Good question. I hope someone will answer as I had the same problem this spring. Now I dont know which squash is which.

They sell small plastic plant markers at garden centers etc., and these are nice, but at $2-3.00 per pack for 12 markers, it adds up. What I did this year to mark my seedling was to use wooden craft popcicle sticks.( in Aus. you might call them ice pop sticks) I bought them at the dollar store,check out craft stores also, you get about 50 or so sticks per bag. Use a black fine tipped marker and you can write on both sides, variety, starting date, days to maturity, transplanting date, etc. Worked well for me. Hope this helps.

Sorry, I just realized your in New Zealand. Sorry

Thank heavens for mini-blinds! The blind slats that are removed to make the blinds the right length are great plant markers. They are plastic, so don't wick like wooden markers; they can be written on with an indelible marker and the writing stays legible; and one slat will make three or four markers.
I get mine from the home-decorating department of a local big-box store (I don't know what the New Zealand equivalent is of Home Depot) where they adjust the blinds to the customer's needs, and the extra slats were being thrown out! I asked if I could buy a few, and the clerk said to take as many as I wanted. Whoopee!

I use the plastic slats from old window blinds. Just cut them with scissors any length you want and mark with a permanent marker.

Be sure to check out the Growing from Seed forum here too for lots of additional tips.

Dave

Thanks everyone.
I think I'm trying to squeeze too many(5-6) different varieties in one flat. In the future, I will exercise greater self control. Or get more flats. And another heat pad. And so it goes on..

!- You can make your own markers from any plastic sheete,
popcicle sticks,..,white plastic knives. Use a permanent marker. I would never pay for those markers sold at stores.
They are too expensive.

2- divide your flats by cardboards, get dividers from liqur store boxes..But you have to trim them.

3- If You have diffr'nt kinds of tomatoes, plant them in diffrnt' flats with other things, instead of having all of them in one flat.

4- Always mark immediately.

Among the considerations are how many and how long are you marking them.

I had seed for half a dozen annuals and wanted to start a few of each for early transplants. Colored toothpicks worked fine. I put a toothpick in the seed pack to link the color to the flat and then put the same color toothpick with that seed in the flat.

I plant my seeds in the 6 cell packs and mark each cell with a number in permanent marker. For black cells I use a silver sharpie. Then I write down the number and the info about the seeds on a piece of paper. I can't spend too much time writing all that info on a tiny stick. Then if I have to transplant to bigger containers I write just the number on the stick.

Diane

we have a green house and we give away 15-20 thousand plants each year.

it has been a problem in the past.

we get Popsicle sticks by the 1000 for under 3 dollars at wally world.

we write on the sticks with a ultra fine sharpie and then paint it with clear polyurethane. this keeps the writing from fading when watering the plants.

the other ideas are just fine but we can't afford on our limited budget.

always looking for a bargain.

WM

I did something similar to Diane with paper. I had a tray of biodegradable fiber cells, so I couldn't label the pots themselves, but I just drew a little diagram - an equal amount of squares on a piece of paper to match the cells. Then I wrote the type of seed in each square just where I planted them. The important part is remebering to mark the front of your tray and the corresponding front on the paper so you still know what is what if it gets turned around. I just put some stickers on the front of the tray.

You can take food grade plastic bottles, milk bottles, soda bottles etc., and cut them into rings or squares, depending on their shape. Press them into the soil in the tray and then plant different varieties in different rings.

I only start seeds in trays with individual cells. I write on masking tape the variety in that row, and stick the tape on the outside of the tray. When I "pot up" I use clear plastic 9oz cups, and write the variety name with a black Sharpie directly on the plastic cup.

Toothpicks with masking tape flags, + permanent marker.

I wholeheartedly agree with the advice to use miniblind pieces. Easy to cut, easy to write on (plenty of room) and easy to use in the garden itself ~ easy to punch holes in so you can hang the tag right on tomato cages or stakes (or just stick it in the ground for things without cages or stakes). Only bad thing was permanent marker doesn't last long in our Texas sun, so if you live somewhere with intense sunlight, you'll want to use a UV resistant marker if you use the tags in the garden.

I've used popsicle sticks, cut up coke cans I imprinted names on with a ball point pen, writing numbers on flats with a wax marker and using a corresponding number on a separate list, and earlier this year used plastic markers I bought for 6 cents each. Let me tell you, the best and cheapest thing was those miniblind pieces. They're a bit wide to stick in small flats, like a 72-cell, but I plan to just cut them in half next year.

Do all of the above if you have small children! I thought I only had lady bug toms surviving and banana peppers, NO! not a 1 of them but my other 2 varieties of toms and peppers alive and well!!! so I feel a lot of "stick replanting" went on also I have 6 butternut squash and NO! cantalopes!!
I have resorted to permanant markers on all side of the beds and arrows showing extent of bed, and tried to be neat so I can put a line throught to reuse, and rather than date ect I number the tray and write down the date in a book placed on a very, very high shelf!

I use labels printed on the computer (or written on masking tape) and stuck to the sides of each group of cells.

Thanks for your input people. I should have been clearer: the problem isn't so much identification (I use miniblinds marked with a b pencil- doesn't fade and you can erase it-) as gauranteed separation. I like the idea of cardboard inserts. I suppose the only way I can really be sure is by using idividual cells, marked in as many ways as possible, and small children willing!

For my starts this season I drew on the flats with a silver, metallic Sharpie. You could set up a grid with something as simple as string or just draw marks on the edges to create a gride. Then write on the side of the flat what is in each section. Here is a picture that I posted on my blog to help illustrate what I am trying to describe.
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Here is a link that might be useful: Kim's Garden