Love 'em! The skewers part sounds like a lot of work, but speaking as someone who's finally decided to go the mapping route because of missing labels on ELEVEN hostas, it might be worth it.

That's a GREAT idea!!! How cool!! Thank you, esther, for sharing your creative idea with us! I'm sure it will be duplicated!!

Also, great to see you again, Valereee!! Didn't run into you at the latest hosta sale at Knollwood, this year! But, that's a long drive I know! :o)

Valereee, bending the skewers with a pliers was NOT a lot of work. A minor "ugh" bump in the path of life, but once it's done, it's done.

Here's some pictures of the plant labels installed by the hostas:

Hey, J! I've been ignoring my hostas for a couple of years. They don't seem to mind when I wander off for a while, and I always wander back. I haven't bought many in the past couple of years -- I've just been dividing and moving the ones I have. I bought an Allen P McConnell about five years ago, planted it in full sun, divided it twice over the past five years, and this year started moving all the divisions into their permanent spots, where I want them for ground cover. I've moved at least 200 single divisions and have over half the bed left to divide and move. If you want some Allen P McConnell, let me know! :) It's an amazing plant.

How resourceful! Very unique idea, thanks for sharing it with us. I currently just use a map, but would really like to get some permanent labels. I like your idea.

Wendy

Very classy looking!

Oh my gosh! How cute are those? Unique, also.

Oh, how I love the creative thinker!!
Very cool!

Esther, hm...I found some skewers on Amazon, and I found one of those sellers on ebay. I think I'll give it a try! These seem like really nice markers, and maybe I won't lose as many as I did with the melamine-stake-and-sharpie combo I'd been using.

http://cgi.ebay.com/ws/eBayISAPI.dll?ViewItem&item=260654550375

http://www.amazon.com/12-Inch-Stainless-Skewers-Barbecue-Ring-Tip/dp/B000FQBJWW/ref=lh_ni_t

Gooooo, Valeree!!!! That is EXACTLY the eBay seller from whom I bought the dog tags. She will undoubtedly be delighted to pick up the Hosta Forum business. She's a VERY nice lady and the tags were shipped lightning-fast. They look great, as you can see in the picture.

If you are ordering the skewers from Amazon, they are probably a good deal heavier in gauge than mine, might be harder to bend. But if you have a husband or similar male muscle around, then it would be simple to bend.

I used the shield shape that the eBay seller offered because it had the most space to put words of any of her horizontally-oriented dog tags.

Very clever idea...love it!

I was going to try painting some rocks, but I like this idea better! I wonder if my dog will trample these as easily as she bends and/or pulls up the metal ones? These look more permanent.

chris

Hmmmm...don't buy the skewers I bought. They came today and there is no way I can bend them using a pliers. I even tried heating them in the flame on my stove...no go. They're too heavy duty. You definitely need lower quality skewers.

Esther, I have to add myself to the list of admirers...those look VERY nice!
Did you have any names that simply could not fit...Pineapple Upside Down Cake comes to mind?

I think the price is very reasonable for something that will last so long! You are very resourceful....got any other tips up your sleeve?

Mary4b, I don't yet have any hostas with too long a name to fit on these pet collar tags. The eBay seller from whom I purchased them (see valereee's post above, she gives the seller's URL) was able to fit "Hosta Undulata Mediopicta" on one tag. Here is a picture of what she offers:

I chose the shield because it gave a large amount of space and hung horizontally.

Here is a link that might be useful: See here

Valereee -- the eBay seller sends very nice hanging rings for the engraved tags. Perhaps you could put the rings through the skewer loop and then tighten the loop on the skewers so the ring won't slip out, and then you wouldn't have to bend it.

Esther...I like how you say I don't "YET" have any...
That would be a great way to limit oneself, "Nope, can't get that one, won't fit on the tag!"

Hosta Undulata Mediopicta is pretty long though, I'm just loving what you're doing. I haven't been all that into tags, no one visits my garden anyway. Now that I'm getting so many, though, I see that I have trouble remembering them over the winter myself, unless I consult my "maps", if I can find them!

Esther, I can actually use the skewers as skewers, so I think I'm going to keep looking for cheapo ones I can use for the labels. Do you remember which dollar store you bought yours at?

Warning: That seller charges $1.60 for shipping the first tag and .75 for each additional tag, so I ended up paying almost $11 in shipping charges for 18 tags. Obviously it can't cost any more to stick 18 dog tabs into a first-class envelope than it does one or two, so clearly she's using her shipping charges to make a bigger profit per item.

Valereee,

The 99 cent store I found the skewers at is probably not a national chain, but a Queens, NY store. However, I noticed that many 99 cent stores carry the exact same goods. Therefore, you can probably find the inexpensive bendable stainless steel skewers at your favorite local 99 cent store. Your Amazon ones are beautiful for grilling chicken!

BTW, I just checked eBay and ALL of the sellers of engraved pet tags that I saw charged shipping fees which were as much or more than the tags themselves. I am still happy with my purchase, the tags look great and make my garden look like a professional botanical garden display.

Esther, whoops! Sorry, somehow didn't see your response until now! Yes, I saw that other vendors of the dog tags also charge almost as much for shipping the second through gazillionth tag as they do the first, but I think that's because normally they probably aren't selling more than a couple or three at a time -- they're dog tags, and very few people have as many dogs as I have hostas! :) I think next time I'm going to contact the seller ahead of time and ask for cheaper shipping. It cost her $1.71 to ship my tags, and she charged me over $10 in shipping. That's ridiculous. However, I'm very happy with the tags themselves, and I probably will go back for more even if I have to keep paying that much in shipping because the tags look so good.

I found some skewers that worked! I found these on Amazon and was able to bend them using pliers by laying them flat on my kitchen counter with the loop hanging over the edge, grasping them right up under the neck of the loop with the pliers, then bending up HARD. I'm scrawny and I could do it, so it would be a cinch for any man and probably most women. These skewers are flat, so I did need the loops that came with the tags, but I really love the finished product, and the skewers are 17" long so they can go deep into the ground and still stick up high enough to read easily without squatting.

Here is a link that might be useful: skewers on Amazon

Valereee!!!

It looks GORGEOUS, and so professional. That's what I liked about doing it this way, it really looks like a botanical garden display instead of something homemade. BTW, I am a small woman but I lift weights at the gym, so bending the skewers with a pliers was no big deal. I highly recommend pumping iron!

I love the look of these tags and was considering them for my own plants, so I looked at the eBay seller's ad. It says that there's flat rate shipping for orders over 10 items but doesn't specify a price, so I'm asking =) I guess we'll see!

Those look wonderful! You are right that they look professional-better than any I've seen. Three or four years ago, I ordered a bunch of tags, got a labeler, had every hosta marked and then adopted two dogs. The dogs ran all over them in the backyard and the sharp edges actually cut one of them rather badly. I gave up-lost quite a few hosta and all the tags-any still standing, I pulled out. Even the ones in the front yard aren't holding up terribly well. Not sure what has crushed them to the ground (heavy snow two years ago, amybe?), but most are in need of replacement.

These tags are a brilliant idea! I may try it myself. Thanks!