to imply that its a losing battle, but as mentioned, FAQs are many times overloooked by people wanting to get a simple answer to a question that gets repeated over an over. Many times these repeat questions can be answered y just scrolling down the first page of a forum. You can't imagine the repeated posts in the harvest forum which has a much broader spectrum of questions and answers. In many cases if the poster is looking for specifics they can do a simple search of a forum which will bring up quite a lot of hits. Even for that, the subject matter may not fit all the posts, as many are diverted into several directions (hijacked), so a search might bring up that tiny 'jewel' of an answer buried in another subject thread. The crteating of FAQ's here and in many other forums has been brought up repeatedly for many years. A search ALL the forums for the word 'FAQ' will bring up literally thousands of threads. Just for that reason, trying to compile a FAQ which just covers general questions may not be enough to answer the many qustions that are posed here and elsewhere. A really good question that no one can easily answer is the following: "What herbs are easy to grow? Or: "I want to grow herbs, how do I do that?" Simple answers to these easy to post questions are not easy!

I've helped to write FAQ's (back in Usenet days) and they could be very useful. But the useful ones required a lot of effort by the group's "regulars" to write. And in those days people actually looked for and used the FAQ's. In my time in these forums I have seen the same behavior as ksrogers noted. People want a spoon-fed answer even if it would have taken 60 seconds of googling around to find the answer for themselves - which is exactly what it has taken me to answer some posts and give a link to the original poster.

While it is a very nice idea, I believe the only FAQ's that would be useful and in reality possible to create without getting to near book-length are very specific single topic FAQ's. For example, "Growing and Harvesting Cilantro." Or "Growing Parsley From Seed." Or a thousand other topics that are very specific and not opinion oriented (like a list of "good" herb vendors).

FataMorgana

Then there are the photos.. A picture is worth a thousand words. Just recently 'green flakes' on herb leaves turned out to be aphids, once a photo was shot and posted here. Herbs as a title for a FAQ, would have to include literally hundreds of thousands herbs, descriptions, growing tips, condition, disease, insect pests, and many other topics too numerous to list in a FAQ. When I see recent posted questions that are repeated, and scroll down 10 posts, and see the same thing asked, I wonder why some would repost. If they just read a few of the more recenet topics, they would find that their questions have already been answered.
Many newbes here are overwhelmed at the long list of threads and subjects and just want their answer 'spoon fed' as mentioned above. None of us are really experts here, and we do our best to share our knowledge of things with others. I spend (or is it waste) over 3 hours per day just in these forums and that 3 hours could be used for other more constructive things, but I feel that knowledge is power and if I have answered a single question in just one reply, that is helping everyone. The search tool here, isn't the best, and was upgraded a bit recently, to improve results. But we all must think of a subject as simple as we can, so that a search will show us many choices. From the results, we can narrow things down, just by adding another word or two to the search window.

Hey, steele, I feel your noobyism!
How bout more of an informal thread?
Maybe title it- Poll: FAVORITE HERB
Uses:
Growing conditions/zone hardiness:
Pests/problems:
etc etc etc.

I have several herbs I grow for cooking, but have recently added a new bed about 3x3' in full sun that could use some herb action. I'd like to hear others' opinions. Nancy

There are thousands of posts here for the same topic of herbs. At least most posts are herb related, so its just as easy to do a search. A good example was a person asking for assistance on maintaining basil when it bolts to flowers. A poster stated just yesterday that they use hedge clippers to chop the tops off. That was just one day after teh same questionw as asked again. Yes, its overwhelming to read through the many hundreds of posts, but a singlew word search can narrow that amount quite a bit. For example a search on the word 'basil' and I bet you will see several hundreds of posts, the word alone showed 719 posts!!

ninjabut, have at. Go a head and start a new thread. Poll threads really are not my cup of tea but others may like them.

As far as newbies, the search tool can really help you to answer your question before you even have to write one word of one post. I do strongly suggest using the search tool. But if what you read in the posts you got from your search don't make sense, please ask. And even if those posts didn't answer your question, you now know enough to ask a better question and really get the information you are looking for.

FataMorgana

You don't even have to do a search. You can just read through old threads to learn a lot. Then there is google and even the public library.

ksrogers, I'll invite you to my party! LOL!