Extension Communications Extension 4-H Youth Building Ames, Iowa 50011-3630 (515) 294-9915

12/13/04

Contacts:
Ann Marie VanDerZanden, Horticulture, (515) 294-5075, vanderza@iastate.edu
Jean McGuire, Continuing Education and Communication Services, (515) 294-7033, jmcguire@iastate.edu

Garden column for the week of Dec. 17, 2004

Gifts for Gardeners

By Ann Marie VanDerZanden
Horticulture specialist
Iowa State University Extension

With the holidays right around the corner, you may already be thinking about what to get for the gardener, or gardeners, on your list. In recent years, the Internet and mail order catalogs have added an abundant number of options to choose from, yet all of these choices can be a little overwhelming, particularly if you are not a gardener yourself. For this week's column, I have listed some of my favorite ideas.

Themed Gifts
Consider gifts that center around a particular gardening theme such as attracting birds, water gardening, animals or children. For someone who enjoys attracting birds to their garden consider a pair of binoculars, a birding reference book, a book describing plants that provide food for birds or a new bird feeder. Children and gardening can be a wonderful combination. Consider a book that describes all kinds of gardening projects to do with children, tool kits that are designed especially for children or indoor gardening kits that can be started now and the children can watch them grow through the winter.

Weather Watcher Gifts
Gardeners have a keen interest and awareness about the weather and there are a number of items available to help them gather information about the weather. Some items to consider are a rain gauge (some are very attractive and make nice pieces of garden art), a combination thermometer and barometric pressure gauge and a weather journal where seasonal information can be recorded and referred to in coming years.

Living Gifts
Give a membership to a club similar to the fruit of the month club, but with flowering bulbs instead. Each month a planter with bulbs arrives ready to burst into bloom. They are most often available in three-month or six-month packages, and are a great way to give the gift of spring color and fragrance to help your gardener friend make it through the gray of winter.

Another idea is a gift certificate to a favorite nursery or garden center. This way you know he or she will get just the right plant, and every gardener loves having an excuse to go plant shopping.

Miscellaneous
Many gardeners know that gardening can be a great form of exercise. Consider giving your gardener a pedometer or fitness monitor to keep track of just how much exercise he or she is getting. Keeping track of the health benefits can give a new twist to even the most mundane gardening task.

Gloves
In the past few years, garden gloves have evolved from clunky and ill fitting, to comfortable and extremely functional. Depending on the work to be done, there is a glove best suited for the job.

The Original Mud Gloves are designed for durability and comfort while digging and working in dirt and mud. They are 100 percent cotton knit glove that is dipped in thick rubber. The fingers are pre-curved for flexibility. The rubber is then texturized for better grip.

Close-fitting Foxgloves which extend up the forearm, owe their clinging comfort to breathable Lycra™spandex fabric. They are suitable for any garden task, including seeding and weeding. (I tried some this summer and loved them!)

Bionic Gloves came on the market in 2002 and received the "Ease of Use" commendation from the Arthritis Foundation. The ergonomic gloves help protect and support hands while still allowing full dexterity. These leather gloves have breathable, stretchy, neoprene motion zones on the knuckles for added comfort and flexibility and padding on the thumb, fingers and palm to help reduce blisters, vibration and hand fatigue. The form-fitting neoprene wristband with velcro closure provides extra wrist support.

Books
There are so many new gardening books to choose from, and they come in a variety of genre as well. A number of these new books cover a particular type of plant (hydrangeas, ornamental grasses, daylily, dahlias and clematis) as well as groups of plants like variegated trees and shrubs. Books on garden design, including specific types such as Japanese, English and French gardens can provide design inspiration. While other books on the history of gardening, plant collecting, or the relationships between plants and people can be a nice change of pace for avid gardeners. A number of publishing houses specialize in books for gardeners (e.g. Timber Press and the American Horticultural Society) and these are a good place to start searching for titles.

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