My Favorite Gift Ideas for Gardeners for Under $30
The holiday season is approaching, and we're all desperately trying to figure out what to give our loved ones. Here are my favorite gift ideas that you can give the gardener or the wannabe-gardener in your life for less than $30—perfect for gift exchanges or stocking stuffers!
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These Tools Are Gifts Gardeners Love But Might Not Buy for Themselves
There are many tools and supplies that I love having in my own garden. My general thinking with gift giving is to find something the person would love to have but might not go out and buy for themselves. These tools fit the bill.
Any (or all) of these tools would make perfect stocking stuffers or look great tied onto a package with a bow. If your gifting budget allows for several tools, you could wrap them all up in some burlap and twine or put them in a harvest basket or cute little terra cotta pot in lieu of a gift basket.
Gift Ideas for Gardeners #1: Dibbers
Dibbers are so useful in the garden. You can use a dibber to help you plant seeds at any depth, and they save you a lot of time by not having to dig. Shovels are not ideal in a raised bed because they displace more soil than needed, but dibbers get the planting holes just right every time.
A gardener might feel guilty about spending money on themselves to buy dibbers in different sizes, but they'll be delighted to receive one as a gift. If your gardener plants a lot of vegetable seeds, I recommend a dibber like this one with the measurements marked on the side to help them know planting depth for things like cucumber seeds or bean seeds.
Depending on the price of the dibbers you find, you could even get them several in different shapes and sizes. I'm sure they would love you for it!
Gift Ideas for Gardeners #2: A Hand Rake
Many of the garden tools sold at stores are too big for use in the kitchen garden. When you're working in a raised bed, you don't need a huge lawn rake; you just need a small tool like this one. A small rake is such a handy little tool and, again, something a gardener would love to have but might not buy for themselves.
Gift Ideas for Gardeners #3: A Hori Hori
A hori hori is like a 5-in-1 garden tool; it does all the things. Look for one like this one where the blade has measurements to show how deep you're digging and a nice sharp tip to help you dig into compacted soil. Serrated edges can be used to cut garden twine or small branches. These are so useful that my Rooted Garden team always has them on hand during big plantings.
If the gardener in your life does not have a hori hori, you should definitely get them one this holiday season.
Gift Ideas for Gardeners #4: Pruners
Pruners are an essential tool of kitchen gardening. Again, kitchen gardeners don't necessarily need large pruners for trimming trees or rose bushes. Needle nose pruners and other small pruners are the ideal tool for working meticulously in small spaces, such as the delicate branches on a pepper plant.
My favorite pair of needle nose pruners is this one from Barnel. This tool can be sharpened and used for a very long time.
For something under $10, try these mini sharp pruners, which are super easy to handle.
I also love these flower and fruit snips. If the gardener in your life doesn't have a pair of these pruners, she may not know what she's missing out on until her gardening life is fulfilled with this gift.
Gift Ideas for Gardeners #5: Scissors
Nothing fancy here—just a simple pair of scissors to cut leafy greens and herbs. Sure, the gardener in your life might already have a pair of scissors, but if her house is like mine, then her kids are constantly taking them. It's nice to have a designated pair of garden scissors, like this pair from Barebones.
These Gardening Supplies Make Great Gifts for Gardeners of All Levels
These supplies make everyday tending tasks in the garden so much easier.
Gift Ideas for Gardeners #6: A Seed Spacer
Every gardener, beginner or expert, needs a seed spacer like this planting ruler. If you're handy, you could also make your own seed spacer to give. Seed tampers like this one are also great gifts and make indentations in the soil for planting seeds.
Gift Ideas for Gardeners #7: Copper Plant Tags
I love the look of copper plant tags like these hairpin-style labels in a garden. These tags are easy to slide in, and you can stick on labels, pull them off after, and reuse the tags season after season.
Gift Ideas for Gardeners #8: Gardening Gloves
My favorite gloves are Bamboo gardener gloves, but any kind of gloves that has rubber or nitrile to protect the hands will work great. Most gardeners could use a new pair of gloves.
Gift Ideas for Gardeners #9: A Set of Terra Cotta Pots
Head to your local nursery and grab a set of terra cotta pots, which gardeners can never have enough of, especially if they like growing herbs. Just wrap a little bow around the biggest pot, and the recipient will be so happy! If you have some extra bucks to spend, grab the draining trays as well.
Gifts for Gardeners Who Have Everything
If the gardener in your life has been gardening for a long time, you might worry they already have everything they need. I've got an idea for something really special that will make each and every harvest extra exciting.
Gift Ideas for Gardeners #10: A Vintage Harvest Basket
If you're looking for something really special, a one-of-a-kind gift, visit your local resale and consignment shops to hunt for a great harvest basket. They typically have some great vintage finds in all shapes and sizes. Trugs, wicker baskets, and tobacco baskets all work great.
The Best Gifts for Beginner Gardeners
You can't go wrong with something that encourages them to continue growing their skills, like a book that covers garden planning or planting, or something that gives them ideas what they can do with all the yummy stuff they'll pull from their garden soon.
Gift Ideas for Gardeners #11: Gardening Books
Shameless plug: you could give them one of my books. Kitchen Garden Revival is all about building, setting up, planning, and planting a raised-bed kitchen garden that's as beautiful as it is productive. Leaves, Roots & Fruit teaches you how to grow plants by category, starting with easy-to-grow leaves and working your way up to the more demanding fruiting plants.
Other fantastic gardening books include The Beautiful Edible Garden, Vegetables Love Flowers, The Edible Flower Garden, and of course, Square Foot Gardening. (Check out more gardening book recommendations on Amazon.)
Elevate your backyard veggie patch into a sophisticated and stylish work of art
Kitchen Garden Revival guides you through every aspect of kitchen gardening, from design to harvesting—with expert advice from author Nicole Johnsey Burke, founder of Rooted Garden, one of the leading US culinary landscape companies, and Gardenary, an online kitchen gardening education and resource company.
Gift Ideas for Gardeners #12: Garden-Fresh Recipe Books
Another idea would be something like Herb: A cook's companion, by Mark Diacono or another cookbook to help them learn how they can prepare and enjoy herbs and veggies pulled fresh from their space. I recommend this one because it's a cookbook and gardening book rolled into one. (See all my favorite cooking books that focus on using fresh ingredients.)
Gift Ideas for Gardeners #13: A Salad Garden
Lettuce plants are perfect for beginner gardeners, and you can boost their gardening confidence and knowledge by giving them a little salad garden ready to grow. Grab a terra cotta pot or a little steel tub that's at least 12 inches wide from the store. Add drainage holes to the bottom if needed. Place a weed barrier cloth or coffee filter over the drainage hole, and then fill the pot with good soil.
I recommend going ahead and planting it with a lettuce mix so that there are little green sprouts when you give this super thoughtful present. My favorite two lettuce seed mixes are Cosmic Crimson and Rocky Top from Baker Creek.
All your giftee has to do is set this little salad container garden in a sunny spot and keep it well-watered. You could even print up little instructions for them to help their garden grow best.
I gave little salad gardens to my kids' teachers, and they were always really excited about their homegrown salads.
(Here's a more in-depth how-to to create a little salad garden to give to someone.)
The Best Gifts for Indoor Gardeners
If your gift recipient doesn't have the space for a garden outdoors, help them bring the garden in with this easy garden project.
Gift Ideas for Gardeners #14: A Bulb Container Garden
Grab a terra cotta pot or a little steel tub, and add drainage holes to the bottom if needed. Place a weed barrier cloth or coffee filter over the drainage hole, and then fill the pot with good soil. Plant this little container with green onions, garlic bulbs, or onion bulbs. This is a great way to give your friend a little piece of the garden that can grow indoors.
Hope These Gift Ideas for Garden Lovers Inspired You!
I hope you have a great sense of what to give the gardener in your life. You don't have to spend a ton of money to have a ton of impact on the people that you want to share the garden with in your own life this holiday season. As always, we have some great finds in the Gardenary shop.
Thanks for helping make the garden ordinary again!
