Self-made and labeled signs not only ensure order in your herb garden, but also in the saucepan. You can name all herbs exactly and are not limited to purchased plant labels with the common names. For example, if you have planted different types of mint, thyme or sage, you can easily identify them by means of their precisely labeled herb labels.
Tip: It is best to place your signs in the herb bed immediately when planting or sowing. The assignment is sometimes a bit difficult later. This is especially true when you have different subspecies of an herb.
Cardboard and paper plant labels
Do you only need your plant labels for one season or grow your herbs in the kitchen On your windowsill, then a fairly simple sign made of cardboard, cardboard or Paper. However, they are not weatherproof. You can make these cardboard signs yourself in just a few minutes. Write the herb names with a felt pen on colored cardboard or (colored) paper and cut the signs into the desired shape. Alternatively, you can design the paper signs on your computer and then print them out on colored paper. Attach the finished signs to kebab skewers with adhesive strips and stick them in your herb pots. When watering your herbs, however, be careful not to get your paper signs wet.
Advantages:
- costs almost nothing
- low expenditure of time
- environmentally friendly
Disadvantage:
- does not last long
Tip: Your paper signs will last a little longer if you use them
Instead of narrow adhesive strips, use wide, transparent packaging tape and stick it all around the entire sign.Herbal signs made of foil / laminated plant signs
Foil plant signs can be made very quickly and can last for a few years. You can either write on cut polypropylene film with a permanent marker or on commercially available paper with any pen. Of course, you can also design and print out the paper with your PC. Then cut it to size and laminate it with a special laminator. You can laminate several paper signs with a sufficiently large space between them in a film and then cut the film. Wooden or shish kebab sticks are suitable for fastening.
Advantages:
- low cost
- hardly any expenditure of time
Disadvantage:
- You need a laminator and / or special film
- Plastic is not very environmentally friendly
Herbal signs made of wood
Wooden signs with branded herb names are very decorative and durable for several years. If you make these from scraps of wood or used wooden spoons, then the costs are also kept within limits. If these plant labels remain in the garden all year round, they will of course weather faster than if they are kept protected over the winter. However, to write on the wood you will need a pen or soldering iron. Spelling mistakes cannot be corrected and are difficult to conceal. It is best to practice writing quickly on scraps of wood,
then you will immediately know what size your wooden signs should be for legible lettering.Colorful wooden signs
The best way to design colorful wooden signs is with waterproof acrylic paint and a bright paint pen. For example, dismantle an old fruit crate. The flat boards are easy to paint and write on. To suit your taste, saw or break the boards into sections of different lengths beforehand. Round wooden sticks to which you can attach the wooden signs are available in different thicknesses by the meter in every hardware store. If you prefer to use poster paints instead of acrylic paint, then paint the wooden signs with a commercially available clear lacquer with the touch-up pen before writing on them.
Signage "for eternity"
If you would like to make your herbal signs yourself so that they can be used for many years, there are various options. All variants are a bit more expensive than paper, foil or wooden signs, but they are very decorative and made almost "for eternity".
Particularly durable plant labels:
- pottery signs
- painted stones
- slate
- embossed metal foil
Painted stones
You can easily make your herbal signs from collected stones. They should not be too small and as flat as possible, then they can be easily labeled. Use a brush and acrylic paint or a touch-up pencil, depending on your taste. Whether you prime the stone beforehand, paint it artistically or leave it natural is up to your taste and skill. If you paint an unpainted stone, its grain will emerge as clearly as with wet stones. Children can also enjoy painting the stones. You can find detailed instructions on how to do this here Label stones weatherproof.
Advantages:
- very inexpensive
- low expenditure of time
- numerous design options
Disadvantage:
- Stones must be collected and cleaned beforehand
- Stones do not always stay in place and can easily be moved
Pottery signs of plants
If you like pottery and own a kiln, then you can make the signage for your herb garden yourself out of clay. However, air-drying modeling clay is not suitable because it is usually
not weatherproof. When making pottery, you have different options for labeling. Either paint and write on the fired clay sign or you scratch the inscription into the unfired clay. With or without a glaze, such clay signs are decorative and environmentally friendly. Children can also help with the design.Advantages:
- no high material costs
- very individual design options
- weatherproof
- high quality appearance
- very decorative and durable
Disadvantage:
- Kiln required
- relatively time-consuming due to drying, burning and cooling times
slate
You can get plant signs made of slate prefabricated in nurseries or in handicraft shops. But you can also do this yourself. However, it takes some skill to break the slate into the shape you want. But these slate signs are unique and individual. Slates and roof tiles made of slate are suitable as the starting material. Or maybe you can get cheap slate quarries. If the pieces are big enough, you can use them to make your plant labels. For your indoor herb garden, you can simply write on the plates with chalk. If your herb bed is in the garden, it is better to use a light paint pen, otherwise the next rain will wash off your lettering.
Metal foil
Plant signs made of shiny gold- or copper-colored metal foil look classy, but are not that difficult to tinker with. However, you need a special marking pen for this. With this you press the lettering into the foil. It shouldn't be too thin so your signs don't bend with every touch. It is up to you whether you cut out the desired shapes before or after the lettering. You can get embossing pens and foils in different thicknesses in craft shops or on the Internet. Since the metal foil has quite sharp edges, it is not suitable for handicrafts with small children.
Advantages:
- look noble
- no special previous knowledge required
- little time required
- very individual design options
- weatherproof without additional treatment
Disadvantage:
- medium acquisition cost
- Material not available everywhere
- Foil is sharp-edged, not suitable for smaller children!
