Toe Tags

[slugworth]

Before coffee I was thinking it would be nice if somebody made big twist ties that you could write on to mark individual plants.
During coffee it dawned on me that I had slats salvaged from vinyl venitian blinds that I stick in pots and some have the hole close to the end.
After coffee I put a few twist ties on and took the pic.
I will be giving a few plants to neighbors and I want to make sure the plants are labeled properly.Naturally, you can cut the slats to any length you want.

[Tormato]

Hopefully you already know, use a black fade-proof marker only. A blue one will fade rapidly to the point of it essentially being vanishing ink.

[slugworth]

Originally Posted by Tormato

Hopefully you already know, use a black fade-proof marker only. A blue one will fade rapidly to the point of it essentially being vanishing ink.

I used a permanent marker that turned out not to be permanent.
After the recent rains the markers were blank.
Luckily it was on just a few plants I still know what's what.
Test the markers before you commit or you may end up being committed.

[taboule]

I cut the bottom end at an angle, makes it easier to insert in the soil, and you get an extra 1 in of length for each 2x markers.

[jtjmartin]

That's what I use on my plants - cheap, looks professional, and a black Sharpie Extreme lasts a long time!

(Tormato is right - I've already had to write over a blue Sharpie Extreme after one month.)

[rxkeith]

i won't tell you what my first thought was when i saw the words toe tags.



keith

[clkeiper]

Originally Posted by rxkeith

i won't tell you what my first thought was when i saw the words toe tags.



keith

mine too. I just watched a documentary on a woman who donated her body to science....

[mikemansker]

I use these:

https://amazon.com/gp/product/B0156FQC1O/ref=ppx_yo_dt_b_search_asin_title?ie=UTF8&psc=1

They are pretty cheap. I use a plant marker pen and the don't fade. I gather them up at the end of the season and have used some for 3 seasons now.

[ContainerTed]

Originally Posted by jtjmartin

That's what I use on my plants - cheap, looks professional, and a black Sharpie Extreme lasts a long time!

(Tormato is right - I've already had to write over a blue Sharpie Extreme after one month.)

Maybe I'm just cheap, but I've been using these "mini" blinds for at least 9 years now, and I also rip them down the middle which would give me twice as many if I kept the length the same. I then cut them to a pointed length of about 5"-6". So, I'm getting 3 bundles of markers about 4 inches in diameter from one blind. Sometimes I use my band saw to cut stacks held together with a woodworking clamp.

If you want permanent using these, then scratch the name on and then apply ink. Later, if the ink fades or washes away, simply ink again or read the scratches. After I get my map of what is planted where, I don't need markers any more. I can count them down and mark the fruit at harvest. 5-14 on one of my tomatoes says it came from row 5 and is plant number 14 in that row.

SweetSue1.JPG

Markers used in germination trays might show pink highliter.

DSCF0015.JPG

[Father'sDaughter]

I've found using a permanent marker and sticking the tags in the soil with the writing facing away from the sun works well. I'm also going to try oil based paint markers this year since I already bought them for another use.

[slugworth]

I have an old label maker but that would be tedious on a large amount of tags.
Once the plants get big I am going to put the labels near the tops of the plants
instead of the ground.

[PhilaGardener]

I write the name a second time on the part of the Venetian blind slat that goes into the ground and that never fades

[clkeiper]

I don't doubt anyone couldn't order them themselves but I use regular old greenhouse pixie tags for my labels. they last ONE season and you can leave them in the garden to decompose.. a box of 1000 from John Henry company is 50.00. you can order them blank and write in the flat side with a pencil or use the milwaukee brand sharpies you get at Lowes or Home Depot for contractors. they are red with a black cap.
the other place if you are close enough to pick them up is the E&R seed in Monroe Indiana. you can walk in a pick up in bundles of 100 or a box of a 1000 even cheaper.

[gdaddybill]

I try to remember and write the name in pencil on one side in case the permanent marker fades. The pencil writing is a bit hard to read but it stays on.

[brownrexx]

I like to place tags at the top of my tomato cages so that I don't have to look around the ground for the tags but I don't grow as many plants as most of you. I usually only have 15 plants and they all go into cages.