Gifts for the gardener

With Valentines coming closer here a short list of #gifts you can give to the gardener in the family.

Soil thermometer – lets the gardener know if soil is warm enough to start seeding, check temperature of compost pile and can help when planning out garden as some plants will not survive if soil is to hot or to cold for long periods of time. When buying this #gift, choose one that can be used for a broad range of usage, is long enough to measure different depths and is stainless steel or coated to resist corrosion.

Rain gauge – basically a container that collect rain water or sprinkling water to let the gardener know how much water was put into the soil. Rain gauges can be fun to shop for because many are made to look like garden decoration which means you can personalize it for your gardener of chose. They run the gambit of being very simple to highly advance and technological.

Watering Wand – a great addition to any gardener tool shed. Handy when watering in areas that are hard to get at or watering the hanging baskets without taking them down. The wand is simple to attach to the garden hose, they come with just one water setting or with multi- settings; some even can be extended for a further reach.

Garden Tool Set – a great #gift for the beginner and advanced # gardener alike. Gardening hand tool sets/kits come in a variety of combinations – from three pieces – trowel, pruners and knee pad to seven pieces that include a carry bag or case, gloves and spray bottle. 

There is always a need for a good planting pot.

Knee pads or Kneeler – protects from rough, moist and cold ground.

Gardening gloves – you can never have to many, like little kids, many gardeners have a habit of forgetting where they put there gloves.

If you want to #gift something more personalize you can make up a bucket or decorative pot filled with, a bottle of aspirin for taking away the pain of sore muscles after gardening all day; a good hand or skin moisturizer, handy wipes, bar of soap, box of bandages, sun lotion, sun hat, and sweat band.

Twisting climbers

Pixabay/CC0

The use of climbing or vining plants in your garden can add interest to a dull area, color, flowers, attractive foliage all year or bear fruit for yourself or the birds.  Depending on the zone you live in, you can choose from evergreen or deciduous, fruit and/or flower bearing, long or short lived and climbing or ground covering.  Evergreen vines on back fence can add privacy and color throughout the year with little or no care.  With the use of trellises vines can be used to screen off various parts of your yard or can be used to block items like your air-conditioning or your compost bins. In fact, they can be used to add an ornamental architectural element to your space in various ways.

Training vines, keeps the where you want them.

 

Vining plants are often referred to as climbers because of their self clinging and trailing ways, plus the fact that they will use almost any structure or solid object as their support system.   For this reason, you need to make sure that your climber will not ramble to unwanted areas by giving it training lessons.  A vigorous or full-grown climber, depending on the type, can become too heavy for its given support system.  So when choosing a climbing plant, thought has to be put into not only its soil and climactic tolerance, but also the type of support system and the increasing weight that it may have to hold over years of growth.

Ivy vines are great climbers.

Also make sure the way a climber/vine attaches itself will not cause future damage – it is surprising the holding and staying power of some climbers.  The toughest attach system is the self clinging aerial roots of Ivy vines and the self clinging adhesive pads of Parthenocissus climbers, both of these plants are grown mostly for autumn colors and are fast growers.   It is best to grow these climbers on a unpainted strong structure where they can grow for years undisturbed, such as a brick wall or shed because they have been known to literally take the paint off or the mortar from a brick wall during the removal process.  The other type of attachment system climbers use is called twining, it is the process of the climber to use tendrils or leave stalks to coil around its support system, best for use on trellis, fences and training on wooden structures.  Climbers/vines can also be used as ground-cover by letting them just trail on the ground. 

Other climbers/vines that are popular

Clematis comes in a wide array of colors and flower forms.

Black-eyed Susan can brighten a dark corner.

Bougainvillea adds a old-fashion look with its dainty flowers.

Leaf vines are mostly grown for their beautiful autumn colors.

Shady vegetables

Have you ever wanted to plant a vegetables garden but figure you can't because you don't have day long of sun? Well guess again, there are vegetables that will grow with two to four hours of sun, they might grow a little slower but they will grow. And you can maximize the length of sun you receive by pruning back tree branches if they are a problem. Study your area, time the suns length and mark the best spots before you plant. One of the benefits of less sun is plants like lettuce, broccoli, radishes and cauliflower have less chance of bolting.

Potato plant/Pixabay

To get a start below is a list of vegetables that have been proven to grow without sun all day. If you do not care for any of them or they do not produce, try a different variety or experiment with other plants, like I have found potatoes, which just looks like a short bush that flowers will grow with about a five hour sun window every day, you just have to be willing to dig them up at the end of their season.

Two to four hours of sun

chard

kale

leaf lettuce

Cauliflower/Pixabay

mustard greens

collards

spinach

Four to six hours of sun

cabbage

cauliflower

carrots

cucumbers

radishes

Brussels sprouts

broccoli

Lettuce/Pixabay

beets

leeks

onions

turnips

tomatoes

Brussels sprouts/Pixabay

Don't forget the gardener this Christmas

As your heading out the door to do your Christmas shopping, don't forget the gardeners in your life.  Remember a gardener can never have too many Gardening gloves because they seem to wander off just when you need them the most, Garden Tool Set/s, from three pieces – trowel, pruners and knee pad to seven pieces that include a carry bag or case, gloves and spray bottle.  If you want to give something more personalize you can make up a bucket or large planting pot filled with, a bottle of aspirin for taking away the pain of sore muscles after gardening all day; a good hand or skin moisturizer, handy wipes, bar of soap, box of bandages, sun lotion, sun hat, and sweat band.

Your special gardener might appreciate a house plant or two, to get them though the months of not being able to plant outside, like a nice spider plant or ribbon plant or maybe a handsome snake plant or the mother’s in-laws tongue, both are fairly easy to grow and withstand almost any household conditions.  Herb plants are also a good choice, they are easy to grow by a sunny window and they are not only edible but can fill the air with a pleasant fragrance.  If the gardener in you life likes decorations, there is a host of garden décor art to be had to suit anyones taste from traditional to whimsical.  A few suggestion: solar lights, wind chimes, metal shaped garden stakes, decorative garden waking stones, or small garden statues, the list goes on and on.