Where does everyone get there plant markers?

My helpers, body guards and traveling companions when I have to go somewhere by myself...everyone needs those. The tri-color is actually my service dog and literally goes everywhere with me.

I used these tags which you can write on with a pencil or a pen if the tip is not too small. A small point will just break through the aluminum or be harder to write with. Only the impressions of the letters are left.
After using a pencil to write the names, I have tried a car paint touch-up pen on a few tags....getting the ink only down into the impressions. It makes the letters show up really nice, but I don't know how well the paint will stay over the winter.


http://www.forestry-suppliers.com/product_pages/View_Catalog_Page.asp?mi=1183&title=JIM%2DGEM+Aluminum+Tags

Note: The copyright on this picture is the property of the forestry-suppliers.com website.

This message was edited Dec 19, 2010 10:23 AM

In no time at all, I had made over 100 wires from one roll of clothesline. Of course, that would depend on the length of the roll first.

After I finished labeling a tag, I wrapped one end of it around the wire leaving the name sticking out.

The tags I used for the last 2 years were the same. I used unwrapped wire instead of the plastic coated wire. I cut lengths of that clothesline wire about 18" long and bent into a U shape making the sides close enough together to wrap one end of the tag on one side of the U and the other side of the tag on the other side of the U making sure when I turned it right the tag would read upright. This left the tag spread out between the two sides. I ran the ends of the U into the ground up to within an inch of the tag.

This has worked great. The ends of the wire actually rusted and secured them so tightly into the ground that this year I had to wiggle the wires back and forth and use force to get the ones out of the ground that I needed to move.

I think pics of those must be on my desk top computer and will have to look for them.

The plastic coated ones are prettier, but the uncoated wire may stay in the ground better. But...the uncovered ones may rust away after a while, probably faster than the plastic coated.
Anyway...they have stayed firmly for 2 yrs. snow covered in the winter. Zone 7b-8 near the VA shore.

Deb

Hope this will leave some ideas.

Here is my newest solution. I used a metal tape embosser for the name, then attached the metal name strip to a label from Paw paws. I hope they hold up for a while.

I went to Lowes and bought a box of 2inch ceramic tiles. I then bought a cattle marking paint pen at the farm supply store, the kind they use for cow tags. I washed each tile w rubbing alcohol. Labeled. Then I put two coats of clear Thompson's water sealer over them. That was 3 yrs ago and they still look as nice today as when I laid them down. I bought a brown color, so they blend in w the mulch and you hardly see them. They were cheap to make too. I don't remember the figures, but each marker was around 30 cents if I remember right.

I'd love to see a pic Frilly. Everyone has such great ideas!

http://davesgarden.com/community/forums/t/867697/#new

Here is a link to a plant markers thread and I posted some pics there. I can't find the pics now, maybe I didn't save them.

FrillyLily
How do you keep them from getting knocked around by animals or slipping around from frost heave?
Ravens444
I really like the way the embosser makes the nice, neat letters which is what I have been wondering how to do. My lettering holds up really well bbut the letters aren't real nice and neat.


This message was edited Dec 20, 2010 8:50 AM

I just put them at the base of the plant, no problems. Sometimes they do get covered w mulch, so I have to feel around for them, but so far I am generally pleased w them. They have less cons than anything else I have tried, they seem to be lasting well, and the price is good, they look nice too.

Eastrider your writing seems fine. Your tags stay put and last! Those are the important things I'm trying to overcome. I thought the metal embosser would be faster but it is slow. It is to bad it can't be hocked to the computer! That would make things better or worse!

Right now, the only things important to me is cost, tags not getting moved around or lost, and the names not washing/wearing off. So, for me, these are doing great so far.

My wife and I grow iris commercially at our farm and have tried many markers but I find the best ones for us are made by "See Fine Marker Company". They do not have a website. Their telephone number is 208-743-2137 in Idaho. Metal and very sturdy I've had mine since 2003 and still going strong. I use a laser printer on waterproof labels. Not cheap but well worth it. Sorry I don't have any images of the markers that I could find.

Way back on this thread dd95172 from KY mentioned that she uses the Avery weatherproof labels with a laser printer.

I do something similar but use the Avery clear labels instead. I, too, am strictly a computer person and hate writing anything out by hand.

I use both the 1" x 2 5/8" size or the 1" x 4", depending upon how much information I want to put on them. Then I run them through my laser printer (I bought a really cheap one from Costco online) and affix them to the slats of plastic venetian blinds. The slats can be cut to any length. Then I affix one more clear label OVER the printed one and this seems to work quite well.

Initially I tested this method by soaking the labels in a jar of water and all stuck tightly to the slat. I labeled many plants this past fall and they were covered with much snow this winter. So far all have done well and I haven't observed any peeling or fading.

Instead of using a spreadsheet or database and doing a mail merge, I generally do my labels on an individual basis as needed. However, I do wait until the sheet is filled before I print. I use Microsoft Word and do the following:
Tools menu
Letters & Mailings
Envelopes & Labels
Choose the Labels tab & select Options
Highlight the correct product number & press OK
You will return to the Labels tab - select New Document

A new document will appear and it will be in a tables format with all the correct size spaces which correspond to the type of label you are using. If the grayed out lines don't appear, just go to the Tables menu & choose Show Gridlines.

If the Tables & Borders toolbar doesn't pop up, just right click in a blank spot at the top where your toolbars are located and put a check in the correct box to display it.

From this point, you can format your cells any way you want. Sometimes I want the name of the plant in a larger font with other info in smaller print. Just fool around with all the options to see what they do. For those unfamiliar with working with tables, the tab key or cursor is used to navigate around the cells.

I usually save the document and use it as a template for future labels. Once I get the formatting where I want it, I just copy & paste the contents into other cells and then overwrite as needed with the new info.

I hope this doesn't sound too complicated, but I so dislike writing by hand that I'd do just about anything to get around it and I keyboard so much faster. I also found it allowed me to put much more info on a label and this was especially helpful when I did labels for our garden club plant sale.

And the best part for me is that the labels are easy to read and they hold up extremely well.

Since I hope to eventually get my garden in a condition suitable for occasional people to visit besides family and neighbors (I am in the process of getting it listed with HIPS), I would at some point like to change my markers to nice ones. Where is the most reasonable place to get those?

My little markers that I put out last winter are still great! Still in place and very much readable!! The ones with the green plastic in the pictures above do tend to slide out of the ground easier...only one or two did.. than the ones I put out 3 yrs ago. My first attempts are still better with the plain clothesline wire and the wire shaped into a U but using the same metal tags. The wire that is not coated rusts a little and they really get stuck down in the ground. They almost have to be pried out! LOL!
deb

I ordered some from some catalog, but when I write on them with permanant ink, they fade. I had a venetian blind to break, and I use the slats for plant markers. They havent faded yet. Luciee {;^)

I have tried a lot of things, and anything is better than nothing!
I was considering a pack of 1000 wooden 6" plant markers for 30. but then found similar ones at Blick's School Catalog for 500 for 6.95! I'm going to try those this year.

wood is great for temporary, mine were written on last fall and over the course of the winter they rotted so badly that I've replaced them all with mini blind slats that I've cut into 5 inch pieces. I printed nice little labels with my regular printer using Avery return sized labels, then for added protection after placing it where I wanted it on the mini blind, I then covered it with Scotch mailing tape folding excess over the top & edges. they look great... and I had read from a few others (can't remember where) that this worked well for them.
I'd hate to have to guess at just how many I've made up like this, but its ALOT.
good luck.

I agree about the wood. I bought a box of 1000 from Gempler's. The permanent marker stayed pretty well, but the winter was not kind to the markers. Many rotted, and others were stepped on by animals, like illegally free-roaming large dogs. I found many lying next to plants after the winter and was luckily able to match plants and markers. I now use the wood for temporary potting, etc. I bought the zinc ones from PawPaw's and use a Brother label maker. However, I like the laser label idea. The white plastic markers work pretty well and you can use the printed labels, but they also tend to "heave" out of the ground over the winter...and they aren't that much cheaper than the zinc, which have l-o-n-g prongs that go well into the ground, thwarting both weather and animals.

I found something I like - aluminum tags that you can write on with a ballpoint pen and it leaves an impression. There is a little hole and wire and you could attach it to the plant or something else. 100 for about 7.00 also at Gemplers, but they are not advertised for plant tags, just general tags.

I am going back to my plain clothesline wire with my write on aluminum tags. The tags do not stay on well on the green plastic wrapped wired that I made (as shown above). A few have already come off, but luckily I have a map of my irises and could replace them. I update my maps about twice a year.
The ones without the plastic, rust into the ground and really take quite a bit of effort to get out. Also, wrapping the tags around both sides of the wire keeps them on. The plain wire ones I have, which are almost all of them, I ut some in in 3 years ago and they are still great!
deb

Avery weather proof labels on Ebay $33 for 1500 labels. Item # 5520 (qty 1500) same as #15510 (qty 300).

cant find PTOUCH lable (water proof) around here .is there a website to buy them at

I have been thinking about this for some time, since starting a nature trail on our property. I wanted something not too expensive since I have about 200 plants (and more being added all the time) in their native settings along a 1000' trail. But I also wanted them to last forever and look good, too. I was thinking about using water proof paper from National Geographic (that way you can make your labels any size you want) and then as an added insurance laminate the labels. For the holder, I was going to get some thin sheets of copper and some small (1/4") copper pipe. An appropriate length of pipe would be soldered or rivited to the center of a piece of copper that would be cut to about 1/4" (on all sides) bigger that the label. Then the 1/4" extra would be bent over the front framing and holding the label in place. I think they would look nice, but the price of copper keeps going up. I would like to hear your comments on this idea before I try to make a sample.

NativeVA,
See my post no's 8015732 and 8015890 on this thread above. The weatherproof laser printed labels have been in place for almost a year now and look like new.
I used to make my own markers using Aluminum, but those described above do not have to be fabricated.
Dennis

I got my ptouch label cartridges from bluedogink.com It was a shot in the dark, just googled for best price and they had it. I ordered 2 of the industrial strength black on clear 1/2 inch and shipping was $6.95. Got quick order confirmation and email when it shipped.

I also buy the imprint aluminum tags at Mountain Valley Growers and have been happy with them. I do replace the wire ties they include for sturdier wire in longer lengths. I make decent size loops of wire to circle the new rhizomes when I'm planting and plant the iris with the wire wrapped loosely around it. I leave the tag laying on the soil next to the rhizome. I mostly don't need to ID anything until I'm moving or dividing so for me it works that the tags are on the ground or half covered by dirt:lol:

Yes! I Need to find a more reliable tag system.

This spring many were faded, broken and otherwise strewed about.
What the sun doesn't fade the squirrels dig up/play with !!!

Then there seems to always be one or two that 'do not return'. UGGH

I need to get a handle on this!
Yes! A good project for July/August!

Thanks for the good information!

We are also a commercial garden in the San Francisco Bay Area of California (Nola's Iris Garden). We've been using See Fine Markers (photo below) as mentioned above; but they sell by the hundred (I believe) and they are very heavy so freight can get expensive. We use a Brother P-Touch with "TZ" tape. The TZ is the UV resistant and water proof and our original labels have been in the garden for 8 years. We have better luck using the black on white but also use the black on clear tape. My weeding crew has still been know to pull them out during weeding season (Spring), but they are getting better.

Weed control is a challenge. We do spray a commercial preemergent in the Spring and whenever we transplant. I also use Preen in my small personal gardening beds but it must be reapplied regularly.

Thank you for the suggestion on the Avery labels. I will give those a try for some other projects we have going on, like my potted plants.

Do a search in Ebay for "engraved trophy plate". You just need to add a stake of some kind. They should last awhile. A suprisingly cheap alternative (for what you are getting).

After going on 3 years, the wire I use to put my tags in the ground with is finally rusting through. The Al forestry tags are still very readable. I have started replacing the wire and just taking the tags off the old wire and attaching it to the new. After trying everything I could think of, these have lasted best and the printing is still great. Pricing is not bad either!
Deb

Thanks for all the great information and links on plant labels. I think I’m going to try the Kincaid with the Avery weatherproof because I'd like to use the computer to get more info on the labels.

Question for anyone using the Avery weatherproof labels: (I haven't bought these yet.) How long have they lasted for you? Are they really weatherproof or should I plan to put a clear label on top for extra measure? I'll be using an inkjet printer, not a laser. Any idea if that will be a problem with fading?

BINGO — I never thought of using Excel to merge to Word for printing labels. (Not Iris', but) I had just used Excel to list my seed tray information and needed labels for potting up. Tried this and it worked like a charm. Now, I can use the same data to print on the Kincaid's when I plant outside. Thanks dd95172 for the great idea!

Who knew tagging plants could be so difficult and yet inventive. I have tried for years to keep seedlings of all kinds straight. I too found idea's of popsicle sticks, brass trophy plates, aluminum writable tags, PT Touch labeling. Nothing lasted. My husband and I came up with stainless steel dog tags. (Stainless Steel needs to be 304 to 314.) There are 100 blanks with 30" ball chain for each, for $38.50. We already have medal alpha/numeric stamps. (from $15.00 to $150.00) All on Ebay. O.K now don't laugh too hard, but I intended to use the dog tags around rhizome IN the ground. They will be readable for years. However the dog tags can be used around each plant above ground. I prefer double protection and I love the ceramic tile marker idea for the surface identification. I'll give that a try this season.

Whoever invents the 'perfect' plant identification marker will be a billionaire!

I've used the lightweight aluminum plant tags buried with the iris too. The tags are soft metal and I just used a ball point pen to "engrave/imprint" the info on it and got a long piece of wire to loop around the rhizome. I map my iris too so burying the tags wasn't going to bug me. Even if they were hard to read due to the dirt/clay stains, I could do a pencil rubbing with a piece of paper and get the name off them. I actually had more problems with the wire disintegrating/rusting out that anything else. Might try nylon or cheap fishing line next time.

I don't know if this company offered the waterproof Ptouch labels but I buy mine from an online company called Blue Dog Ink. I just get the heavy duty type.