Quick verdict
A pocket-sized thermal label printer that pairs with a phone over Bluetooth and prints black text on adhesive tape, with no ink to run and a rechargeable battery, so seed trays, pots, plant stakes and tool handles get a printed label that pencil on a popsicle stick never matches. Thermal print fades in strong sun over a season, so for outdoor stakes the label goes on the back of the tag or under clear tape; indoors on a seed bench it lasts years. It is a general label maker that gardeners adopt for the tags.
Strengths
- Printed labels are legible all season where pencil smudges
- Bluetooth from a phone; type once, print many
- No ink or toner; rechargeable battery
- Pocket size for the potting bench
- Labels tools, shelves, seed tins and jars too
Weaknesses
- Thermal print fades in direct sun; shade or cover outdoor labels
- Proprietary label tape
- Charging adapter not included
The overall YardToolLab Score is out of 100. Section scores are out of 10.
The Pencil Label Always Smudges
By June the pencil on the popsicle stick is a grey smear and nobody knows which tomato is which. A printed label does not smudge. Nelko’s P21 is a pocket thermal printer that pairs with a phone, prints black text on adhesive tape with no ink and runs on a rechargeable battery, and gardeners have adopted it for seed trays, pots and stakes.
This review is based on the maker’s specifications and on how thermal label makers hold up in garden use generally. We have not used this printer ourselves.
On the Potting Bench
Type the variety and the date once in the app, set the number, print a strip and stick a label on each pot rim or stake as the tray is sown. Twelve varieties take a minute. The same strip labels the seed tin lids, the shelf edges in the greenhouse, the jars of saved seed and the handles of the tools that walk off to the neighbour.
Outdoors
The adhesive holds on plastic stakes and pot rims through rain. The print is thermal, and strong sun bleaches thermal print over a summer. Put the label on the north side of the stake or cover it with a strip of clear packing tape and it lasts the season; indoors on a seed bench it lasts for years. Waterproof label rolls are the ones to buy for the garden.
Build and Use
Half the size of a traditional label maker, light enough for a pocket, with a 203 DPI head that prints crisp small text. The battery charges over USB; the adapter is not in the box, as the maker says. The app does fonts, borders and templates, which matters less on a stake than at a desk.
Tape
Proprietary Nelko rolls in widths and colours. Keep a waterproof roll for the garden and a plain one for the pantry.
Honest Limits
It is an office product that works in the garden with the sun caveat. A gardener who labels a hundred pots a spring will value it; one who labels six can keep the pencil.
Who Should Buy It
- Seed starters with many varieties.
- Greenhouse owners labelling shelves and tins.
- Anyone whose tools go missing.
Common Owner Complaints
Faded labels in full sun. Shade them or tape over them.
Setup Tips
Save a template in the app with the variety on one line and the date on the next so each season is a matter of editing two fields and printing.
Alternatives to Consider
A garden marker pen on plastic labels for sun exposure. An embossing label maker for permanent metal-look tags. Copper plant labels for perennials.
Verdict
For a bench full of trays, printed labels end the June guessing game and this pocket printer makes them in seconds. Buy the waterproof roll and keep the labels out of direct sun.
Full specifications
Nelko P21 Bluetooth Label Maker with Tape, Thermal Label Printer, White FAQs
Type the variety and sowing date in the app, print a strip of labels and stick them on plant stakes, pot rims, seed tray edges, and the lids of seed tins. A tray of twelve varieties is labelled in a minute.
The adhesive holds. Thermal print fades in direct sun over a summer, so put the label on the shaded side of the stake or cover it with a strip of clear tape. Indoors it lasts years.
Nelko thermal label rolls in several widths and colours. Waterproof versions are the ones for the garden.
Install the app, pair over Bluetooth, type, print. Keep the app updated, which the maker notes for iOS users.
