Holiday Gifts For The Home Gardener
There are plenty of holiday gifts and gift guides out there targeted at home growers. There are probably just as many variations of a hoe as there are types of vegetables. But we put together a quick list of tried-and-true items we use on our own farm. We'd be happy finding any of these under our tree this year.
EARBUDS Anyone that does a lot of outside and inside work around the house knows that a good song or podcast will make the day go easier. Allie and I both use Raycon earbuds. They sound good, and they stay in your ear when bending over. Plus, they are affordable enough where if you lose them—and you will—it's cheaper to buy replacement Raycons than a new pair of AirPods. BOOTS Most boots are pretty much just boots. I've never found a brand of rubber boots that stay waterproof for more than a few weeks. For now, I use Keens in the summer and Arctic Pro Muck Boots in the winter. BOOKS A lot of books we have turned to over the years are geared more toward growing for market, versus home growing. But "The Living Soil Handbook," by Jesse Frost, goes deep on soil health, which anyone can benefit from. KITCHEN COMPOST BIN If the person on your shopping list is a gardener, chances are they probably have a compost pile along with some kind of receptacle in the kitchen to collect scraps for it. We use this kitchen bin at our house. It looks OK on the counter, and keeps things tidy until you have a chance to run outside. Take it out when you take the trash out. PRUNING SNIPS Allie uses the ARS brand snips. She says, "They're the best pruners I've ever had." SOIL BLOCKER Try getting your gardening loved one into soil blocking for starting seedlings. We switched to a soil block system this year and it has been great. And you save on plastic trays! AQUIFER SPRINKLER These sprinklers can hook up right to your garden hose but with a pro-level wobbler head on them. A reasonable price for what you get. Move them around as you need. They're super handy. KNEE PADS Companies like Growers & Co. and Duluth make high-end knee pad systems with the padding built into the pants. But honestly, a simple pair of volleyball knee pads from Dick's under your pants will do just fine. Anything to keep your knees off the soil will help on those long chore days. CARHARTT BEANIE Everyone can use one of these. Even if you already have two. There are artists on Etsy that embroider flowers into them for an added pop. If you can find someone to do this for you locally even better! STIRRUP HOE These must be getting popular because I'm seeing them in the big box hardware stores now. They're great and Johnny's sells the best one. Cut weeds at their roots just under the soil. Keep your beds clean with minimal ground disturbance. They come in all sizes but I find the five-inch width is very versatile. RAPPER GARDEN GNOME No we don't have these, but I couldn't resist. They're goofy and fun. A quality gag gift for the gardening/hip-hop music lover. And if they’re not into that, some other form of garden art will work. A handmade painted sign out of scrap wood has heart. A “Grandpa’s Future Pickles” sign next to the cucumber plants, for instance.
Blue Blom
On the STOCKING STUFFER front... These vegetable playing cards are great. Or how about some good ol' organic fish fertilizer from Neptune’s for the nursery? (Make sure it's sealed, though. That stuff smells like the locker room at Seaworld.) To help with the aches and pains of working on your hands and knees, try Head and Heal CBD. Produced right down in Cortland, N.Y. A good knife is never a bad present. This is the one I use. Simple, with many purposes. I always have it in my pocket. And, this might sound weird, but braided elastic cord is a good fit for the stocking. You can use it in place of twine to tie vining plants to their trellises. As the vines mature, the elastic stretches to allow growth. We don't use it anymore in our current systems, but we have used it in the past and it works great. Throw a couple Liquid IV packets in that stocking too! I’ve seen them online and at Stewart's, so they’re not too hard to find. It’s an easy-to-use electrolyte mix for your water bottle on those hot, hot days. But, when in doubt, go with a gift card to a reputable seed company. Your loved one will get to pick out what they want and then be bombarded with seed catalogs for years and years to come. It's the gift that keeps on giving.
The thing every gardener needs the most, though, their highest value asset, is time. There's never enough of it in a day and it doesn't cost anything for you to give. Volunteer to help them in the garden next year as a gift. You can make it into a homemade coupon book to up the "cute" value. But be specific. "Five Hours of Time Weeding the Roses" or "A Half Day of Helping Plant Potatoes." It'll hit harder that way.
I hope these ideas get the wheels turning for you and ease some of the brainstorming workload. Of course, shop local as much as possible. Like I said, there are a million gifts out there that cater to "the gardener in your life." These are just the things we use and stand by. Keep it simple and useful. A gift should accumulate dirt and dings from the garden, not dust from hanging in the tool shed.
—John
