In case your gift-giving taste doesn’t lean toward the absurd or the obscene, I managed to come up with what I think are some pretty nifty Christmas gift ideas for the gardeners on your list.
Some of these things I have. Some of them I want. (Anybody out there? Hint. Hint.)
In ascending order, from least expensive to most expensive, here are my seven favorite gift ideas for gardeners.
1) Watering Spouts – At six bucks each, how much more clever can you get? These stylish spouts are also functional and environmentally friendly. Just screw a spout onto a recyclable liter or other plastic bottle and—Voila! Instant watering can! Just think of all the places you can have little watering cans—next to the violets, next to the window boxes, all sorts of out-of-the-way places.
2) Insect Hat Net – I won’t call this stylish, but it IS functional. Have you ever suited up with long pants, long sleeves and boots, waded into the weeds to do some serious work and still been bothered by pesky flies and, even worse, stinging pests? 
Just slip this insect net over any hat with a brim and you automatically look part of the bee keeping set. Like I said, you won’t win any fashion awards. But at least out here in the country, the fashion police don’t show up much anyway.
3) Stirrup Hoe – A while back I extolled the virtues of the simple stirrup hoe. I still think it’s the best weeding tool out there and that everyone with a yard should have one. Just wiggle the business end of the hoe under the weeds to dislodge them, roots and all. Then you can just rake up all the offending weeds. No more stooping and walking around on your knees!
4) Garden Tool Caddy – I hate to waste steps when I have important garden work to do. My guest blogger Sophie mentioned a while back that I fell in love with this handy cart I found at Bed Bath & Beyond. I can stuff all the tools I need in the garden into the rack and also have room for a stool, gloves and other garden paraphernalia. No more running back and forth to the garage to get what I need! Sadly, I couldn’t find the same cart online, but there is a nice one at Smith & Hawken.
5) Dog and Cat Topiary Forms – How about helping your gardener add a bit of classical whimsy to the garden with a dog or cat topiary form? Unfortunately, these folks haven’t figured out how fabulous Papillons are because don’t have a single Papillon topiary form. I think I’ll look for a bumblebee topiary form instead.
6) Stone Wall Lamp – I don’t know how those folks at Wisteria find the artifacts that they sell, but some of them are truly amazing. I adore these old wall lamps in heavy stone. These lamps definitely won’t blow away. And they will add some architectural interest to the terrace, balcony or patio.
7) Chimney Pots – Re-purposed antiques such as these chimney pots from English Antique Imports have lots of uses in the garden, including as visual elements but also as table bases. In fact, I love just about everything they sell at this resourceful shop. I may need to make a pilgrimage with a truck before spring sets in.
Happy shopping!
–Robin at Bumblebee
November 26th, 2007 at 2:25 am
I like my tool cart better, primarily because you can cram more on it:http://www.coldclimategardening.com/2006/11/07/a-problem-solver/
November 26th, 2007 at 10:47 am
Kathy – I followed your link and this is the exact same cart that I have! I keep the leaf bag in place to carry lots of extra equipment and gloves. Thanks for the link.
–Robin (Bumblebee)
November 27th, 2007 at 10:31 pm
I’ve always wanted those English chimney pots. Nice to know there’s a place to get them in the USA.
November 28th, 2007 at 3:23 am
I still can’t see the pictures, but I checked out a few of the websites. Those are nifty gift ideas, plus any list with a hoe on it has to be good!
Carol, May Dreams Gardens (Home of the Garden Hoe Collection)