If you’ve got a gardener on your holiday gift list, you’re in luck! Gardeners are down-to-earth, (pun intended) and easy to shop for because they love anything that helps them enhance their landscape. I asked some avid gardeners about gifts on their wish list this year. Here is just a sample of great gift ideas for gardeners.
Gloves: Gardeners can never have enough gloves. Inevitably one or more of the fingers will get a hole in them (usually the index finger). Women gardeners are always looking for gloves that fit their smaller hands, are durable, pliable and reinforced at the finger tips. Popular types include washable suede cowhide, gripping, nitrile, canvas and cotton jersey. Long gloves that protect from arm scratches are most welcome as well.
Pruning Shears: Most gardeners never go outside without a hand pruner tucked in a pocket. Bypass pruners are preferred because they make a sharp, clean cut using two blades that bypass each other like a pair of scissors. The top of the line pruner is a Felco. It is adored by many gardeners, including myself. The Felco is more expensive than most, beginning at around $70. If you purchase a Felco directly from the manufacturer, you receive a lifetime limited warranty. The Felco 2 is the most popular but the Felco 6 is a little more comfortable for those with small hands. If you decide to buy a pruner for your gardener, tie a colorful ribbon on the end. More pruners are lost out in the yard than any other tool!
Utility Knifes: A utility knife or soil knife is great for cutting small roots, dividing perennials and can also be used as a narrow trowel. The Oxo Good Grip garden knife s highly rated and includes a sheath you can attach to your belt.
Rain Gauge: Gardeners are obsessed with measuring precipitation to determine if their plants are getting enough moisture. The Stratus 4” rain gauge and the newer 4” TROPO gauge are top-of-the-line and used by the Community Collective Rain, Hail and Snow Network (CoCoRaHS) – a collaboration of volunteers across the country who measure precipitation. Give the gift of a Stratus rain gauge and include information on joining CoCoRaHS (cocorahs.org) and charting rainfall in our area. You can order the rain gauge at weatheryourway.com for around $70.
Knee Pads: As gardeners age, they really appreciate items that protect their knees and back. Knee pads or a kneeling bench (which can be used as a seat or flipped over to kneel on) are excellent gifts for older gardeners or those with arthritis or other disabilities.
Gift Basket: Your gardener will be ready to fight heat and pests in the coming spring if you put together a gift basket filled with protective items such as sun screen, bug spray, citronella candles, poison ivy block, gel to sooth the itching of insect bites and hand soaps and creams to pamper over-used hands. Add a garden hat and long-sleeve shirt with UV protection and you will help your gardener beat the elements throughout the coming year.
Plants: Yes, it really is all about the plants. Every gardener appreciates the gift of a new plant or a pretty pot to put it in. If your gardener loves camellias, purchase ‘Yuletide’ which blooms during the holidays. Not sure what to buy? Get a gift certificate at a local nursery and let your gardener select his or her own plants.
Garden Bling: A great garden has a “feel” created by the structures, focal points and interesting pieces of art you find in the space. Urns, statuary, wind chimes, benches, gazing balls and antique tools all add to the personality of the garden. You can find pieces at local nurseries, antique shops, online and through catalogs like Frontgate.
Gifts to Attract Wildlife: Gardeners know that wildlife makes a garden come to life. Bird baths, bird feeders and birdhouses are always coveted. One friend enjoyed receiving a charming butterfly hibernation house. Another gardener said the most romantic gift she ever received from her husband was a bluebird house for Valentine’s Day!
Books, Magazines, apps, and Memberships: A garden journal or good reference books on any aspect of gardening are always treasured gifts. Month-By-Month Gardening in Georgia by Walter Reeves and Erica Glasener and Proven Plants: Southern Garden by Erica Glasener are good choices for information on gardening in the South. A monthly subscription to a favorite magazine like Fine Gardening, Southern Living or Horticulture will be appreciated as well. If you want to inspire your gardener, give a year’s membership to the Atlanta Botanical Gardens, Gibbs Gardens or any of our public gardens in the Atlanta area. Download some of the recommended gardening apps onto your gardener’s phone that can help with plant ID, disease control, or give landscaping plans and ideas.
Lend a Helping Hand: Still stumped for a great gift for a gardener? Donate your labor in the garden! Every gardener appreciates someone who will help weed, mow, and dig holes. Just go get a truck load of composted horse manure and spread it in your gardener’s planting beds. You’ll be a hero, although you might not smell so great!