Are you in need of some gift ideas this holiday season? This is a good time of the year to give friends, relatives and coworkers a new and fun item for the garden.
As a gardener myself, I like to receive gifts that are practical and useful, add enjoyment to time spent gardening and/or that are educational. I also have gardeners on my gift list, so I recently visited the local nursery for some inspiration. Here are a few of the items that caught my eye.
Come December there are precious few hours of daylight, so anything that brings in light is sure to be appreciated. Why not give a few solar-powered globe lanterns to hang from the bare branches of a tree in the garden? With their soft glow, Stella Boho Globe Lanterns will light up a bleak winter evening.
The lanterns, made by Allsop Home and Garden, can be hung outdoors year-round. They’re made with Tyvek, a material that is weather resistant, limiting the growth of mold and mildew that seems to be ever-present in our wet climate. The LED bulbs are powered by a solar-charging panel connected to rechargeable batteries.
A photo sensor turns on the lights when darkness falls and also has an on/off switch. On an overcast winter day, these solar lanterns are reported to collect enough charge to emit light for up to four hours.
Also available by the same manufacturer are Diamond Speaker lanterns that can sync with a Bluetooth device. Or find festive strands of solar-powered hanging lights and cylinder-shaped solar lanterns. Any of these lights would be great decorations for a holiday gathering.
There’s a very good chance a couple of the globe lanterns will show up in my garden this winter.
One of my most revered garden tools is a long-handled weed puller that I inherited from my great uncle who spent most of his retired years tending to a garden that spanned five city lots. It is my go-to tool for removing dandelions from my lawn.
I’ve loaned the ergonomic weed puller to many friends over the years who’ve been amazed at how effective it is and wanted to know where they could get one of their own. You’re in luck — you don’t need a great uncle get one of these. The tool is being marketed as “Grampa’s Weeder,” and a surefire way to remove weeds and their roots without any bending or kneeling.
With our winter rains comes mud in the garden. Wet, gloppy, soaking muddy areas await us in the yard. Sloggers to the rescue! These waterproof shoes and boots are perfect for slogging through wet grass, mud and puddles. Sloggers have an all-day comfort insole and are easy to slip on and off.
Just hose them off when you’re done working in the muck. Also: These boots’ fun colors and patterns will brighten things up at ground level.
How about some reading material? We’re all cooped up in the house this time of year, and a gardening book is a way to keep the hobby up year-round.
The “Old Farmer’s Almanac” is packed with useful information and fairly accurate weather forecasts. If you’re looking to introduce the joys of gardening to the next generation, give “The Old Farmer’s Almanac for Kids.” The book is a treasure trove of fast facts and fun activities. It’s sure to appeal to kids of all ages. I enjoyed flipping through the easy-to-read pages.
Another book that caught my eye is “Mason Bee Revolution” by Dave Hunter and Jill Lightner. If a friend on your list is interested in keeping mason bees in their yard, this is the perfect introduction to the pollinators. Subtitled “How the Hardworking Bee Can Save the World — One Backyard at a Time,” this book goes into just how important a role mason bees and other solitary bees have in pollinating flowers and crops.
And don’t forget about garden art. A canvas photo panel can liven up the wall of a patio courtyard, an entryway or an outdoor screen. Yes, you read that right. A photograph, hanging outdoors, year-round in our weather.
Outdoor Indoor Art offers beautiful digitial photographs that have been reproduced and printed with Giclee printing technology on artistry canvas. The canvas is waterproof and treated with UV protection. The artwork is stretched and mounted on vinyl stretcher bars that will not warp in outdoor weather and is designed to withstand winds up to 60 mph. The colored inks used in this process are vivid and life-like, as if transporting the viewer into the garden.
If you’re still stumped as to what to give the gardener on your gift list, I recommend visiting a nursery to find your own inspiration. It’s a treat for the gift-giver to browse isles of colorful gardening items on a dark, rainy day.
Pam Roy of Planscapes is an award-winning landscape designer with more than 35 years of experience. Contact her by phone at 425-238-4678 or via email at info@planscapesdesign.com. Visit www.planscapesdesign.com for more information.
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