I transplanted about 80 Iris rhizomes after expanding my garden and I was tired of not remembering after the blooms faded which Iris was which. These stakes are going to be a lifesaver when I go to thin out my growing Iris collection. It seems that I have a lot of the same kinds of Iris over and over in different sections of my garden so I now have a reason to buy new Iris varieties and use these stakes to mark them. I used a regular Sharpie to write the names and descriptions on each stake, so there isn't a need for a fancy or specialized pen. Another plus is the ability to remove the writing and reuse them. (I read a review that it is possible to change the writing by removing marker ink with acetone). If needed I will try that. I couldn't find these anywhere in my town and I've looked for a long time. The only ones I could find were in a gardening catalog and they were twice the price. These were a very good bargain in my opinion. If you need stakes these would be a perfect fit for any garden.
I plan on buying more as my garden grows. ( I purchased the GardenMate 25-Pack 10.5'' Metal Plant Label BANNER)

Update: I couldn't find acetone in my garage (hubby was gone fishing and I was impatient) so I used denatured alcohol to try to get permanent marker off the stakes I had messed up on. It worked fairly well. There is faint writing left behind but new writing covers it well. I will update again when I use acetone. AND I already ordered more.

Second update: The sharpie didn't work as well as I'd hoped so I went to printing labels. They are already drying off as well. I live in a very hot in summer/cold in the winter climate and am discouraged since it's barely spring and the tags are already going bad. They will never last through 90-100 degree summers coming. So, what to do? I am debating on using a Krylon clear coat or UV protective spray of some kind to increase longevity. Or I will go with a glow in the dark spray just for fun and redo the labels as they fall off. LOL Either way I'll keep updating my review. NOTE: The metal tags themselves are doing great!

I received these little gems about 2 days after ordering! Permenant marker would work fine on the copper plate (really just a thin sheet of copper, which is perfect for this application), but make sure to wipe the surface off with alcohol to remove any oils. I wanted a more structured look so I printed homemade labels onto a clear plastic sheet (peel n stick window decal sheet) and just cut them out and slapped them on (after cleaning each one with denatured alcohol). These are the perfect size for my plant beds and are just showy enough to b noticeable but don't detract from the beauty of the plants. See the pics, they turned out beautifully and I'm ready for my next batch....Great product, highly recommend!

Love these! I used my label maker and labeled all 50 of my square-foot garden plants. Looks really elegant and I'm looking forward to the copper aging over time. The clear labels are sticking to the copper really well. We've had thunderstorms and severe heat already and none of the labels are coming off.

GardenMate 25-Pack 10.5'' Metal Plant Label BANNER COPPER
The labels are well made and should last a long time. I tried 2 methods for labeling the stakes.

First I used a Dymo Labeler DYMO Organizer Xpress. Instead of using the label's glue I used super glue Loctite Ultra Liquid Control Super Glue. I wore Nitrile gloves Eppco 10046 Grease Bully Black Nitrile Gloves when applying the label so as to avoid getting any glue on my hands. This also allowed me to use my finger to spread the glue. Super glue sets very fast but allows about 10 seconds before the glue sets, plenty of time.

The other method I used was metal stamps TEKTON 6610 5/32-Inch Letter and Number Stamp Set. To make it easier to stamp I made a jig using 1" x 4" pine. It consists of a base about 4" x 6" with a small riser about 0.75" x 2.5" to provide a base for stamping. Small fence staples are used to secure the galvanized wires.

The stamped labels will likely last the longest but are not easily readable. To make them more readable I'll wash the surface with vinegar so as to promote oxidation and use a harder surface on the jig under the copper so the letters are more defined.

I wasn't sure about these prior to ordering but something my wife wanted. These appeared to be the same thing Burpee sells, but less expensive and free shipping so we gave it a shot.
The metal plates are lightweight and easy to assemble. What you really need to do is print on some clear adhesive labels from your computer and adhere that to the metal plate. We had some Avery labels (80/sheet) that worked really well with an inkjet printer. I figure we'll be lucky to get one season out of the clear labels but the metal plate should last much longer. Since we use these for vegetables and "non-specimen" items, that is more than sufficient for us as we'd be rotating things anyway. That being said, we had a hard rain where I figured the printed label would smear, fall off, or otherwise have issues and it did not. This would not be the fault of the GaredenMate product but the reality was it hasn't been an issue yet anyway.