Weeding the Web

Christmas cards for gardeners

This probably isn't what you want to hear, but Christmas cards have to be bought some time.

It's thoughtful to give cards that reflect the interests of the person receiving it - or, failing that, fun to send something that you particularly like. It's surprisingly difficult, though, to find any aimed specifically at gardeners,

For Christmas cards with a gardening theme, check out Thrive's website. (Thrive is a charity working in social and therapeutic horticulture.) Their "Christmas Thyme" design is exclusive to them, but I particularly liked their well dressed shed [NB 2014: link removed as no longer viable].

Perennial has a much wider range of cards, to support their work with distressed professional horticulturalists. They've got quite a mix of gardening and non-gardening subjects and, again, I fell for the shed (pictured).

You might have spotted in the past that I have a particular soft spot for the humorous cartoons of Chris Madden which you buy under licence to produce yourself (a quick glance at his terms indicate a £15 rate for personal use). His website is much easier to navigate now, and he's got a good array of Christmas gardening subjects.

 

A very special present for a very special gardener

Sometimes you need a very special present. I can imagine a few horticultural societies wondering what to give a retiring president - someone who's worked tirelessly for decades, keeping it going.  Or institutions with a much-loved member about to leave.

When our local librarian retired, she wanted gardening equipment for the hobby that she'd never before had time for and so much money was collected that she pretty much stocked the garden shed that was part of the present.

But supposing she'd already had all the equipment?  Well, here's a suggestion for anyone who's looking for that very special present for a very special gardener. You need to be nicely padded in the wallet department, or collecting a large subscription.

Nigel Coope is a talented chairmaker with years of experience. I met him at Craft in Focus at Wisley this spring and when he pointed to a rocking chair and said, "This is the most comfortable chair you'll ever sit in," I took it with a pinch of salt. Furniture makers don't aim to make uncomfortable furniture; it's just that quite often they succeed. But Nigel was right; it was extraordinarily comfortable. OK, so you can't exactly sink into a wooden chair, the way you do a squashy sofa, but such is the skill with which he's fitted the shape to the human body that it felt as if I did.

Nigel's spent years perfecting the curve on the back of his chairs and the "squab" is carved from wood two inches thick, to allow a comfortable shape. I have to say, I was amazed. The rocking chair was truly the most comfortable I've ever sat in, and, believe me, I've tried a few rocking chairs.

Adding to the desirability are the most delightful carvings set into the back, done by a carver local to Nigel in Nottinghamshire. Any subject can be depicted, but of course the gardening motifs were the ones that caught my eye.

Nigel's chairs (he does a variety of traditional designs) aren't just a something to sit on; they're heirlooms. I can see one being passed down to the first-born with the words, "Grandpa loved his garden". And possibly the remark, "And the society really appreciated him." 

The next Craft in Focus at Wisley will run 24-28 November.

A Good Weed? Planting the Dry Shade Garden, by Graham Rice

Last year Husband researched dry shade planting (shaded border, neighbour’s trees, tall fence). As is the way of these things I, perforce, accompanied him on his intellectual route-march, so I picked up Graham Rice’s Planting the Dry Shade Garden with more than ordinary interest. How would my Plant Enthusiast’s choices rank?

Graham Rice is a pillar of the garden world and, not only gardens in shade himself, but, he admits, peers over fences to check what’s growing in other people’s shady bits. Frequently, he finds nothing. Hence this book.

Dry shade might make gardeners groan loudest, but plant choices aren’t nearly as small as you possibly imagine. Rice gives the low-down on around 60 different plants; before this, your shade is put firmly on the couch. Is it by a wall or trees? Under early-leafing shrubs, or late? Deciduous or evergreen? Is it happy or sad? (Yes, I’m making the last one up.) All these should make a difference to your view of your problem patch.

Presents for Gardeners: Hand cream for dry skin

Dry skin's an occupational hazard for gardeners, especially at this time of year. So one of the more practical presents is hand cream.  There are a couple that I've found recently and particularly liked.  Both producers are small family businesses, who turn out creams without the ingredients that cause concern - such as parabens, mineral oil, SLS and synthetic fragrance - and both use essential oils for scent.

The first I picked up in Shropshire last year at the enticingly named Bog Visitor Centre on the edge of the Long Mynd (actually, the area is fascinating - the centre used to be the school for the lead miners' children). The Garden Angel hand cream by Pure Scents (a small family concern), contains calendula, to help heal scratches garnered from the rosebush, and incorporates essential oils chosen for their healing, moisturising effects on skin. It's a pure white cream that sinks into the skin quickly.  If you're anywhere near Ludlow, you can also buy it in The Wear House, Corve Street.

The others I found at the Country Living Christmas Fair. B Skincare products contain, unsurprisingly, beeswax. Their Hand and Foot cream is totally different from Garden Angel, being much thicker, but very smooth, leaving a slightly waxy feel to the hands when first applied. As someone whose hands get very dry (especially after delving in soil), I thought it felt very soothing. They also do a lemon barrier cream, which smells gorgeous. Neither of these, however, are in their Gardening Gift Box, but you can mix and match, and all four together would surely give a gardener's great nutmeg-graters great relief.

They are also offering free postage on all gift orders over Christmas.

For more gift ideas click on Presents for Gardeners.

Presents for the Mug in the Garden

I doubt if you could find a gardener who doesn't enjoy a mug of something hot while he or she contemplates the next step (I find gardening involves a lot of contemplation, myself). And there are loads of gardening themed mugs which would make a useful gift.

Presents for Men features a couple of good, old-fashioned enamel mugs with the gardening legends Dig for Victory and I Garden Therefore I Am. As someone who equates taking mugs into the garden with returning to the kitchen with shards of china, these appeal to me. They might possibly chip if you hit the paving with them, but at least they wouldn't shatter. You might like to compare prices at Gorgeous Gifts.

Christmas Gifts for Gardeners at the Country Living Fair

Last week I visited the Country Living Christmas Fair – all in the cause of research, you understand.

It’s a long-standing annual event at the Business Design Centre, Islington, and, never having been before, I was totally unprepared for its vast size and the enormous number of stands selling everything from clothing and food to soap and calligraphy.

Naturally, I kept a sharp look-out for anything gardening-related.

Kate Chidley produces fun illustrations, many of cows and sheep enjoying human activity. The print that caught my eye was The Good Life, the "Cowtoon" (ouch!) pictured, set on an allotment, and available in different sizes at around £25. 

A charm bracelet was certainly something I'd have adored as a child, and a grown-up version could include some of the cute gardening charms from Scarlett Jewellery. They also sell a variety of suitable bracelets. Of course, you could buy them all at once, but at around £35 per charm, starting a bracelet could to tide you over in the present-giving department for several years.

Staying with jewellery, Michael Michaud uses bronze, silver and gold to creates rather gorgeous necklaces and pendants based on flowers, fruit and, my favourite, beans and peas.

Finally, Joanna Smith-Ryland creates rather lovely cushions and bags in silk patchwork. Her Garden Collection features Cathedral Window patchwork embellished with embroidered flowers and butterflies. They're not cheap, but they are gorgeously sumptuous and you could commission anything from a bedspread to a waistcoat in the material.

To enjoy a similar design in pink at a more everyday price, you could plump for her Garden Collection cotton tablemats which are printed with the silk design. A set of six costs £38 and is machine washable.

Another Country Living Christmas Fair is taking place in Glasglow 17-20th November.

Gifts for gardeners: tea in The Potting Shed

NB 2015 Sadly Narrowboat Ceramics no longer seem to be in business.

With Christmas approaching, I'll be doing my annual search for presents for gardeners. Those of you who were here last year will know that I don't concentrate on equipment as such, but look for items with a theme that might appeal to someone whose interest is gardening (find more under the Presents for Gardeners category). 

So I'm kicking off this year's suggestions with the Lunch Set (pictured) by Nicola Hulme of Narrowboat Ceramics.  It's part of a gardening-themed range of hand-decorated fine bone china, which includes teapots, mugs, coasters et al.

Nicola, as the name of her business implies, began by decorating ceramics with the traditional "roses and castles" patterns that are so prevalent in life on the canals, but has branched out into a colourful Fuchsia range as well.

My favourite is definitely her Potting Shed collection, which includes various sizes of teapot, a nifty coaster/lid, a tea-for-one set and, another favourite of mine, the Midge Mug (pictured), to keep the pesky things out of the coffee.

Presents for Gardeners: RHS discount on botanical prints

Botanical paintings seem to demand more than ordinary painting skills. Not only do you need to be expert with a brush, but you need an eye for detail that is truly a gift in itself.

The annual exhibition of the Society of Botanical Artists (which will take place in April next year) is a delight of close observation and pin-sharp accuracy, revealing beauty in small things that you might not have previously observed. I think vegetables come out particularly well, as normally we just see them on the kitchen table being eviscerated, peeled or chopped for the pot.

Meanwhile, if someone you know would enjoy a botanical study for Christmas, RHS Prints are offering 20% off all orders, with the last order date for the UK being 17th December. They have a large range of flower portraits, fruit and veg, company adverts (or garden heritage, as it’s called) and trees and gardens and sell prints on standard (photographic) paper or as giclée prints on art paper. I’d recommend the latter, as they’ll look more striking on the wall.

More squirrel-proofing ideas for your bird-feeder

The restaurant next door hasn’t exactly closed; let’s just say that the menu has been suspended, and I don’t mean literally. The nuts in the feeder have not been replenished since the frenzy on the first day of opening.

Still, there are measures that will discourage squirrels from bankrupting a bird feeder and you’ll find a good selection on the Dobbies blog which, unlike many blogs attached to commercial sites, is good fun and very readable. And I'm not just saying that because they guested here last week!

In Tips for Squirrel Proofing your Bird Feeder, Rob Plastow lists spicy seeds and spinners among methods to muddle the little munchkins. And there’s an excellent video showing the benefits of a greasy pole.

Still, if you’ve got a bird feeder that’s being plundered, rather than buying another, squirrel-proof version, a baffle might be the answer. Presents for Men has a sturdy looking one for £24.99. Hanging it above your current feeder might just “baffle” them into giving up. (If anyone's tried making one with a dustbin lid, let us know.)

Finally, squirrels seem to have more than their fair share of video online. Below is the advert for Carling Black Label from 1989, which still makes me laugh, while you can get more giggles at WebTVHub and Tom Jepson’s Funny Squirrels Page, which includes another laugh-out-loud ad, this time for Budweiser.

Presents for Gardeners: decorative bird scarers

In summer, vegetable gardens around the country are festooned with CDs. There's no doubt that they catch the light (this summer, a lunch guest stoically put up with being blinded every 30 seconds, as a distant CD twisted in the breeze and sent blazes of light into the dining-room - if only he'd mentioned it earlier...). But they ain't pretty.

So here's another idea for a present. Gardeners who find hanging tat in the garden offensive might be glad to receive a more attractive bird scarer, and something that last year was awarded Gift of the Year in the Outdoor Living Category. Gift of the Year is a competition run by the Giftware Association, which looks for, according to their website, innovative designs of good quality, well presented.

Certainly the Birds Away kit caught my eye, and I wanted to know more. Unfortunately Gifts for the Girls, who include it in their catalogue, never answered my email asking what the little forks and trowels are made of, but one assumes it is something shiny.

If you prefer something with a whiff of magic, however, I think these stainless steel fairies from Black Forge Art fit the bill. At £15 each, or four for £50, they're not as cheap as CDs, of course, but cut from mirror-polished stainless steel, they're definitely more decorative.