I am a member of the San Antonio Herb Society and we do several outreach events each year where we work at educating people about herbs. The display we have is called Everyday Herbs and it is made up of many examples of boxed and packaged foods that you can buy in your grocery store that contain herbs. Along with those boxes and packages we have pots of each herb to show people what that herb looks like before it is added to those foods, and educating them how herbs are a part of their everyday life. We also focus on 12 basic herbs that grow well in our area.
Last year three of us worked at freshening up the display and finding more healthy and organic examples to use in our display. We used to use these neat ceramic plant marks, but they were so heavy that the 4″ potted herbs would end up falling over a lot of the time so we decided to take a normal terracotta/clay pot and use blackboard paint on them and use a white marker (to look like chalk) and write the herb on each pot. Those pots would make a nice strong and steady base to place the 4″ potted herbs in and help them remain upright throughout the day.
This is a really simple way to label your potted plants. We used two different pots shapes and sizes to give the display some variety. The blackboard (chalkboard paint) paint in permanent and the white marker we used it also. We will be using these pots over and over again, so it was important that they would hold up. You could also use regular chalk, but just remember that it would wash off in the rain.
We only did the 12 basic herbs that grow well in the San Antonio area to keep the focus on what herbs are easy for people to start with if they were interested in growing herbs. The pots turned out great and the display turned out well.
The pots have really freshened up the display. This is an ongoing display as we continue to to switch out the older boxed foods with examples of more organic and healthy options.
Do you have a creative way to label your potted plants?
Sincerely, Emily
An oval shape cut (with scissors, believe it or not) from an aluminum can and embossed with a ball point pen makes a creative marker. A length of wire from an old wire clothes hanger makes the stake. (Punch a hole in the aluminum tag with a nail or hole punch.)
HI Bonnie – that is a great way to label your plants. I like it. A great way to re-use and recycle something you already have. Thank you for sharing!!
Your display looks magnificent Emily 🙂 I, for one, would be drawn to it like bees to a honey pot (or a bear…a bear would be drawn just as quickly! 😉 )
THANKS Fran. We had a lot of fun sprucing up the display with these pots.
How you do it all I will never know! I have seen different ideas for plant markers but have not settled on anything yet. The ones made out of forks and etched are cute. Nancy
Hi Nancy, Sometimes my schedule can get a bit overwhelming, but for the most part (especially right now) I am pacing myself. We did these neat pots last fall when I had a lot more energy!
I like the fork plant markers too. Last spring I did stamped spoons with a friend – in fact it was one of the same friends that was in on making these pots in this post
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