DIY Cork Garden Markers

Have a small collection of unused wine corks? Always wanted to do a project with them and just wonder, “But what?” Well, here’s a fun project you can do today that you can give to mom for Mother’s Day OR keep for yourself!Do you like the “weeds” one? I thought that was cute…

So, I’ll show you the easy-peasy-lemon-squeasy steps to making these…here are the materials you will need to do this project:

• a small collection of wine corks, matching or non-matching.
• wooden dowels, 3/16″, cut into 12″ lengths ($.25/3 feet at my local hardware store)
• Sharpie marker
• hand drill and 3/16″ drill bit
• polyeurothane finish

Step 1: Select your corks.If you have a large cork collection, you can choose matching ones. Since I am a little on the OCD side, mine all had to match. But if you have the kind of personality that I envy, then maybe you choose all different corks to add a little fun to the mix.

Step 2: Drill a hole in the bottom of your corks.I took my 3/16″ drill bit and wrapped a small piece of duct tape on the drill bit, 1″ from the end. This helped me make sure that when I drilled,  my hole was exactly 1″ deep for all of my corks. See? OCD.

Step 3: Cut the wooden dowels.My dowels came in 3 foot sections, so I used a chop saw (a hand saw could also be used) and cut them down to 12″ each. However, if you wanted to, you could make markers for taller veggies, like tomatoes, considerably taller, even 3-4 feet. Generally speaking, I only really need markers for the beginning of the growing season when all of the plants are shrimpy, so 12″ for all of them works well for me.

Step 4: Insert the dowels into the corks.I used a hammer to gently pound (is that an oxy moron or what?) my dowels into the cork holes. This was easier than trying to push them in my hand and it ensured that I got the dowel in the full 1 inch. If you wanted to, you could even use a little wood glue to make sure it stays in place.

Step 5: Write the name of the plants on the corks.Oooh, super blurry! Sorry about that. My corks have the name of the plant written twice on each cork, but once is suffice.

Step 6: Paint with a clear polyeurothane coat for weatherproofing.

Sorry, I completely forgot to take a picture of this, but adding a clear coat of poly will help your corks withstand waterings and the weather.

Step 7: Insert cork markers into the garden.Add the corks to your raised beds, container gardens, and wherever you have plants growing. These can also be used in your flower beds, and could include the scientific name on one side of the cork, and the nickname on the other side.

I hope that you have an awesome weekend outside…and hopefully have some time to start a garden for yourself. It’s a great way to save money on produce in the summer months, and if you grow enough, to put up food for the winter. Free produce from the garden is delicious and seriously cheaper than any coupon deal out there! Have fun and Happy Mothers’ Day!