Any casual or determined visitor to the Landscape Juice Network will wonder what the point of having a garden related site is if all of the details that are discussed here can be viewed by anyone at any time. One wonders if this might defeat the object of having a membership in the first place.

The internet is only just starting to break the surface of the many uses that it has been designed or evolved for.

There was at one time the perception that exclusive membership was like being in the secret service and members would tend to be euphoric at the thought that they had been allowed to enter because of some special criteria.

However, this is not the case nor should it be the norm. The intention of this site is to make available, for free, information that might be of use to anyone who has a need to use it.

So what benefits do I get, you ask, for being registered with this site?

Only registered members can contribute to any information that is posted here so, by definition, membership does carry a certain benefit.

You as a professional or even as an amateur gardener with a story to tell or fact to pass on, will gain great exposure from the thousands of visitors that this site will produce throughout the week.

Hiding behind the secret curtain of a membership will only serve to insulate contributors from a wider audience and potential customer.

My opinion is, to gain great success, exposure and evolution from participation, all the information should remain in the public domain.

The only time I feel we should deviate from this thought is by using the groups which you may utilise to a degree for select skill sets or interaction.

Of course, there is also the option to post to your blog and only allow your chosen friends to see the content.

I urge everyone, at whatever level of business and experience, to participate in the forums, blog and groups in whatever way you feel will benefit you or the community as a whole.

You may feel that nothing you have will be of use to anyone but (and I refer to the word 'passive' in the title of this post0 rest assured, information or little tit bits is often utilised at a much later date than when it was first observed and absorbed and often without a thank you to the originator.