Up until last year, I’d never put together a holiday gift guide for readers.

Truly useful gifts rarely go out of fashion.

Then I was asked by a friend if I had some suggestions for gifts for her gardening mother, and surprisingly I did. In fact I could easily think of quite a few and so decided to share them with everyone.

From stocking stuffers to large gifts, these are still wonderful gift ideas for this season – truly useful products rarely go out of fashion. At the time, I also included a few DIY gifts that are timeless in their appeal. You can find all of those ideas and products here with updated links.

This year, I’ve got a few new things to add. All are products/companies/ideas that I heartily endorse. Hope you can find something that makes shopping for the gardener on your list easy and rewarding!

American Meadows Seed Bombs

This is such a terrific stocking stuffer for your little gardener. Seed bombs are clay and soil packed seeds shaped into little balls that can be thrown into the garden for perfect germination in the spring.

American Meadows carries them in sweet little bags of five in all types of themes, from bee-friendly to salad greens. Trust me, you’ll have a fun time going through all the choices and knowing you’re inspiring a new generation of gardeners.

Greenprints Coloring Book

Adult coloring books have been flying off the shelves lately, and the great folks at Greenprints now have their own! This coloring book of many of our favorite drawings with inspirational quotes is ready for a box of colored pencils and a gardener dreaming of spring. From Pat Stone, editor:
“The art and quotes in it have been collected over 26 years

[and were] created by an array of talented illustrators from all over North America and originally published in my magazine, GreenPrints, “The Weeder’s Digest,” the magazine that shares the personal side of gardening. “

Ironweed Apparel

Ironweed Apparel is the brainchild of Jessica Walliser, author and Pittsburgh-based radio host. Jessica and her husband wanted to bring fashionable, hard-working clothing to the gardener, and will be releasing new wood-cut designs every couple months. Jessica explains the hand-made process that makes their tee-shirts special:

“Our urban farming and gardening tee shirt designs are made using traditional printmaking methods. First, local artist Kim Fox hand-cuts our designs into wood and linoleum blocks, then the designs are printed onto the shirts using old-school screen printing techniques. Each shirt is individually printed by hand, allowing the subtle, natural variations of each design to shine through.”

It’s wonderful to have a couple “special” tee-shirts that fit comfortably and tell the world what you do in your spare time. Men and women’s styles and sizes are available.

Chef’s Garden Gift Set from Harris Seeds

Sometimes the best way to inspire a child to get out there and start gardening is to give them a kit. When they are as clever as these chef’s kits from Harris Seeds, it makes the whole process fun and memorable for you both.

Kits come in “Grow Salsa,” “Grow Pizza,” or “Grow Chili” – practically the three main food groups for most Americans. Don’t just think they’re for kids either – I know plenty of adult beginners who would find this fun and convenient!

Gardener’s Box of Tricks from Plant Theatre

Trust the Brits to come up with practical gifts for gardeners. This is a VERY useful gift – particularly for the male gardener in your life who is so hard to buy for. In this sturdy little wooden box with a clear lid, you’ll find nine compartments filled with all sorts of tie downs, clips, tree bands, tool hooks, wire and labels. It’s a perfect gift to put in the potting shed and have handy for all types of staking emergencies. In fact, maybe you should buy two.

Power Planter Bulb & Bedding Plant Auger

I planted over 250 bulbs this year and I’m not embarrassed to tell you that the only way I did it was to have a 3 inch auger on the end of a drill. If you know a gardener who loves to plant bulbs (or wants to), but nervously grabs his wrists every time you ask about the display next spring, this is the gift for that gardener.

The auger fits any 3/8 drill and almost makes the process fun. Plus, ask any child you know to drill into the earth and they will JUMP at the opportunity. From the folks at Power Planter.

The Joseph Bentley Garden Trug

Ahhhh. The beauty of a simple garden trug.

When it’s time to harvest vegetables from the garden or bring in freshly cut flowers from the perennial beds, there’s nothing quite as handy as a stylish garden trug. This trug, made of one of my favorite trees, the dawn redwood, measures 15 3/4 inches long by 12 ¼ inches wide, so it’s large enough to carry all the harvest and has a solid base so it sits squarely on the table.