writes:
I have never kept my seeds anywhere particular. The envelopes just
sit in a shoe box on a closet shelf. I get good germination. If I
have any seed left after 3 or 4 years, I will dump them and start
over. I now tend to keep them in a plastic 3 1/2" diskette box. Just
the right size for seed envelopes.

Susan, that is so cool. I have mine stored in a 5-1/4" diskette box
because some of the packages are larger. As you know, it works great and
easy to categorize. :-)

Of course, if someone wants to use a diskette box (and doesn't have one),
there are plenty around in second-hand stores.

For seed tags, it seemed like nothing I tried worked well, so this year I
decided to laminate the names using my computer to do the work on some of
the longer evenings that really all else we can do is check out the seed
catalogs, order, or plant seeds. I type the names of the seeds I will
plant and can get very specific as to varieties), copy and paste as many
names as might be needed,print, cut them apart, lay them on a laminate
sheet, laminate, and cut them apart. (No, don't lay the full sheet of
names on the laminating material because when they are cut, there is no
seal around the label.) Sending them through the laminator again after
they are cut apart helps ensure the edges are sealed so no moisture gets
in to blur the writing. The heat laminator works very well for this, but
cold lamination or contact sheets might not be satisfactory at all because
of the moisture blurring the writing.

Individual labels for the seedlings at planting time gives one that goes
with it all the way to harvest.

I got tired of my writing on wooden stakes blurred; tags on toothpicks
were a pain and didn't last, putting the envelope along the pots only
worked while the seedlings were in the little pots (and the cats didn't
institute their own filing system!), and too cheap to buy plastic stakes
for garden pens which I would lose or store "in a safe place" which is
really safe 'cuz I can't find it! Though I don't get fancy with the tags,
it would be a simple matter to color code by either printing on color
paper or using colored highlighters over the names before laminating.
Though this is the first year for this tagging method, they surely could
be used year after year. Planting date could be written on the outside
with a Sharpie marker and rubbed off (dry board cleaner works well for
removing "permanent" markers from smooth surfaces).

It is one of those simple things we often look right by without relating
it to something so different than the "accepted" use. I could have been
doing this the last three years and just didn't think of it.

On to the garden, a hole punched in the tag (on the laminate portion only
so as to not allow moisture to the paper) and a piece of floral wire
allows it to be attached to the tomato cage, pepper cage, trellis, or
stake.

Not many people have heat laminators already, but there are small ones in
the range of $50 that are designed to be used for name badges, luggage
tags, etc. if you are interested in buying one. I'd recommend buying the
larger laminating sheets and cutting them to the size needed for the small
laminator as it's more economical that way. Originally, I bought one for
luggage tags and a currency conversion chart (and home time for telephone
calls) to carry in my purse before a trip to Great Britain. At the time,
I had no idea how much I would use it for all sorts of odds and ends. One
of my main fun uses for mine now is printing photographs for the
granddaughters (and children of friends) and laminating them; that way
they can carry around the photos. (Two photographs, back to back with
rounded corners, work very well.) The girls, age 4 and 2, have their own
photo album which is a 3-ring binder with laminated sheets of photographs
in it which we add to all the time; they love it. The lamination protects
the ink jet photos from moisture as well as from tearing. The highly
mobile feature is a real plus for little people.

The tomato labels shown on my web page were laminated and put in the trays
of plants for Millennium Farms. They said they always sold the plants
with the photo labels first.

I have a great old herb book from a used book store which has wonderful
history descriptions of some herbs and uses. It is written in calligraphy
and quite lovely. I have photocopied some of the pages from that and
laminated them to have in the garden with the herbs. Visitors enjoy
reading them, and it's a reminder to me to try something different with
them.

It's a great way to combine technology, in its simpler forms, and
gardening to help ease "too-early-to-plant" frustration. :-)

Glenna

I just write on a thin piece of paper and sellotape in on both sides, sticky
sides together. Works as well as a laminator I'd imagine and it's loads
cheaper.

Charlie.

"Glenna Rose" wrote in message
news:fc.003d0941018fb3373b9aca0093d6e666.18fb4c5@p mug.org...
writes:
I have never kept my seeds anywhere particular. The envelopes just
sit in a shoe box on a closet shelf. I get good germination. If I
have any seed left after 3 or 4 years, I will dump them and start
over. I now tend to keep them in a plastic 3 1/2" diskette box. Just
the right size for seed envelopes.

Susan, that is so cool. I have mine stored in a 5-1/4" diskette box
because some of the packages are larger. As you know, it works great and
easy to categorize. :-)

Of course, if someone wants to use a diskette box (and doesn't have one),
there are plenty around in second-hand stores.

For seed tags, it seemed like nothing I tried worked well, so this year I
decided to laminate the names using my computer to do the work on some of
the longer evenings that really all else we can do is check out the seed
catalogs, order, or plant seeds. I type the names of the seeds I will
plant and can get very specific as to varieties), copy and paste as many
names as might be needed,print, cut them apart, lay them on a laminate
sheet, laminate, and cut them apart. (No, don't lay the full sheet of
names on the laminating material because when they are cut, there is no
seal around the label.) Sending them through the laminator again after
they are cut apart helps ensure the edges are sealed so no moisture gets
in to blur the writing. The heat laminator works very well for this, but
cold lamination or contact sheets might not be satisfactory at all because
of the moisture blurring the writing.

Individual labels for the seedlings at planting time gives one that goes
with it all the way to harvest.

I got tired of my writing on wooden stakes blurred; tags on toothpicks
were a pain and didn't last, putting the envelope along the pots only
worked while the seedlings were in the little pots (and the cats didn't
institute their own filing system!), and too cheap to buy plastic stakes
for garden pens which I would lose or store "in a safe place" which is
really safe 'cuz I can't find it! Though I don't get fancy with the tags,
it would be a simple matter to color code by either printing on color
paper or using colored highlighters over the names before laminating.
Though this is the first year for this tagging method, they surely could
be used year after year. Planting date could be written on the outside
with a Sharpie marker and rubbed off (dry board cleaner works well for
removing "permanent" markers from smooth surfaces).

It is one of those simple things we often look right by without relating
it to something so different than the "accepted" use. I could have been
doing this the last three years and just didn't think of it.

On to the garden, a hole punched in the tag (on the laminate portion only
so as to not allow moisture to the paper) and a piece of floral wire
allows it to be attached to the tomato cage, pepper cage, trellis, or
stake.

Not many people have heat laminators already, but there are small ones in
the range of $50 that are designed to be used for name badges, luggage
tags, etc. if you are interested in buying one. I'd recommend buying the
larger laminating sheets and cutting them to the size needed for the small
laminator as it's more economical that way. Originally, I bought one for
luggage tags and a currency conversion chart (and home time for telephone
calls) to carry in my purse before a trip to Great Britain. At the time,
I had no idea how much I would use it for all sorts of odds and ends. One
of my main fun uses for mine now is printing photographs for the
granddaughters (and children of friends) and laminating them; that way
they can carry around the photos. (Two photographs, back to back with
rounded corners, work very well.) The girls, age 4 and 2, have their own
photo album which is a 3-ring binder with laminated sheets of photographs
in it which we add to all the time; they love it. The lamination protects
the ink jet photos from moisture as well as from tearing. The highly
mobile feature is a real plus for little people.

The tomato labels shown on my web page were laminated and put in the trays
of plants for Millennium Farms. They said they always sold the plants
with the photo labels first.

I have a great old herb book from a used book store which has wonderful
history descriptions of some herbs and uses. It is written in calligraphy
and quite lovely. I have photocopied some of the pages from that and
laminated them to have in the garden with the herbs. Visitors enjoy
reading them, and it's a reminder to me to try something different with
them.

It's a great way to combine technology, in its simpler forms, and
gardening to help ease "too-early-to-plant" frustration. :-)

Glenna



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On Mon, 24 Mar 2003 09:38:27 -0800, (Glenna
Rose) wrote:


The tomato labels shown on my web page were laminated and put in the trays
of plants for Millennium Farms. They said they always sold the plants
with the photo labels first.

Glenna, I'd like to see these. Could you give us the URL,
please?

Thanks.

Pat

--
CLICK DAILY TO FEED THE HUNGRY
United States: http://www.stopthehunger.com/
International: http://www.thehungersite.com/

On Mon, 24 Mar 2003 17:58:19 -0000, "Charlie"
wrote:

I just write on a thin piece of paper and sellotape in on both sides, sticky
sides together. Works as well as a laminator I'd imagine and it's loads
cheaper.


That's a good idea. I use the plastic stakes - I bought 500
of them a few years ago.

I don't have a 'special pen' though - I just write on them
with a pencil. It seems to work well.

Pat
--
CLICK DAILY TO FEED THE HUNGRY
United States: http://www.stopthehunger.com/
International: http://www.thehungersite.com/

For tags, I cut an empty gallon milk container in strips and write on these with
a permanent maker.
They can be hole punched and hung on tomato cages. Free with very little work
involved.

If you are intrested in finding how long seeds are viable, there is a good seed
saving book called
Seed to Seed by Suzanne Ashworth. It costs about 20 dollars. It teaches how to
save your own seed and how long they can reasonably be saved.

Pat Meadows wrote:

On Mon, 24 Mar 2003 17:58:19 -0000, "Charlie"
wrote:

I just write on a thin piece of paper and sellotape in on both sides, sticky
sides together. Works as well as a laminator I'd imagine and it's loads
cheaper.


That's a good idea. I use the plastic stakes - I bought 500
of them a few years ago.

I don't have a 'special pen' though - I just write on them
with a pencil. It seems to work well.

Pat
--
CLICK DAILY TO FEED THE HUNGRY
United States: http://www.stopthehunger.com/
International: http://www.thehungersite.com/