Book Review 61/63 Backyard Gardener

Story and Photos by Kat Long/Contributing Writer

Whether it is your own gifts or gifts for others, shopping locally for unique and interesting things can be fun and rewarding – fun to shop (unless that is not your thing) and rewarding for those on your list, as well as our local merchants. Here are some gift ideas for the plant lovers and plant growers in your life.

Homes for Pollinators

Bees are important. If there is a gardener on your list, but they are not interested in keeping bees, this solitary bee house is the perfect gift. It is for carpenter, digger, sweat, mason and other solitary bees. Over 90% of the bees in the world are solitary – these bees don’t make honey or have a queen. And many times they look like wasps. But they do need a place to lay eggs over winter and their babies will be excellent pollinators for the yard after hatching next year. This little bee apartment would be great in your flower garden. Oops, sorry, I meant to say it would make a great gift for the special someone on your list.

Bats eat mosquitoes. Another type of house is a bat house. Hear me out. Bat houses hung on the side of the house are excellent for keeping bats. Bats eat mosquitoes and other pest bugs. Mosquitoes bite humans. If the bats eat the mosquitoes before they bite the humans, well you get the idea. Bonus points for hanging the bat house as part of the gift package. Bats are also excellent pollinators, though they do their best work at night.

Find out more about bee basics and see some excellent pictures of North American bee species at this USDA.gov website: https://bit.ly/2ZHMdXX.

More Gift Ideas

Now, some more traditional gifts that any gardener in your life will be delighted to receive – Lowes, Atwood or Tractor Supply gift cards. Buy a package of your gardener’s favorite gloves (mine are the neoprene dipped ones that come five to a package), attach a gift card and you are good to go. Contrary to popular belief, most of us love gift cards. Don’t forget about Jay’s on Grand for bulk seeds, diatomaceous earth or pruning spray for stocking stuffers.

For the older gardener in your life, maybe a raised gardening bed with a couple of big bags of raised bed dirt, a small bag of vermiculite or perlite and some quick grow seeds like lettuce or kale. Another great idea (and interactive) is to have the kids make a “chore book” for gardening chores like mowing, cleaning flower beds, picking up sticks after storms, adding mulch to the yard or weeding. Don’t combine these chores on one coupon; gardeners can work you for hours. You might want to put time limits on the coupons too.

And don’t forget the books! Brace Books and More has a good selection in its store, but a great selection online at BraceBooks.com. Order them in early December and you will have some great gifts for the new to experienced gardener in your life. How do I know this? Gardeners and people who like to grow things also like to learn new things about their hobby – organic, quick grow, hydroponics, etc. … The list goes on and on. Add a quick inscription on the inside, maybe a gift card or coupon book, and you are good to go.

If none of these ideas are floating your boat, you might want to plug “gifts for gardeners” into Google. There were some great ideas like Tesla orbs or specialty rocks for the garden, “Make a Fairy Garden” kit, bee drinking orbs, digger gloves (I love mine so much) and seed-saving kits. Order early, shop local, Merry Christmas and of course, Happy Gardening.