I've noticed that a few Blotanists have been sharing their email addresses via messages in their plot. It's a practice that I would highly recommend you don't do in the future especially as we start to open Blotanical up to the general gardening population.

The problem with listing your email address is twofold. Firstly, it's half of your login to Blotanical. Sure, it's not the most important part especially if you have a strong password but it does make it easier for wannabe hackers to get in and mess with your plot.

Also, sharing your email via this public forum is like showing a red rag to a bull when it relates to spammers. And we're all in no doubt that they exist. Sure, it may not be the person you're communicating with that will be the problem but you can't police who reads your messages. Before you know it everyone who's viewed your plot messages now has your email in their address book.

It's been asked before whether the messages can be kept private so only the owner can see them. This is possible but certainly not desirable. Part of the social aspect is being able to see how others are communicating with each other. It enables us to follow conversations, add thoughts and meet new members. This is what makes blogs so special and we would never think of just making our blog comments readable by ourselves.

Therefore, treat your Plot messages with some caution and discretion. And treat your personal information with a high level of confidentiality. It's all about being wise online.