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Presents for the Organic Gardener in Your Life

© Deborah Turton

The holiday season is fast approaching. If you have a loved one who gardens organically, here are some great gift ideas. I’ve provided some links that you might use, or you can check your local nursery.

Composter. You can’t have a good organic garden without a composter. The less complicated the better. I’ve had big rolling balls -really hard to role. Boxes that have slats that slip out so you can pull the compost out of the bottom. The slats never fit back in. It’s so compacted down there that it’s hard to pull the compost out. Now I use something like this http://www.leevalley.com/garden/page.asp... It’s really easy. Wrap a 4’ piece of rebar up with it and your gardener can aerate the pile without turning it over. Even easier.

Here’s something nice for the counter kitchen scraps http://www.gardenerssupply.com/sell.asp?... We have a plastic tub that seals nicely to keep out the fruit flies, but it’s not the most aesthetically pleasing. Someone who’s not really comfortable with the idea of composting kitchen scraps might appreciate a compost crock that looks nice.

Some organic soil amendments are helpful, especially if you can arrange for a soil test to see what’s needed. Try here for a list of labs that will look at your soil from an organic point of view: http://www.attra.org/attra-pub/soil-lab.... This would be perfect for the gardener who doesn’t like tools and things cluttering up the shed.

And what if the soil needs a little something extra? A bag of granite or rock dust. Some kelp would be nice. A stocking full of rock phosphate. What more could an organic gardener need? Now, I’m not saying any of the products offered will solve your garden problems, but they might help. Just remember to use them sparingly. http://www.groworganic.com/ http://www.gardens-alive.com/ http://www.neptunesharvest.com/ http://www.bio-organics.com/ http://www.harmonyproducts.com/consumer....

Of course, some tools might be nice. From the hand trowel to the hand lawn mower. http://www.leevalley.com/home/main.asp Don’t go for the rototiller - it only causes problems. A nice planting shovel might be a nice idea.

Don’t forget the woodchips, sawdust, manure, etc. for the garden. Sorry, but this stuff you’ll have to find locally. Call around to some tree trimming businesses, and see if they’ll deliver chips for free. Lots of local farms will let you pick up manure fore free. Of course, you need a pick up truck to do that. (Honey, if you’re reading this, guess what I want for Christmas??)

Some stocking stuffers that I think are great: kneeling pad, plant labels, a ball of twine, hand cream, gloves, nail scrubbers, or seeds.

The copyright of the article Presents for the Organic Gardener in Your Life in Organic Gardening is owned by Jill Florio. Permission to republish Presents for the Organic Gardener in Your Life in print or online must be granted by the author in writing.