Not Just Another List of Gifts For Gardeners (There's a Giveaway, Too!)

Okay, it IS another list of gifts for gardeners, but I tried to find a few things that I haven't seen on other lists. A few are on other lists because they're just great gifts. I personally own some of these and others I wouldn't mind having. Santa, are you listening?

Have a look at the list and then be sure to enter the giveaway!

1. Copper Hose Pot
   
   I've long been an admirer of these, but have never been able to part with the money it takes to buy one. Still, a girl can dream, can't she? Yardiac has a few nice ones on their site, and while I couldn't make up my mind between a couple of them, I decided the one with the verdigris finish would fit in best with our garden decor. It has a hole in the side, allowing you to keep the hose hooked up to the spigot, or if you want to use the pot as a planter, they include a plug for the hole.
   
   
   
2. Bon-Aire Original Ultimate Hose Nozzle
   
   While we're talking about hoses, let me tell you about the hose nozzle I bought earlier this year. I've used many, many nozzles, mainly because they either didn't hold up, they got stiff and hard to squeeze, or they just stopped working altogether. But I love the Bon-Aire Ultimate Hose Nozzle!
   
   You can control the water flow to be as light or as strong as you want (five different spray patterns) and after an entire dry summer of giving it a workout, it worked just as well at the end of the summer as it did at the beginning. But even if it hadn't, it's got a lifetime warranty.
   
   
   
3. Garden Plant Tags
   
   aHa! Modern Living has the. coolest. gifts. evah. I always like browsing their online store, because their offerings are unusual and chic. I particularly like their reusable plant tags. They come in sets of six (6 tags + 6 steel stakes) in either floral or herbal patterns. The herbal ones are my favorites. They recommend you use a gel ballpoint pen to write on the tags, then when you want to change the name you've written, just use soap and water to clean them and start over.
   
   
   
4. Kombi Garden Shovel
   
   I received a Kombi Garden Shovel this week, along with a Kombi Trowel. Believe me, I was itching to go outside and use them, but winter decided to show up. The ground is frozen, so I'll have to wait until spring to give them a workout. Still, I can tell I'm going to LOVE these tools.
   
   They have a wickedly dangerous look to them, but their sharpened forked edges are what make them such a workhorse in the garden. I could have really used these when I was planting my bulbs out in the cold, semi-frozen ground a couple of weekends ago! More on these tools in the spring!
   
   
   
5. "Glitz Bee" Necklace by Fossil
   
   There's plenty of jewelry out there that has a special appeal to gardeners. When I recently came across this "Glitz Bee" necklace by Fossil, I had to have it. We all know what an important part the bees play in the success of our gardens, so why not wear it proudly, close to your heart?
   
   I have an additional reason for buying this one. A co-worker calls me "Kylee Bumblebee" because people always try to slip an extra "B" into my last name and it sounds a bit like "bumblebee" when you pronounce it.
   
   Fossil offers "Glitz Bee" earrings as well, but I thought those to be a bit much when worn with the necklace, so I opted for the "Glitz Daisy" earrings. Flowers for my bee. :-)
   
   
   
6. American Horticultural Society Membership
   
   I have touted the benefits of membership in the American Horticultural Society before. I've been a member for four years now and have more than gotten my membership dues in return, while benefiting this non-profit organization.
   
   For $35 a year, you receive a subscription to their excellent magazine, The American Gardener (6 issues, published bi-monthly). Showing your membership card will also get you into many botanical gardens across the country for free, as well as into many home and garden shows. You'll also receive a discount on purchases made in many of the gardens' gift shops.
   
   
   
7. Velcro Plant Ties
   
   I use quite a bit of this every summer. I use it inside with my house plants, too. Velcro Plant Ties are such a great idea for twining plants, plants that tend to fall over, tying up tomato plants, and any number of other uses. You can tear off a section without using scissors and they're reusable. I'm amazed at just how long they last, being exposed to the elements, especially the sun.
   
   They're readily available in packages of varying lengths at your local garden centers and big box stores for under $10, so they would make a great stocking stuffer. (I received some in my stocking last year.)
   
   
   
8. Copper Saucers
   
   Oh where were these when I was looking for square and rectangle saucers for under my houseplants? Garden Room has round ones in varying sizes, too. They're copper-plated steel and gorgeous.
   
   
   
9. Garden Tree Ornaments
   
   Our Christmas tree has several blown glass ornaments, many of them garden related. I found this tomato ornament at Bronner's of Frankenmuth, Michigan. Hallmark usually has at least one gardening type ornament each year. I like the ones by Marjolein Bastin.
   
   
   
10. Magnets by Brighton
    
    Brighton is one of my favorite stores. I proceed with caution when I choose to pass through their doors, because I know my bank account will suffer some degree of loss before I leave. They have so many beautiful things there that it's more than my willpower can handle. I found the cutest magnets that any gardener would love. A few are shown here:
    
    
    
    
    
11. Woolly Vagabond Plant Purse
    
    Yes, it's a leather purse with plants. The Woolly Pocket Garden Company actually pictures their product in the hands of a woman, carrying it as a purse. A novel idea, but I like how it looks on this shelf. You can also get it with a reclaimed wooden pulley for hanging. An inquiry to the company about these tells me they're not in stock, so I can't tell you firsthand about the quality nor show you how I would use it, but I can imagine it in a certain location in my family room...
    
    
    
12. EasyBloom Plant Sensor by PlantSense
    
    I reviewed this last year and used it for a couple of plants that I wanted to overwinter. Mostly, I used it for the large pot of Coleus that I overwintered last year and what do you know - I was not only successful, I had to keep pruning them back throughout the winter, they did so well. It was especially helpful in letting me know when I should water them. That's what always gets me - that frequency of watering thing.
    
    You can use the sensor for outdoor plants as well, but I personally think it's more helpful for houseplants. Not only will it tell you what you need to do to help your existing plants grow better, it will tell you what plants are best to grow in your particular environment. The geek in me loves how it collects information from your plant and its location and then interacts with your computer to give you recommendations.

PlantSense has generously provided an EasyBloom Plant Sensor for me to give away! The suggested retail price for this is $59.95 ($38.49 at Amazon), but one lucky reader will win one just by leaving a comment here, giving their own gardener gift suggestion.

I'll keep the contest open until Monday night, when I'll use a random number chooser to pick a winner from all the comments received by midnight EST. The EasyBloom will be shipped directly from the company to the winner, hopefully arriving in time for Christmas.

So tell me, what garden related item would you add to my gift list?

EDIT: For a list of great gardening books (always a good gift!), please visit my other blog, Gardening by the Book.

Surprise in the Morning

I don't know how I missed the forecast, but the weather guys are saying they told us it was going to happen. When I awoke this morning and opened the blinds, I was surprised to find that we've got snow! Not a lot, mind you, but enough to whitewash the landscape and produce a smile on my face. I've always said, if it has to be winter, then let there be snow.

The thermometer said 26° F. but if I was going to get any photos, the outside wasn't coming inside to me, so I bundled up and headed out. Snow was still falling lightly and I was aware of how snow hushes everything. It's a special kind of quiet that allows even the smallest sounds of nature to be heard.

Cyclamen coum 'Something Magic'

A woodpecker was hard at work off in the distance, and a nuthatch much closer, chattering away. As I walked across the lawn, my boots produced that familiar squeak that only snow can make. Though the air was cold, it was crisp and fresh and it felt good to breathe it in.

Gaillardia 'Oranges and Lemons'

Any of the flowers that were still blooming before the snow - roses, gaillardia, xeranthemum, dianthus, mums, petunias - had breathed their last. The succulent-type vining plant in the flower boxes that I couldn't decide if I wanted to overwinter or not, made that decision for me as they hung limply over the sides of the boxes.



There are things to love about winter, but a few weeks of it are enough for me. By the time Christmas and New Year's are over and January has set in, I'm ready for spring and the appearance of those bulbs I planted just this past weekend.

In the meantime, I'll try to focus on the good things and in just three short months, the snowdrops and crocus will be pushing their way out of the ground and the promise of warm weather will be a reality.

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Fellow blogger Nancy Bond, of Soliloquy (Nova Scotia, Canada) is hosting the First Snow Project, which features blog posts about first snows of the season from all over the world. Check it out!

Orchids Love Ice?

I've seen the "Just Add Ice" orchids in the stores before and thought to myself, "Yeah, sure." I even bought one awhile back and discarded the ice information, because everything in me says that putting ice on orchids just has to be wrong.

Tonight, we made our weekly trip to Van Wert for groceries and a little Christmas shopping and while in Walmart, there they were again. Lots of them. Looking lovely as orchids are wont to do and what's this? They're marked down to $10. Oh why, Walmart? Why must you tempt me so?

I walked past them and down a couple of aisles, but the yellow and pink one that caught my eye was stuck in my brain and just wouldn't get out. I walked back to look at it again and noticed it was the only one like it among the whites, magentas, and pale greens. It had two flowering spikes, with auxiliary shoots on each one. Big, fat, frosted green roots touted its health.

So I, possessing a gardener's mind and no willpower, picked it up and put it in my shopping cart, right next to the shampoo and cat food, which we actually needed. Sure, that's $10 that I could better spend elsewhere, but I have a super duper system of cutting corners in one place so I can spend it in another. I'll figure something out that negates that $10 so the orchid will end up being free! I'm really good at this - trust me.


But about this ice thing... Now that I'd bought my second one, I decided to check this out and try doing what they recommend, which is to add three ice cubes to the top of the pot once a week. They'll even e-mail you to remind you that it's time to ice your orchid.

Just Add Ice Orchids is a business located in Oberlin, Ohio (hey, I've been there!). They get their orchids from Green Circle Growers and Mid-American Growers, two of the largest greenhouse operations in the Midwest. They have partnered with P. Allen Smith to bring a plant with a reputation for being fussy to the general public, to get them to try their hand at growing an orchid as easily as possible.

Not everyone is a believer. Read the comments following an article published in August by Greenhouse Grower, and you'll see what I mean. Experienced orchid growers say watering with ice is a no-no. Consumers who have given it a try have had success. I tend to ask the same thing of the experienced as the consumers do: "Have you tried it?" My guess is that the naysayers have not, because it would never occur to them to do so.

Well, I'm trying it this time. I've killed orchids doing it "the right way," so if I kill it with ice, who's to say the ice would be to blame? And for $10, I'll still have this lovely orchid sitting on the plant stand beside me for at least as long as a fresh bouquet costing the same amount of money or more, probably longer. For me, it's a win either way.