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  • From: "Jeff Ball" <jeffball@starband.net>
  • To: "'gardenwriters-on-gardening'" <gwl-g@lists.ibiblio.org>
  • Subject: RE: [gwl-g] Welcome, labeling plants
  • Date: Mon, 12 Apr 2004 11:16:35 -0400

Melanie,

I am not the horticulturist that you are, but in my vegetable garden I’ve been struggling with a workable labeling system for years.  I’ve tried all the standard techniques, and am not happy with any of them.  Finally, this year I think I’ve solved my labeling problem.  It may not work for you, but it looks like my label problems are over. 

 

I spent $25 for a small laminating machine.  I have two sizes of label that I can laminate and make waterproof.  I can make a label the same size as a seed packet and I can make a label the size of a business card.  For the seed packet size Nancy and I purchased about 70 galvanized stakes (for $1 each at the end of last season) with a slot on the end for holding a seed packet.  Of course the seed packet looks terrible in two months.  I designed a simple but somewhat elegant label in Microsoft Word with a logo, Birchwood Farms, and then the type of vegetable, the variety name, and the seed company.  I print these on tan parchment paper and they look pretty good for my needs anyway.  The business card label will be used for labeling trees and shrubs.  We have 20 acres of woods with lots of plants we can’t identify.  In May we will have some guests who can identify virtually all of our woodland trees and plants.  I will make small labels and attach them  to the plants so as our memory lapses two weeks later, we will still know what we have.  I don’t know how my veggie garden plant labels will handle sun and weather, but my suspicion is that they will hold up for several seasons, maybe more.  If you want to learn about laminating machines, go to www.ebay.com and type in “laminating machines” and you’ll get a pretty good range of what is available with good descriptions of each.  I got the Lamidex LX-467.  I figure the large labels cost me about a nickel each and the business card size about 3 cents each.

 

Jeff Ball

 

-----Original Message-----
From: gwl-g-bounces@lists.ibiblio.org [mailto:gwl-g-bounces@lists.ibiblio.org] On Behalf Of Melanie
Sent: Friday, April 09, 2004 9:05 AM
To: gwl-g@lists.ibiblio.org
Subject: [gwl-g] Welcome, labeling plants

 

Good morning all,

 

Melanie Vassallo, Long Island NY zone 6b

 

Another list I belong to asks that we begin each posting with our name, location and zone. It really does help when talking about gardening so I'll stick to that format here.

 

Thanks Lon for setting up this list!

 

Thought I'd begin the day with a question about labels/markers. How do you feel about labeling your plants?

 

Here in my garden I have about 500 daylilies cultivars, they are all labeled with metal markers, an expensive job. In order to keep my status as a Display Garden for the American Hemerocallis Society I have to label each daylily in a certain way. I also collect Hosta, Sedum, Geraniums, Pulmonaria, Heuchera, Tradescantia and so much more, many of them are not labeled well at all.

 

I can't stand the look of those metal markers all winter and especially now in the spring. What kind of alternative is there? Just sticking the plastic tag from the original pot isn't working well at all, I've lost the name of so many different cultivars.

 

Several 100 people tour this garden in June and July so having the names on the plants makes it much easier. I'm expecting a large group the first week of June and want to have things ready for them. Even if the name isn't sticking up out of the plant, it makes it easier for me if I know I can just push aside the foliage for the cultivar name.

 

Has anybody tried painting or marking the names onto flat stones? We can go to the beach and get beautiful stones from there.

 

Spreading manure today,

Melanie




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