Becky Striepe
I shared my latest DIY garden hack on Monday, but making planters isn’t the only way you can get crafty in the garden!
Whether you’re growing food or flowers, it’s a good idea to label your plants. Sure, once your food plants produce and the flowers bloom, you can easily tell what’s what, but there’s that in-between stage where it’s sometimes hard to tell the cucumbers from the collards. Trust me. I once accidentally cooked up a big pot of cucumber greens that I thought were collards, and it took me a few bites to figure out why they tasted so terrible. You do NOT want to eat cucumber greens. They’re fuzzy!
If I’d just taken the time to label my plants, I could have saved myself from a culinary disaster. Sure, you can buy plant markers at the store, but isn’t it more fun (and more eco-friendly!) to make your own? Here are some DIY plant markers to get you going.
1. Wine Cork Plant Markers
This idea probably doesn’t need a tute, but just in case, here ya go! Just use a Sharpie to write your plant names on your wine corks, stick a bamboo skewer into one end, and stake it into your garden or your container. Easy peasy!
Next>> Make a chalkboard paint pot.
Photo by Becky Striepe
I made the wine cork plant markers. They look awesome.
Awesome! I’m glad you like how they turned out. 🙂
such a cute idea! 🙂 lisa
Cheap mini-blinds are colored with lead paint. They should go to the landfill, for safety’s sake. The dust is toxic. Cuting them releases dust. Putting them in a pot releases lead to the soil, which can be taken up by plants… You get the picture. I would urge you to take down this “tip”. Katie B., retired environmental manager
Mini blinds don’t necessarily have lead paint. If you’d like to try the project but you aren’t sure about your blinds, you can purchase lead detection swabs from the hardware store. They’re fairly inexpensive, and they’re easy to use. I keep lead swabs to use at garage sales and thrift stores–if I’m suspicious of something, I just swab it and then I’ll know before I buy it.