Plant Labels

I usually do each plant that I am going to trade so I know what they are if not in bloom, especially my daylilies. Linda

I ordered several from the co-op that went on last year and loved them so much that I ordered more myself. Then I stamped (with metal letter stamps) the name of the flower on the metal plate - they have held up wonderfully!!! Sure won't fade - they are in their permanently.

I was concerned that if the plant died, I would be stuck with an unuseable tag, but DH said I can just pound out the letters and restamp it.

I was repotting a plant from last year... I took out the white plastic label and it snapped in half. I think it makes more sense for durable but more expansive ones. At least for perennials and plants that you're keeping for more than a year.

Jamie,
You have yahoo mail.

Ok Terrie- I'll have to check it tonight since "Homeland Security" here at work won't let us check web-based email. Ha!

Hi, were these the types of garden markers you were looking for? They are nice, but wow, they are pricey!

http://www.plant-marker.com/site/470532/page/45031

Diann
IA z5a

Diann-

Those are nice! Looks like they are also engraved. I think what most of us are talking about is just plain copper ones with no engraving. You can use the stamps like sarv48 talked about, or you can just write on them with a Sharpie or something. Mine were 10 for $6... not $4 EACH. WOW that was expensive! :)

I don't know if they are still out there, but if you go to Ebay and search "copper plant labels" what I bought should come up.

Tex, Yeah, I know that most of you are talking about inexpensive ways of marking your plants, but I thought somewhere in the mix of postings that CaptMicha asked about exhibition quality markers... That's why I posted that link.. I have a friend that has all of his plants marked with markers like that, and they do look wonderful. Me, I can't/won't afford that kinda of label when the zinc markers with a laserjet label or a P-touch label will do just fine. :) I like things neat and orderly, but it also has to be affordable. Now, all I have to do is to actually put the labeled marker with the correct plant. :)

Diann
IA z5a

Yeah Diann- maybe we shouldn't have used the term "public garden" when saying what we were shooting for! Ha! Those are all very expensive, engraved high quality labels. To me, the "public garden on a private yard budget" is what I was looking for! LOL! I look at the copper labels w/ either nicely printed lettering or a laser label as an "in between" level of quality. Not the expensive ones, but not a recycled mini-blind. Which I am NOT knocking by the way! I have used that method myself. But for the things I want permanently labeled year-round I am using the copper. I'm with you- I refuse to spend that kind of money on labeling. All I could think was how many plants I could by with that money. :)

What are you all putting on your labels? I can't decide how much info is too little, enough, or too much. I was thinking of just botanical name and common name, but I wondered what everybody else was doing.

I was going to do some combination of botanical name, common name and cultivar if applicable. But for daylilies I will just put "daylily" on the first line and "Druid's Chant" on the second line (or whatever the cultivar is). My main purpose is if someone who wasn't into gardening didn't know what a plant was, they could look at the tag and figure it out. I don't get too hung up on botanical names, but that's just me... I'm more of a "common name" kind of girl. :)

I'm a common name person, too. :-)

Yeah Terrie, like when they kept calling fan flower that "m" word at the garden show and I didn't know what they were talking about. Ha!

Of course being me, I went right to their best label.. which happened to be the most expensive too. I'll just have to settle for some a bit less than $4! Those were very nice though.

I think I'll put common, latin, cultiver and... hmm.. blooming season? Sun or shade? I dunno yet.

I think I'll go to D.C. soon and see what they have in their butterfly garden. Maybe I can ask one of the people who work there and they'll give me some freebies! Just kidding, but they might tell me where they got them.

For daylily I just put Hemerocallis on one line and the name of it on the next line. I do the roughly the same for other perennials. I don't want to get to complicated with whats on the label so that the type gets so small I have to take it out of the ground to read it.... My luck I'd get distracted and it wouldn't get put back in the right spot.... :) I make all the labels at night when it's too dark to garden safely (safely for the plant, not me), but then forget to put them out right away the next day when I should. So, I have a box full of nicely filled out labels from last summer ready to go. That reminds me, I need to find that box of labels..... :)

Diann
IA z5a

I use the metal garden 6 inch "rose markers". I use a special Lumicel autograph pen (medium point) from the art store with black ink that is easy to read even standing away a bit. I can clean and remove the ink with fingernail polish remover. The stakes are 25 for $5.99 at a local garden store. A spray of polyethlene makes the name near permanent.

Walker the Wonderdog spent the past 2 years pulling them & throwing them into the air before hiding them under the deck. I'm hoping that I have him "cured" of that nasty habit this year.

I use a Sharpie "Rub-a-Dub" laundry marker and it doesn't fade a bit. I also use the mini blinds (from Walmart) and the knife markers. The knives are stronger and don't bend over in snow! They aren't really professional looking, but they do the trick.

I'm just starting to label my plants. I am also just now raking out all the winter junk from the beds. How do I rake beds with plant markers in them? Please help!

You've hit on a real problem, Sylvi. I've lost many tags by raking beds in the spring and fall. There's a lot to be said for making the tags short with most of the lettering underground. They won't fade, and the rake won't catch them.

CaptMicha - I order the EverLast metal plant markers from the coop's for my permanent markers (daylilies, perennials, etc). But I get these plastic markers from Charley's Greenhouse for seed starting, annuals, and temporary markers until I get the metal ones done. They are 3.9¢ each. I order the green ones to sort of "blend" in but they're available in a variety of colors.

http://www.charleysgreenhouse.com/index.cfm?page=_productdetails&productid=8761&cid1=-99&cid2=-99&cid3=-99

I have found that the dark green mini blinds don't look too bad until I can get something permanent (and I use pencil). Until I joined DG, I never really thought much about the markers, I just stuck the little plastic things that came with the plants in the ground. Of course, they were never there the next spring. lol I just got an order of markers from Paw Paw and I bought a refurbished P-Touch 2300 last fall, so I should be set. Of course, I am visiting with ya'll instead of making my markers! lol

Wow, that's a great price for 100!

I don't rake my gardens since I have so much early stuff. I get down & in the beds to uncover everything in the spring. Takes longer, but I get to see what made it and what didn't....

Wanda, I'm actually uncovering everything that way now. It's amazing how things don't get all torn up by the rake this way. Of course, I'm walking around like a hunched over little 95 year old person at the moment. Buy stock in Advil, I think they are going to have a banner year. ;)

Diann

Lol. I do that Wanda. People must think I've dropped something.

Hmm. Ruin alot of jean knees that way--but no pain, no gain. My garden looks wonderful this week. Everything from Lilacs to daffodils to tulips + more in bloom. It IS worth the work!

Oh that is so lovely to see..

Took this shot a n hour ago... Spring has FINALLY come to Iowa.

Gorgeous!

Wanda: That is so gorgeous. Your hostas are larger than mine and I am in 8B. You got the touch, gal!

Please, please: post more pictures throughout the Spring.

Ruby

What lovely pictures of your home and gardens, Wanda. That lilac tree is gorgeous!

Wow! How old is that lilac by the way? Is it the common one?