Purchase Area Master Gardener Association

(PAMGA)

Gift Suggestions

These are practical gift suggestions for the gardener on your list.  Items are readily available at nurseries and garden centers in your community as well as on the web.

Quick connects, shut-off valves, and manifolds are thoughtful stocking stuffers.  These items enable the gardener to save time and steps while wisely managing water in and around the lawn and garden.  Choose brass fittings over plastic for long wear.

The gardener who spent the summer and fall lugging hoses around the yard might appreciate new hoses and hose caddies to keep them neat and tidy.  There's a wide selection of soaker hoses and lengths on the market today to fit most any landscape situation.

Another water management tool is called a tree gator or bladder.  Made of rubber with small perforations on the underside, the gator resembles a big donut.  It's filled with water and placed around the tree trunk and the water slowly seeps into the ground.  Gators reduce the frequency of needed watering.

Book after book touts container gardening these days so invest in new containers.  While clay pots once ruled the market, nowadays there are lightweight "clay-lookalikes" that hold up well in the elements and make moving them around the landscape a snap.

For an over-the-top gift, consider giving an IOU for professional installation of an irrigation system.  Obviously this requires discussion and planning with the recipient.  To create a symbol of the gift, place an IOU or coupon in a wrapped box along with literature about the types of available irrigation systems.

Another stocking stuffer is plant tags or plant stakes.  They come in a variety of colors and materials - everything from plastic to copper.  At the Demonstration and Trial Garden we create plant stakes by recycling used mini-blinds.  Simply cut the slats into 6" to 8" lengths and insert them into pots or the ground.  They are long lasting and all you need is a pencil to note the plant type, color and date of planting.  To give as a gift, create a bundle of 50, include a pencil or Sharpie, and tie with raffia.  Include a note explaining the purpose of the used slats, otherwise the recipient might be puzzled and you might be seen as something less than frugal or environmentally-conscientious.

Having the right tool for the desired job makes all the difference in the garden.  A new clippers, pruning saw or loppers can be a welcome addition to the toolbox.  When purchasing a hand tool consider the size of the gardener's hands.  A tool that works well for a burly man may be difficult for a petite woman with small hands to use.  Hand tools also have different capacities so give some thought to the type of work the gardener will be doing.  If the intended recipient already has a 3/8" bypass pruner, consider buying something different to expand the gardener's range of tools.

To make a complete gift, pair a new hand tool with a file or sharpener since blades dull with use.  Also, provide some alcohol swabs or a bottle of isopropyl alcohol, misting bottle and cotton balls and/or Q-tips.  It may sound odd, but tools should be cleaned when the pruning of one plant is completed and before moving to the next.  Failure to clean tools between plants may result in the spread of disease from an infested plant to a healthy one.  Especially if the intended recipient is new to gardening, add a note explaining the purpose of the alcohol and cotton. 

On a larger scale, invest in a chain saw or wheelbarrow.  A child's sled (one of the round disks with rope handles) is an alternative to a wheelbarrow.  It is lightweight and can be used to drag mulch and plants from one spot to another in the garden.

You can truly outfit the gardener with specialized clothing from head to toe. Start at the top with a hat to protect the gardener from intense sun.  How about an apron with deep pockets to corral the small hand tools, twine and a pencil one often needs around the garden.  Gloves come in a variety of shapes and materials and are often geared toward a specific purpose.  The rose enthusiast may appreciate gloves with gauntlets to cover the forearms and reduce scratches from thorns.  Check out the selection of kid-sized gloves to introduce children to the joys of gardening.  Pair them with a ticket to Garden Gurus and a couple packets of seeds.  Knee pads or a kneeling pad can make lots of gardening tasks like weeding and planting bulbs more comfortable.  A garden tote bucket is a regular bucket dressed with a cloth organizer having multiple pockets for tools.  Garden clogs help keep the dirt in the garden and out of the house.  They are easily cleaned with a spritz from the hose and can be readily removed at the door.

If the gift recipient belongs to a garden club or creates floral designs, look for unique containers that can be used in creating whimsical arrangements.  Look for something that can be used as a design container even though that wasn't the original intent of the item. 

Consider giving a rain gauge, weather station, thermometer and/or weather vane.

Hand lotions may be on your gardener's wish list.  Scented lotions and potions should be avoided in the garden as they may attract bugs.

One of the best gifts is a digital camera.  Gardeners may find it helpful to photograph an area both before breaking ground for a new bed or border and throughout the life of the project to document how the finished product came to be.  Also, they can capture their yard or garden at different times of day and during each season.  Photos can help the gardener achieve four-season interest and incorporate texture as well as color into the landscape. 

Books are an excellent choice.  Select a general gardening book for a novice or something tailored to the experienced gardener's interests like perennials, roses or hostas.  A garden journal, either a plain spiral notebook or a fancy covered version, may be a welcome addition to the gardener's library. A subscription to a favorite gardening magazine is another option. 

This is a favorite - a coupon for a day (or be really generous and give two or three or four days that can redeemed throughout the year) of your labor in the garden.  Often an extra pair of hands is just the thing a gardener needs.  Create a coupon with pencil or crayon and paper or type one on the computer.

Consider giving an IOU for a plant at the Garden Gurus live auction or plant sale.  Plants are terrific gifts but there are some caveats.  First, if grandma says she wants a “New Dawn” Rose or an “Annabelle” Hydrangea, you can buy that with confidence.  But, if dad simply says he wants a "tree," it might be better to go with a gift certificate to a local nursery to avoid disappointment.  Buying a plant for someone can be tricky.  If you give a plant that requires full sun and the recipient's yard is total shade, the rate of success and happiness may be low.  Also, if you give a plant to someone who will spend January and February away from home, there won't be anyone to plant the tree and routinely water it or otherwise care for the plant.  Plants are living things and require some attention, even in winter.

One of the best gifts is a ticket to Garden Gurus VIII with featured speakers Holly Shimizu and Michael Weishan.  It's a day-long celebration of gardening on January 14, 2006 at the Expo Center in Paducah.  Give tickets as stocking stuffers to friends, family and business acquaintances.  How about planning a girls-day-out with friends, or a day of bonding with mom or dad.  Advance tickets, available at local nurseries and the McCracken County Extension Office, are $25.00 for adults.

Purchase Area Master Gardener Association, 2705 Olivet Church Road, Paducah, Ky 42001 270/554-9520  FAX 270/554-8283  www.pamga.org