9 Gifts for the Gardener
I’ve always wanted to do a post like this. Literally, probably from the moment I first saw one on a blog somewhere. What could be more fun than making a gift list? I love buying gifts for the people in my life, and I also love making lists for myself. After all, no one knows what I’d love to receive better than me! And if you have a gardener in your life, I promise, these items would be received with rejoicing. Many of these I own, have used and loved, or am just waiting for someone to give me.
ONE | A border spade. We probably all have one or two battered Home Depot shovels lurking in the garage or utility shed. This is a slightly different creature, a precision tool rather than a blunt instrument - made by the heritage Dutch tool company Sneeboer. It has a smaller head than a normal shovel, which enables the gardener to dig a precise and efficient hole in the presence of existing plants, which is exactly the case in a packed herbaceous border or any other fully planted up area. I don’t own one of these, but I have used them and it’s high on my wish list as the perfect step in between a full size shovel and having to resort to stabbing around with a trowel on hands and knees.
TWO | Felco #2 hand pruners. I’ve owned a pair of these for a couple of years now and would never be without them. Felco is a Swiss company that manufactures excellent pruning tools of all shapes and sizes. But if you’re going to own just one, make it the #2. Easy action and sharp Swiss blades make them a joy to use, and since the parts are replaceable, (including the blade) they’re an investment that will last a long time. I replaced my blade this season and voila, new pruners!
THREE | A pocket-sized journal or notepad. Moleskine is my favorite because of the elastic band that keeps it neatly closed. It seems like everywhere I look when I walk around the yard and garden, there’s something that needs to be done. I need to remember to prune that dead branch out or move this plant that looks unhappy or spray those roses with Neem oil or put so-and-so in a bigger pot. If you have no idea what I’m talking about, skip this one. But if you, like me, live and die by a list, then why not keep everything to do with the garden in a little black pocket journal rather than having to take out your phone and risk getting it dirty. A dirty notebook is no harm done.
FOUR | The classic black trug. Trug baskets are good for everything. We use a bucket constantly to contain small things in the wheelbarrow, carry soil or loose plants, collect weeds, and so many other things. They come in several sizes - listed here are the 3.5 gallon and the 7 gallon. There are also pretty wooden trugs for harvesting flowers and produce (which probably will show up on a later wish list), but this is the utilitarian work-boot version. Bonus that these are very affordable and made of recycled material!
FIVE | And speaking of boots that work as hard as you do, I have a couple of favorites in this category. First are the all-around Blundstone 500s. Blundstones were created for trekking around Tasmania and are probably the single most versatile shoes I own. My husband Brian has the exact same boot in men’s and loves his just as much. The Chelsea silhouette is classic enough to dress up with jeans and a blazer or tights and a casual dress, and they’re an incredibly comfortable option for a day’s work in most any weather. However, I wouldn’t wear mine to give the dog a bath, hose down a chicken coop, or wade through mud on a job site. I could, but anything truly messy will be upgraded to Muck boots. I have the women’s short chore boot, but Muck has a range of styles in both men’s and women’s. These are the boots that you can just hose off at the end of a day but are about ten steps in sturdiness past your typical welly or rain boot.
SIX | For him - A great hat. I first discovered Tilley hats on a trip to California in a little outdoor boutique, where the proprietor recommended this one as the best single utility hat I could buy my then-fiancé. I bought it for him and he’s since worn it for almost every work day and taken it around the world to several continents. Tilley is a Canadian brand that originally started making hats for sailing with the requirements that they stand up to extended wind and weather, and after eight years of very hard, constant use, that first hat finally needs replacing. Tilly does have a guarantee for life on certain of their products - if it wears out due to normal use, they’ll repair or replace. Full disclosure: I’m currently waiting to hear back on this for the current hat but even if for some reason my claim isn’t eligible, I’ll buy another with no regrets.
SEVEN | For her - Gamine. When I first started gardening, I wore anything and everything to work in. Old yoga pants and tee shirts were the must common culprit. I didn’t actually own anything that was designed to be workwear. Neither yoga pants nor stretchy skinny jeans offer much protection for anything rough, wet, or messy, and when you’re exposed to sun and wind for days at a time, simply wearing less clothing doesn’t equal better. When I decided to go back to school for horticulture, a very hands-on program, I had to slowly start adding an entirely new category to my wardrobe. I discovered a love for Carhartt, the classic American gateway to workwear. I do have a selection of Carhartt pieces that I’m devoted to now, and maybe I’ll do a post specifically on that later, but as a highly aesthetic person, I always wished for a brand designed both with an art editor’s eye and a gardener’s hand. And then I found it: Gamine. I don’t own anything from the line yet, which makes it the truly aspirational part of this wish list for me. But it will happen before long, and I already know that the first piece I buy will be these perfect dungarees.
EIGHT | Three beautiful coffee table books. I’m including two that I already own and one that I have my eye on!
The Thoughtful Gardener, by Jinny Blom. I have long admired Jinny’s work. She has both a way with words and an English romanticism that I love.
The Art of Outdoor Living, by Scott Shrader. Shrader is a CA native who designs garden “rooms” as extensions of living space. Very inspiring!
Eden Revisited is the story of a garden in northern Morocco that Italian horticulturalist and writer Umberto Pasti created with the help of locals. Morocco forever has a piece of my heart, and the photos I have seen from this book are nothing short of enchanting.
NINE | The OG of watering cans. Haws is a British company that has been making watering cans for 130 years. They set the gold standard in durability and design.
That’s it for now! I limited this list to nine just because, well, I had to cut it off somewhere. I am not sponsored by any of these brands, and everything I’ve written is my own opinion. I hope it gives you a new idea or two for yourself or for a special gardener in your life.