Marking woodland plants before winter comes....

In clearing out my wooded area, I have found some really neat plants. I can still tell what they are now because of the leaves / berries, but I am afraid that after the leaves are gone I won't be able to remember what or where everything is....
Since I am still in the cleaning out mode I want to figure out a way to mark my "saves" in case I get crazy with my pulling and clipping....and hurt something I meant to keep!
What can I use to mark them? just tie something on it? stick something in the ground? weather resistant? Thanks for your thoughts.

Hi JulieQ. I buy a big bag (or 2 or 3) of popsicle sticks at the local dollar store. They usually sell them for kids crafts and such. This has worked well for me for the past few years, and it's cheap too :-)

--Ginny

Good idea for the Popsicle sticks, but they can get eaten in a wooded area buy any wildlife that fancies a nice bit of nesting material as I have found out, I would keep a good handful of the larger white plant labels and these come with a little hole in the end, also take some wire rings (for supporting plants to canes) these are good for attaching your labels to the plants you want to name, then a good waterproof marker pen so you can write the name onto the label, then you add the label to the plant so next spring, you know what it is, also good to write the colour of leaves, fruit, any other info you want to keep you informed of what is is till you can look for info in books etc, or just general knowledge till you get to know the plant better, dont tie the wire ring too tight or it will dig into the branch, but firm enough that the wind or animal wont get it off the branches. good luck, so happy you are trying to get to know what you have growing in your woodland area, it helps when you want to add to this and what will grow there. WeeNel.

Where do you get the plant labels with a hole in the end?
Since my woods are still pretty "wild" I also am afraid that popsicle sticks might disappear. A heavy plastic tag with permanent marker would probably be good, if I can find some!

Today I stopped in at Home Depot's window covering isle. They cut blinds to fit, and have a bucket that sits right under the cutting area. I picked out a whole stack of plastic pieces that were cut from verticle blinds, much thicker than the thin blinds. Some were square, some thinner, but they stuck into the ground & pots easily. I liked that they were wider for writing, I print big so I can see them easier (getting old, haha.)

Now that is a great idea! Thanks. I guess you could either stick it in the ground, or make a small hole in it? Nothing like recycling....

I agree, that really is a great idea, however, keep in mind that you will have leaf fall still and the in ground labels could get lost, loosened or blown away, in the garden I think they would be brilliant,
the labels I was talking about are sold either on line from some of the companies that sell horticultural product, but also the garden centers and DIY stores should have various sizes, the marker pens and the wire plant rings, these are fairly standard items and not in the least expensive, I buy my labels in packs of 100 but they do sell smaller packs too, good luck. WeeNel.

I stumbled upon another idea for marking....I am using the "post-it" durable tabs (they are sticky-backed thin plastic) folded over a twist-tie. Write on the plastic with a fine point sharpie. ... twist-tie goes around a branch at a "joint" area. Hope it makes it through the rain and winter weather.

Whatever you choose to use, be sure to place it where it will not be hit by sunlight. First time I needed to mark some of my trees I failed to do this and the sun faded all my magic marker :-( It wasn't any fun trying to ID all those oak trees come spring!

They sell marking pens specifically for use in the garden, they are more resistant to sun and moisture than regular markers or even Sharpies (Sharpies will hold up to moisture but not sunlight). I'm pretty sure I've seen the special garden ones on Gardener's Supply website. You could also try a paint pen like they sell in craft stores, that'll also be more colorfast.

get a roll of colored flagging tape,you can make it as long as you wish,and get that marking pen like ecrain was talking about.just tie it loosly to a branch.easy to find later.i marked wild azelias when they were blooming as to color.then dug them up in winter to transplant.a regular marks a lot was still readible on some that were still in the woods the second winter