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Post by castanea on Nov 11, 2012 0:37:06 GMT -5
I hear some people not liking paint markers, sorry you had a a bad time with them. I just just got reg markers from the local craft store and plastic labels from Lowes. The markings are as fresh as the day I put them on. In fact I have a bunch sitting in a 70% bleach solution to see if I could get them to fade so I could reuse that side. Not happening still dark black but the labels are a very pure white now at least. ;D Give them to me. I'll put them outside in July. They'll be fading away by September.
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Post by synergy on Nov 11, 2012 0:50:10 GMT -5
Thanks everyone for sharing ideas. For stakes I use scraps of wood, the aforementioned cut up yogurt containers, plastic jugs of all description and even rocks . The stuff I have actually painted works but it is much more time consuming . I want something cheap and easy if at all possible but it is worth buying a good pen if it will do the job. I have enough frustration with memory problems without having the labels disappear within a month. I really like the idea of numbered stakes and catalogueing what you planted by the number.
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Post by Drahkk on Nov 11, 2012 1:15:36 GMT -5
Clorox works wonders on regular Sharpie ink. It won't help the rotten ones, but for future use spray or soak them in a bleach solution, let them dry thoroughly, and you should be able to write on them again.
MB
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Post by rowan on Nov 11, 2012 1:32:40 GMT -5
Just a regular 5b pencil is what I use, doesn't fade, hard to rub off but still easy to reuse with a bit of metho.
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Post by templeton on Nov 11, 2012 7:40:52 GMT -5
I've used cut up aluminum drink cans for years. Have just graduated to strips cut from a roll of 8 inch wide aluminum flashing - I presume the North American term is the same - wikipedia thinks so.
Very soft aluminium, cut a half inch wide strip, emboss with old ballpoint pen. Go over with a marker pen like a sharpie for readability if you like, but even if it fades you have a permanent embossed label. The malleability of the material makes it easy to fix to trellis, round a plant stem, etc. or punch holes and wire on.
Wildlife warning - a friend labelled all his very rare azaleas, rododendrons and magnolias, only to find the bowerbirds had visited every plant and removed the wired on alumnum plant labels to decorate their bowers! (Do birds in NAm do the same?) T
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Post by olddog on Nov 11, 2012 13:04:59 GMT -5
ha, that is hilarious, those bowerbirds are pretty smart!
I always use a map and labels, just in case of that very problem. Hope your friend has a backup labelling system.
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Post by steev on Nov 11, 2012 22:13:20 GMT -5
Ditto the bowerbirds! "Wow! Chick magnets!" Crows and jays are attracted to shiny stuff around here, but not so much. Well, part of gardening is dealing with the neighbors you have, more than those you want, kin though they be.
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Post by Walk on Nov 12, 2012 11:06:31 GMT -5
We had deer attracted to the shiny aluminum plant labels many years ago when we did native plant nursery production. They would chew on the tags (even if they didn't eat the plant), making them impossible to read.
For a more permanent tag, we've been using old zinc canning jar lids with a #2 pencil. The tag never wears out, the pencil can be erased if necessary or freshened up after a couple of years. We also like to use grease pencils, aka china markers. They never dry up, unlike markers, and write on most anything. We also do the backup map for everything and the labels are just for convenience in the field.
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Post by Deleted on Nov 12, 2012 11:37:34 GMT -5
I was using recycled, black 1g pots to start small seeds and single cuttings.
They 're usually under shade cloth, not direct sun.
They are very scuffed. A white no-name paint maker comes out of the bottom of a purse. (Who knows where she got it.) This is like 'white-out,' shaped like a permanent marker, and it's never come off.
The only way I can remove it is to use finer sand paper.
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Post by Deleted on Nov 12, 2012 11:42:04 GMT -5
But, I have yet to see anything sharper looking than those metal tags from the arboretum. Very Nice.
I am trying to leave my aging parents with an automated planting situation, that takes care of itself, as much as possible.
I want them to know what everything is, and I liked the permanence of your solution.
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Post by mountaindweller on Nov 14, 2012 2:38:11 GMT -5
I only know what not to use (and seem to never find venetian blinds). Everything plastic which is used for food will break down within two month or so. Ice cream sticks are unreadable after some weeks. The best thing I have used so far were sharpies on strips cut our of these thingies you put into file folders to keep it tidy. But I still hope on venetian blinds or might try to use old aluminum cans and an old ball writer (go into town and search in the rubbish bin, what do the people think of me??)
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Post by ilex on Nov 15, 2012 3:06:41 GMT -5
Just pick a can and cut it. Then with a pen, piece of wood or wathever write on it.
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Post by ilex on Nov 15, 2012 3:12:10 GMT -5
... Wildlife warning - a friend labelled all his very rare azaleas, rododendrons and magnolias, only to find the bowerbirds had visited every plant and removed the wired on alumnum plant labels to decorate their bowers! (Do birds in NAm do the same?) T That's fairly common in colections. If in pots, write also the name on the pot. Sometimes a second label is buried in plants roots, and it's always a good idea to have a map on paper. You could also have a label buried under a rock always on the same place (South ...).
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Post by templeton on Nov 15, 2012 17:17:17 GMT -5
use old aluminum cans and an old ball writer (go into town and search in the rubbish bin, what do the people think of me??) bin diving is an exalted competitive sport among my students ;D T
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Post by synergy on Nov 16, 2012 12:52:56 GMT -5
I think writing on the aluminum cans is a great idea too, I am always thinking we PAY for them while buying the food product so the more we can utilize the the better. Also to optmiize the resource extraction and processing.
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