88 PLANT LABELS 



PLANT LABELS 



The utility and interest derived from a garden, especially a 

 public or botanic garden, must to a large extent be in proportion to 

 the use made of neat, legible labels, bearing the names or other 

 information of the plants, trees, shrubs, etc. One important fact 

 must not, however, be lost sight of, i.e., labels should always be 

 made as inconspicuous as possible, for otherwise they are apt to 

 become offensive to the eye. Small plants should as far as practi- 

 cable have small labels in proportion to their size, but the largest 

 trees need not have unnecessarily large ones. The upkeep of 

 labelling in tropical gardens is a matter of considerable difficulty, 

 owing partly to the attacks of termites, which destroy most forms of 

 dead wood, and partly to the liability of metal labels being stolen 

 or becoming corroded. Various sorts and designs of labels have 

 been resorted to, and the following are some of the principal kinds 

 now used : 



Wooden labels. These are perhaps the most convenient 

 form for ordinary purposes ; they may be of any size and shape, 

 can easily be altered to suit requirements, and are neat while they 

 last in good condition. Those which are intended to remain in 

 the ground should be of the hardest wood. Deal- wood labels in 

 the tropics are only suitable for very temporary purposes, as for 

 seeds in pans or boxes under cover ; these being planed, should 

 be rubbed over with white-lead paint, as they are then easier to 

 write on, look best, and last longer. Large stout wooden labels, 

 made of hard woods, as Pehimbiya (Filiciutn), She-oak (Casuarina), 

 Iron-wood (Mesua], Palu (Miniusops), are extensively used at the 

 Royal Botanic Gardens in Ceylon for trees, shrubs, etc. These 

 are painted black, and the name printed in white zinc paint with a 

 line brush ; the stem of the label is afterwards dipped in tar, and 

 allowed to dry before being put out to the trees. An improvement 

 on this form, recently adopted in Ceylon, is to stamp the name on 

 the smoothed surface by means of steel dies, the impressions being 

 then filled in with good white paint. Thus not only does the latter 

 remain on much longer, but the impressions if properly made will 

 last almost as long as the label. 



Bamboo-splint labels. A splint of hard bamboo, with one 

 end sharpened for fixing in the -ground, and the other flattened and 

 planed, will make a cheap and serviceable label. When writing 

 upon it, first rub some white paint on the planed surface, and use a 

 soft lead pencil. 



