Strong Outdoor Plant labels

When ever you have a broken plastic plant pot, don't throw it out! They can be turned into beautiful plant labels! 

Plastic plant pots come in lovely colors these days. Having plant tags in different colors is very handy. A red tag for your red Geranium cutting :) 

These tags are strong and will last for a very long time. Make sure to write on the labels with  a waterproof outdoor marker. 

First cut straight down the pot from top of rim down to the base.

Cut off the base of the pot by cutting around it .

Cut off the rim of the pot by cutting around it.

There you have it:

A nice straight piece of plastic to cut into strips for plant labels. Make any size/shape you like.

                                         recycled meat tray with  plant labels 

Plant tags and labels

Making tags or labels for your new seedlings is very easy :)

Here I will show you how to make some great tags / labels for your plants. All made from recycled items.

First you will need a clean and empty plastic milk bottle. 
Cut the top and the base off.  If you like, recycle and use the top as a funnel or scoop, the base can be used as a tray for your new labels. 

 

Cut nice strips from the left over piece of plastic from the bottle as shown in the pictures.

These labels are great for labeling all your propagated seeds and cuttings.
I do not recommend using the labels in the outdoors as the plastic will break down quickly as the bottles are made of recyclable  plastic. When its ready to pot up, replace them with new/bigger ones. 

In my next blog I will show you how to make tags suitable for the outdoors that will last a long time. And of course we recycle :)

Potting Finger lime seedlings

YES it was time to plant the Finger lime seedlings!!!
I was really surprised by the nice root system they already had developed.
The little seedlings are quite stiff and very easy to handle. 
Always be careful when handling seedlings. You want to keep the little root system as much as possible intact.
Never hold them up with a blob of soil hanging down on their fragile roots. It will break off! Gently support it when planting in their new pot.
Also it is important to try to keep the seedlings stem at the same depth in the soil as they originally were in the propagation pot. If you plant them deeper the stem might rot. 

Ready for potting

Lovely root system

Healthy root system

13 Good looking  Finger lime seedlings!

Now all you need to do is name these babies. 
Give them a nice label/tag so you don't forget who they are, and how old they are. No need to spend money and buy labels.
Just Recycle!!! My next blog will show you how:)

Finger Lime Propagation

Recycle Recycle Recycle

Here you have some pictures of my "Propagation system"
Made from Yoghurt pots standing in milk bottles.

Finger lime seedlings 

                                       

"propagation system"

                            
Keep the clear lids on the pots until most of your seeds have germinated. 
When you see that those little green leaves have sprouted you can remove the lids. Remember the seedlings will need to get plenty of light now to grow into nice and strong plants. Don't put them straight away in the sun as they will burn. 

I will be starting to put my finger lime seedlings into larger pots soon.
Not sure as to what type of root system they have. 
Hope they are not too fragile as I hate to loose any of them:(
Watch out for my next blog!!!!!!!! 

Finger Lime

Hi there this is my first All things Gardening blog. 
I am very excited about it and hope to offer you all some
interesting and exciting gardening info.
Feedback is always appreciated :) 
I will also offer you some really cool ideas on recycling for the garden. Keep an eye on this space!!!!

I will start things by showing off my newly sprouted Finger lime seedlings. Just have a look at those lovely mini trees with there tiny still soft thorns. 

finger lime seedlings

more finger lime seedlings

Now this is how I managed to germinate these;

Recycle a large 1kg plastic yoghurt pot, the ones with the clear lids!
(I used the Farmers Union Greek Style Natural yoghurt pot. They are nice and strong don't crack and the clear lids last for a long time).
With a sate stick or thick knitting needle punch about 8 holes in the base of the pot for drainage. Roots will rot if there is no drainage!

Fill this pot half way with some potting mix. Yes I just used cheap potting mix (Big W regular potting mix). You can use a fancy seed raising mix if you like but so far I have had no problem germinating seeds in this normal potting mix. 

Now place your seeds on top op the potting mix making sure to space them out. If they are too close together you will have trouble separating the seedlings later. Cover seeds lightly with some more potting mix. Remember seeds will not germinate if they are planted to deep!

With a gentle spray water the seeds in and let excess water drain out through the holes you had punched in the pots base.

Place the clear lid on the pot and find a nice warm spot for them to germinate. Some great spots are: On top of the fridge. Behind the Television/ big flat screen. Near a sunny window. Above the stereo/radio etc. Make sure to place a container under the pot to prevent leakage. 
Recycle a 2litre milk bottle by cutting the top section under the handle off. There you have it a nice container to place your pot in. 

No need to water any more until seeds have popped up there little heads (germinated) as the lid will keep all the moisture in! It needs to be kept moist, not wet! 

Good luck! If things don't work out, you must have had dodgy seeds :)  Just Try and Try again. Happy gardening!!!!!!!!