How do you keep track/label your orchids?

[tropterrarium]

Not sure where to ask this question, so put it here. Moderator: please move if there is a better spot.

I wonder about labeling my plants, and how to keep track of various aspects, such as re-potting, flowering history, light requirements, dry season requirements etc.

-Thus far, I simply have the labels from the original vendor, nothing added to it. But this seems inadequate. What should one note on the label or on the side? Re label materials, there was a great thread Name tags
- What to do about all the other information? Binder as logbook with sheets for each plant? Database? What information is critical, what is optional, what is overboard?
- How does one keep track of once-in-a-while duties, such as re-potting, simulate dry season? Memory is a fickle thing, so I wonder what approaches are taken with a calendar, or also with a computer database.
- I grow my orchids in a naturalistic terrarium, and have plans for a greenhouse as a XXL-sized landscaped terrarium. So I prefer the least intrusive labels, and don't like to add 10 different color codes to each plant. Name and serial number is the bare minimum on the label.
Alternatively, I may think about Name, serial number, next repot, symbols for water temperature and light, and an optional remarks for things like dry-season.
- I am inclined to go the relational database route. I have done such dbs in FileMaker before, so the technical implementation is no problem, but I am struggling with what to put in.

This is just for keeping species, not regarding making hybrid crosses. The latter gets much more involved. I have only done some limited divisions of plants, nothing more exotic.

[ronaldhanko]

I make a plastic tag of my own for all my orchids when I obtain them - I grow miniatures and the tags that come on them are so large that if I left them, it would look like I was growing a case full of tags. I include my identification number, name of plant, country of origin if a species, and parents if a hybrid, vendor and date obtained on the front and potting or mounting dates on the back. All the other information I keep track of in a database which I am transferring to the plant journal on Orchidwiz.

[Baz in Oz]

I had a look around at what other growers were using down here in Oz and found most were using lead pencils to write on tags of every known size and shape resulting in names that were almost illegible after a short time.
I happened onto to a firm called Aussie Plant Tags who could supply a variety of UV proof tags. I use flexible plastic tags slightly over 12mm wide and 100 long that come in white, red, blue, orange and green as standard that cost around $Au4 per 100.
I also found that Brother make a range of laminated label printers that range from the hand held 'baby' model that I bought for around $Au 60 up to desk types that work through a computer that you need to sell your car to buy.
The 12mm Brother tapes that I use come in a variety of colours but vary wildly in price from shop to shop here in Oz. The tapes are almost bullet proof!
I found a guy named Joe Bugeja who advertises in Orchids On Line, an Oz based orchid forum who produces a data base designed for orchid growers. I bought one for around $Au30 and it does everything I need plus a lot more. He can be contacted at bugs007@optusnet.com.au.
You did ask.............and no, I am not connected in any way to any of the mentioned persons/organizations.

Baz in Oz

[Paul Mc]

I do a combination of things. For larger plants where a tag can be buried somewhat, I put the name on it. For those that cannot be hid, I take a picture of where it is, what it is in, and what it looks like.

I document by dated pictures the progression of each orchid throughought the year for 1 year so I have a picture gallery of when things happen in a 1 year cycle. I also repot all orchids at the exact same time (in two year cycles unless something goes awry with one, but I also repot it again when it's time just for simplicity). I note this on an excel sheet so I don't have to guess in two years when the last year was.

I keep a folder on my desktop labeled Orchids where I keep "files" of all my orchids, including all research on culture I can find per each one. That way there is no binder or physical space taken up by the mass of documentation. As far as the amount of information, the more the better for me as there is no physical limitation other than computer memory which could easily be fixed with an external hard drive if need be.

Granted, I don't have a large collection like what you are probably talking about, but it has served me thus far.

[tropterrarium]

Thanks for the feedbacks, info, and pointers. I also rather grow smaller species, so the label-to-plant ratio is an important consideration. Smudged pencil is a major concern as well. So I am rather thinking custom laser printer labels, that are then cut down to smaller size.

Ronald: thanks for the pointer to orchidwiz; dowloaded the demo. Too bad, they did not include any screen shot from the Journal area. Anyway, looks like a great resource, so may be worth just for that.

Baz: looked at Aussi Plant Tags. Nice source for individual tags, but for my purpose, laser printable tags like the Gempler (gemplers, seem more appropriate. I have a brother p-touch, great for some purposes, but I don't think I can do what I want. The Bugeja db is very simple (cheap as well), but I can whip that up on FileMaker in one hour no problem, and then it is exactly the way I want it.

Paul: the photoseries is interesting: mugshot for each specimen! Repotting at pre-scheduled time is also a good approach. My collection is not that big (yet), but as I foresee growth, I want to be prepared. Get organized early on, before it is too late.

So I think home-cooked simple db is the way to go. I can include images, and can make custom print-out layouts for plant tags. I know (though have not done that) that I can include some alarm functions with scripts. Will be fun to fiddle with that. Possibly use orchidwiz as a resource, rather than a management tool.

Re data to be included, this seems pretty straight forward. Flat file for each specimen with basic data such as ID, provenance etc., then relationally link to culture requirements with many-to-one portals for different sources, flowering records, and potting/mounting records.

Thanks for helping out!

[CTB]

I use stainless steel tags, you can write on them and you can always read them. They hold up well in any weather. You must keep a log, either written and/or on the computer with a page for info on each orchid. (number, name, purchase date, last bloom, how many flowers, type of media, last repot, parents, color, fragrance, etc) The number on my tag matches a page number in my log. My little black book! Would be lost without it.

[Connie Star]

I number each plant sequentially as I acquire it, then have a loose-leaf log book in numerical order with a sheet for each plant. I note the name, date acquired, provenance, price, cultural requirements, media type and then have notes for when it spikes, blooms, finishes, when repotted and any misc notes like moving it outside, any mishaps, pests . I've been using this system since I started growing 2 years ago. Some of the pages are getting pretty full so I will just add extra sheets. If I de-acquisition (ie, kill) the plant I put it's sheet in the back of the binder.
I also have a list of each genus/hybrid genus with the numbers of the individual plants for quick reference.
By the way, I have a teensy bit of OCD!

[tropterrarium]

Originally Posted by Connie Star

By the way, I have a teensy bit of OCD!

Don't we all? Combine that with being nat. hist. mus. pro, plus astrologically a Virgo: I've got a worst case scenario on hands.

Disease and problems is a good thought. I like that.

Small metal tags, I have used the 1x4" or so gardening tags. They are too large for many of my smaller species. Using a raw metal piece, e.g., a washer, presents problems engraving the info I want.

I recently visited the San Francisco botanical garden, and they have some GPS device embedded in some plants. Got me thinking about RFID tags, but for those you need a gizmo to read anything; same also applies to barcodes, and those can additionally physically deteriorate as they are still printed. I like an analog approach better, at least for the core data.

Last night I started fiddling with a new FileMaker db. I should post some screen shots once it is up and populated a bit. I can still print out hard-copy for some sort of binder, but it can easily be updated, and the db can be searched. Thus far just the main table with species info and vendor/source, and three relational tables with potting info, flowering info, and culture info. The latter three relationally linked to the main table in many-to-one relationship through portals.

Will have to add a photo, and disease table. I may link the photos to my separate photo db (some 9000 series for 29000 images; all kinds of nat hist subjects, not just orchids).

The real pain will be to cobble together all the bits and pieces of infos floating around, and to enter it into the db. Generating the db is easy.

[DelawareJim]

I tinker with Excel and Access to keep my records. Started giving my plants accession numbers that correspond with the record number in the database. I like the ease of use of Excel but I can query anything I can think of in Access.

Cheers.
Jim

[Lorraine]

Here is a picture of the labels I use. I only buy the white ones, they are easier to read and use black pencil. I write the name of where I got the plant and date on the top. On the reverse side it has blooming info and at the bottom I note when I R/P it.

PM me and I'll let you know where I found these.

I also have a spread sheet where I have a running list of all (?) my orchids. Nothing fancy Just done in columns so I can list Name & $, Type, color, date, grower/etc, then 2 columns for Gen information.

I also have a running Word sheet for Blooming. I have it listed by Year & Monthly and copy & Paste the names of who is blooming that month from the spread sheet. Just jot the names on a 3 X 5 card and when I have time update it.