An absolute essential for the better organized garden, plant markers set out in spring will save you so much head-scratching throughout the rest of the season.
Garden markers are especially helpful when sowing seeds, digging bulbs, and marking freshly sprouted perennials so you know the exact location of each plant.
Use them to help distinguish between weeds and cultivated plants, denote which plants you will allow to flower for seed saving, and to practice good crop rotation from year to year. They are also great for showcasing your hard work so visitors to your garden can clearly see what crops you’re growing.
Never forget what you planted where ever again with these low and no cost upcycled plant marker projects!
1. Wine Corks
For the wine drinking gardener, a collection of corks can be quickly and easily rendered into cute plant markers. Aside from corks, you will need some wooden dowels or skewers and a permanent marker. As a final step, add a coat of polyurethane for longer lasting, waterproof markers.
Get the DIY from Fabulessly Frugal.
2. Rocks
Release your inner artist by hand painting some flat and smooth stones from your yard. Depending on your skill level, you can use a paint pen to write out the plant name or illustrate the crop itself with acrylic paints. Finish with a clear coat of gloss varnish to protect your beautiful work from the elements.
Get the DIY from Garden Therapy.
3. Clay
A simple yet stylish project that can be completed in an afternoon, polymer clay is rolled and molded into flat sticks and then engraved using rubber letter stamps. Bake the clay in the oven until hardened before sticking them in the soil.
Get the DIY from Wit & Whistle.
4. Twigs
Found branches and twigs can be quickly put to use as plant markers as well, just cut them to size and whittle down one end to remove the bark. If you don’t have a wood burning kit, you can use permanent marker or inked rubber stamps to label your plants.
Get the DIY from Salt in my Coffee.
5. Tin Can Lids
Hung from a length of 12 gauge jewelry wire, tin can lids are punctured and painted or stamped for some easy upcycled plant markers.
Get the DIY from Creative Green Living.
6. Broken Terra Cotta Pots
Broken earthenware, terra cotta, and ceramic pots can be transformed into attractive plant markers with just a hammer and permanent marker.
Get the DIY from One Hundred Dollars a Month.
7. Toys
Adorable and kid-friendly, these safari animals are painted bright and vibrant colors, labelled with chalk markers, and protected with a coat of clear spray paint.
Get the DIY from Mom Trends.
8. Clothespins
Gussied up with a bit of exterior paint, wooden clothespins clipped to twigs and labelled with a sharpie makes for a quick plant marker fix.
Get the DIY from Chatfield Court.
9. Wooden Spoons
These duo-toned wooden spoons are made with two contrasting colors of acrylic paint, alphabet stickers, and finished with Mod Podge outdoor sealer.
Get the DIY from A Cultivated Nest.
10. Seashells
If you’re sitting on a pile of seashells from a past beach trip, put them to good use by turning them into some unique and interesting plant markers.
Get the DIY from Home Talk.
11. Bricks
For a super quick and easy project, leftover bricks can be transformed into garden markers with just permanent marker and some fancy penmanship skills.
Get the DIY from Simple Details.
12. Paint Sticks
Most everyone has a supply of paint stirring sticks somewhere in their home – paint them up and mark with a paint pen. Easy peasy!
Get the DIY from Blissfully Domestic.
13. Old Canning Lids
An ingenious way to reuse old canning lids (which can only be used once per canning), both lids and screw bands act as a frame for cut-outs of the flowers or veggies pictured on the seed packet. These markers are staked with bamboo skewers and sealed with lacquer spray to preserve them season to season.
Get the DIY from Untrained Housewife.
14. Stainless Steel Spoons
Turn some old spoons into lovely plant markers by gluing labels with a bit of Mod Podge, finishing with a clear coat of spray paint.
Get the DIY from Artsy VaVa.
15. Subway Tiles
For a classic and long lasting look, plain white subway tiles labelled with oil-based paint markers can be nestled into the soil at ground level or raised up by gluing them to metal skewers.
Get the DIY from Birds & Blooms.
16. Scrabble Tiles
Another clever upcycling idea, letter tiles from an old Scrabble set are hot glued, vertically, to a flat craft stick. When the glue has dried, weatherproof by spraying it with a coat of clear paint.
Get the DIY from $5 Dinners.
17. Popsicle Sticks
Save those popsicle sticks to create miniature billboards for your lovely garden exhibits!