Call me stupid, but I have been trying for a long time to figure out what is and what is the purpose of a "Sticky" on these forums?

Sorry, I am unable to figure it out myself. Thanks for the explanation in advance.

A sticky thread always appears at the top of the list of threads, regardless of how recently it's been posted to.

I see that, but why? Was that the first thread? Why am I not understanding? Who makes it a sticky? Just curious, I see them all the time and always wanted to ask.

Forum moderator creates a sticky because they think the thread should remain visible on every visit. For example a welcome thread. You would want all new visitors to the forum to see it but if the thread has not been posted to in a while it will be far down the list and may be missed. Also on Texas forum I have a couple of resource threads about native plants. They are the type of list that people might want to refer back to, so they are stickies so they don't get buried and hard to find.

Thank you so much Jay, I thought they were all welcome threads, then I read a few that were not and that threw me off big time. I appreciate your very clear explanation. That's all I needed to know. Very kind of you to step in and help me. I will pray for rain for you all. If that does not work maybe I could work up a rain dance. Have a good evening.

also...I wondered if it was something you could transfer to your personal page, ex., a plant guide. I get it now!

JB: Yes, they are threads that "Stick" at the top of the forum main page and never move down the page. A Sticky usually contains pertinent information that one can find easily each time you visit the forum. For instance on the Orchid Forum: http://garden.org/forums/view/... there is a Sticky at the top that contains lots of links for information regarding orchid plants. I see there are two on the Houseplants Forum. Not all forums have Stickies but if there happens to be good information for one on any forum, I'm sure the forum moderator could be convinced to add a sticky.