The Plant Marker Conundrum

I don't know about you, but it seems like every time I attempt to be a good gardener and actually label my plants, something happens to the label that leaves me wondering whether I planted a "Heatherington Pink" or "Ozark Pink" tomato in that spot, with the answer coming sometime later on when I'm able to harvest. Let's see. I've tried the nice little wood labels they sell at the garden center, written in pencil just the way Martha Stewart told me to, and it's faded completely after a few weeks. I've tried plastic labels written with permanent marker. You know what? Permanent marker isn't permanent at all in the garden. False advertising!

So I am always on the lookout for good plant label ideas, and I thought I'd share a few that I've come across lately.

About Container Gardens guide Kerry Michaels featured this idea on her blog last week, and I want to share it here as well: embossed soda can plant markers from Little House in the Suburbs. I like this tip because it's a great way to reuse aluminum cans, and you can be sure that you'll always be able to read these labels!

Over at Chicago Garden, you can find several handy ideas for making plant labels from reused items.

Of course, often you don't want it to look like there's a marker in your garden at all. For those situations, I like this tip for making your own plant markers with stones. Very simple and attractive (Martha Stewart featured this idea in her magazine, as well. But she used rubber stamps with permanent ink.)

And, on one of my recent visits to Etsy (it's a daily thing. I think it may be time to admit I have a problem...) I came across several really cute ideas for plant markers:

Vintage silverware garden marker
• Chalkboard garden plant markers
• Markers made from broken china or pottery

All of the Etsy ideas (except maybe that silverware one...) look like things that you could definitely make yourself. I couldn't. At least, I couldn't make them look nearly that cute (artsy craftsy stuff is not my strong point). But you probably could :-)

Do you have any tips for making plant markers? Tell us about them!