Garden Label Questions

[Ruth_10]

I use a black Sharpie on yogurt cup lids for my labels. One goes at the top of the cage and the other at the bottom, where it is shaded and protected. A hard copy map is in my garden log. The Sharpie ink fades a little bit, but not that bad, IMO. Can't beat it for price and ease of use. (And using a Sharpie to label tomatoes is inspired--obvious, once someone mentions it. ) I don't find that the wax markers work that well on the types of materials that one would use in the garden (though they do work well on china or glass).

A Sharpie, a pair of Felco pruners, and a pocket knife are my essential tools for a trip out to the garden. I will need to use one or all three most of the time.

[Plant Lady]

I think I might check out those paint sharpie markers and experiment now with them If I can find them someplace locallly. But I am going to use numbers instead of names on what every type of label I decide to try, I am a good record keeper, so by numbering I can keep good records just by recording numbers in the garden and notes and then translating the data indoors to a permanant record. If I can find the paint markers I'll report back on how they work or don't.

[pooklette]

I use paper maps and plant markers. Until now, I was using plastic plant markers with the variety name written with a Sharpee, but I'm tired of the words fading away. This year, I think I'm going to buy a pkg of cheapo craft sticks (tongue depressors) and write on them with a bright colored paint pen. My son and I used them (paint pens) a while back for one of his school projects and they're pretty cheap. Not sure if I'll write the variety name or use a number system yet though...

[Woodenzoo]

I used the China Marker on mini blinds last year and it did very well. In fact, I'll have to take the cleanser to them to get last years names off some of them so I can reuse the blinds again for this year's new varieties!
Cathy

[Mischka]

I like to use a map because very often the plants grow so large that I'm unable to access the markers I placed at the base of each plant.

I use a plastic sheet protector to protect the map from garden hazards.

Below is a link to a blank grid garden map I have created for your convenience. You must have Adobe Acrobat reader installed in order to view and print it.

Enjoy!

Click here for map

[Dr_Redwine]

For my cages I buy cheap aluminum pans and cut them into 1/2 wide strips using an old pair of scissors. I then cut them about 3" long and taper one end so that it is about 1/4 wide and an inch long or so.

I take a old ball point pen and write the name on the tag hard enough to make an indentation in the aluminum. The thin end is then wrapped around a wire on the cage and around itself so it will stay. Works pretty well for me with my smaller number of plants.

DrR

[TomatoDon]

In the past I put labels at the base of the plant. This is a mistake. First, you have to bend over to see them. Second, if you use mulch it's hard to have a stake plastic long enough to anchor firmly. Third, they are always in the way when you weed, water, and fertilize.

Next year I will be labeing at the top of the cage. It will take the tomato a good while to grow that tall to obscure it with foliage, and it is always at eye level.

I'm not sure what will work best concerning fading, but I'm going to purchase a roll of the large nursery tags, write all my tags inside, and tape over with clear tape as someone mentioned earlier. The bigger the better. I'm going to label the variety and the planting date. Would love to have something larger that I could write on and keep a running total of the number of tomatoes I pick from that plant, and the dates picked. I'm sure I'll think of something.

And most reliable, I think, is just to write it down and keep the list in the house. I didn't do that last year and really regretted it. I'll probably just sketch it out as I plant on notebook paper, then put it on the computer. If I want to get fancy with it later I can.

I think it would be difficult trying to keep up with the poundage a plant produces, trying to go through the garden and pick fruit, keep it segregated to weigh later, and keep track of it all. I'm just going to count the mature fruit picked, determine an average weight, and at the end of the year multiply that by the number of tomatoes picked. I think I enjoyed my tomato patch the most the year I kept up with the totals. I could sort of measure the success, and it's surprising how it adds up at the end of the year.

Now...we've got to figure out something large to write on, and the kind of marker to use so it doesn't all fade out.

Don

[Mantis]

I don't grow a lot of varieties but I find a freehand sketch of the garden with which ones are where is all I need. Gave up on labels a long time ago. Although I do label my pots with a texta because its easy.

[veggiecanner]

Sharpie makes an indutrial version of their pen. Office DEpot sells it.

[PaulF]

I have 1"x2"x12" wooden slats with the variety names painted on that go at the bottom of the cages. I don't like to attach tags to the cages because the foliage engulfs the tags pretty quickly.

I do have a map of variety locations in my field notebook. I just use an 8x10 school spiral notebook. I start the year with the list of possibilities, the whittled down list, the seeds started listand end up with the planted list and map. Each plant gets a column where I keep track of growth rates and plant health, tomatoes produced (ripe), weight of ripe tomatoes harvested. I also include weather, temperature and rainfall. This year a field taste test and my personal taste experiences will be included.

I can do this in a notebook because I have only a small number of plants, the garden is close to the house and garage where I keep my scales and other supplies. After about eight years of growing heirlooms, I am now into my third notebook so I can quickly check on previous years.

After all this rambling, I use wooden stakes with the names painted on and a master map just in case a trickster rearranges the stakes.

[veggiecanner]

I use recycled canning jar lids tied to the trellis with name and other information for each plant.

[Earl]

For tomatoes I use orange surveyors tape. I give every plant a number and write # and name on tape with marker and tie it to the cages. Numbers makes it easy to write # on top of tomato for identity.

[robbins]

I buy cases of 5 gallon paint sticks (about 2''x25") at Lowes - about $12/250 stakes. I paint the sticks neon orange and use china markers to write the names on. I stick them in the ground on the edge of the plastic - last for several years and I can find them - even in the weeds.

[ajax]

Plastic markers written on with a grease pencil...but ALWAYS write them down anyway on a piece of paper. Although the grease pencil works GREAT, sometimes a critter sees fit to remove the marker completely, and I always thank God that I have the paper layout to fall back on.

Good luck!
AJ

[Mischka]

Originally Posted by robbins

I buy cases of 5 gallon paint sticks (about 2''x25") at Lowes - about $12/250 stakes. I paint the sticks neon orange and use china markers to write the names on. I stick them in the ground on the edge of the plastic - last for several years and I can find them - even in the weeds.

This is a great idea.

It sure solves the problem of trying to find those tiny ones when your plants are 6' tall and 4' wide

Thanks Robbins!