Christmas For Good Gardeners

 

Hoe, hoe, hoe, what will Santa Claus be bringing on Christmas morning for the gardeners on his "good" list?  Wonderful gifts that new or long-time gardeners with green thumbs will love.   Over the last decade, gift suggestions for plant enthusiasts are the standard garden plant stakes, labels, tools, cute statues and accoutrements, gardening books, and of course, lots of plants.  With current sustainable and urban trends encouraging people to take classes, conserve their environment, reduce their footprint and grow their own food, gardeners are becoming more sophisticated and adept at gardening. Getting your gardener to take the next step in their garden journey will be helped by these great finds from Amazon, the Spoon Sisters, and Williams-Sonoma.

1.  This gorgeous, earthy personalized garden tote.  Canvas material, with eight pockets to hold tools, seed packets, weed collection, or harvesting herbs and tomatoes. $29.95




2. Fresh Air Kitchen Composter Collector   Composting is so good for your garden. This composter is chic enough to sit on your kitchen counter and has oxygenating construction so that bad odors are eliminated. The best part of this composter is that it utilizes decomposing bags that you can put right into your outside composter.  $24.00

3. Spoon Sisters Herb Markers Not your mother's plant labels! Gorgeous metalwork for your herbs.  Sold as a set of nine, these 11" signs will add panache to your garden, containers, or raised beds. $26.95

 
4. Herb Savor Pods. For the gardener/cook/chef who loves to have fresh herbs in their refrigerator.  These modern herb storage containers keep the herb stems in water up to three weeks.  No more baggies or wilted herbs.  The pods will fit in your refrigerator door. Comes in a set of three pods.  $29.95.

5. Spoon Sisters Flower and Herb Dryer  Distressed metal drying ring that will bring authentic gardening look to that French or Mediteranean kitchen or parterre'. Hang your spring and summer flowers and herbs from ten hooks to scent the air, collect seeds, or pluck fresh for your latest recipe.   $22.00

 

6. Williams-Sonoma Make Your Own Cheese Kit.  What a great way to use herbs from your garden in your own cheese! Everything you need to make all-natural cheeses in one hour!  Different cheese kits include mozzarella, ricotta, chevre, or queso fresco. $25.95

7. Williams-Sonoma Stoneware Pickling Crock  Growing cucumbers and cabbages? With these glazed pottery from Zanesville Ohio, pottery capital of the world, you can make your own dill pickles and sauerkraut.  Beautiful even when not in use.  Comes in 3 gallon or 5 gallon pots. $54.95 - $79.95

8. Williams-Sonoma Shiitake Mushroom Log Step into the new world of growing your own mushrooms. Easy and safe as a bump on a log! Grow indoors or outdoors.  Logs are inoculated with mushroom spores, soak log for 24 hours, then harvest within a few weeks. Oyster mushroom logs also available.   $29.95





9. Williams-Sonoma Vertical Garden Classy and practical way to grow plants indoors or on your patio.  Free-standing planter holds  40 plants. New water-smart technology allows for easy watering with collection tray to prevent dripping on the floors. $499.95

10.  Williams-Sonoma Cedar Chicken Coop and Run and Planter . More and more cities are allowing chickens in residential areas. Keep your chickens safe in this delightful and compact 2-story chicken coop. Easy to reach eggs.  $1,299.00

 

 These lovely gifts are perfect for your special gardener!  Wishing you a wonderful holiday season from my garden to yours.  Merry Christmas everyone!

 

 

 

Making Your Bath More Luxurious

Creeping Rosemary, Rosemary officinalis 'Prostratus'

Studies have proven that not only is working in the landscape good for your mental health,  but you can also relieve stress and help your skin with the herbs grown in your garden. Taking a steamy, relaxing bath every night, especially after digging in the dirt all day, is part of my "getting ready for bed" ritual.  Adding different plants, herbs, and flowers can be added to your bath to help clean, soothe and revigorate your skin and bath recipes are easy to prepare. 

You can use fragrances you enjoy the most singularly or combined with other herbs. This is where a little bit of this and some of that works for anyone.  You can be as creative as you like.  Add ground oatmeal to your herbal concoctions to help defoliate dried skin cells, soothe irritation, and reduce inflammation of sunburns and insects bites.
Warning:  Check with your doctor before ingesting any herbs for medicinal purposes.

Flowers, foliage, roots, and seeds that can be used in your beauty routine:

• Artemesia ~ Baths
• Basil ~ Baths
• Catnip ~ Potpourri, baths
• Calendula ~ Astringent, highlights hair
• Chamomille ~ Astringent, highlights hair
• Comfrey ~ Reduces skin irritation and inflammation
• Dill ~ Baths, facials
• Elder ~ Baths,
• Eucalyptus ~ Baths, facials
• Fennel ~ Astringent, baths
• Geraniums, Wild ~ Astringent, baths
• Hops ~ Baths, soporific
• Hyssop ~ Cleanses pores, used with thyme and rosemary in baths
• Jasmine ~ Baths, muscle relaxant, relieves inflammation
• Juniper berries ~ Baths
• Lady's Mantle ~ Astringent, baths
• Lavender ~ Baths, used as a vinegar helps oily skin
• Lemon Balm ~Astringent, baths, skin
• Lemon Verbena ~ Energizes
• Marjoram ~ Energizes
• Mints ~ Baths
• Oatmeal, Baths, soap, facials, cleanses pores
• Oregano ~ Baths, muscle relaxant
• Nettle ~ Baths, hair conditioner, facials for oily skin,
• Parsley ~ Facials for oily skin, hair rinse for dark hair
• Peppermint ~ Astringent, freshner and energizer
• Rose ~ Astringent, skin hydration
• Rosemary ~ Baths, soaps. energizer, facials for oily skin, hair rinse for dark hair
• Sage ~ Astringent, baths, muscle relaxant, conditioner for dark hair
• Rose Geraniums ~ Baths
• Thyme ~ Antiseptic, baths, energizes
• Valerian ~ Baths, soporific
• Violets ~ Soaps, Facial steams
• Willow ~ Baths, relieves pain and inflammation, muscle relaxant
• Yarrow ~ Astringent, baths, facials for oily skin

Combine your favorite herbal scents with oatmeal or powdered milk in a muslin  or cheesecloth bag, tied with rubber band or pretty ribbon.  Place in your bath water as it fills or hang from the bath faucet to allow the warm running water to release the fragrances.

To make an infusion for your bath: Mix 4 cups of boiling water with 4 tablespoons of fresh or dried herbs and flowers, soak for 20 minutes, then strain through cheesecloth or sieve.  Add to bath water. For hard organic materials such as bark, seeds, and roots, boil ingredients for 20 minutes then strain.

Mexican Sage, Salvia longistyla

Here's a great recipe for adding Kama Sutra mint potion to your bath, courtesy of our friends at Top Tropicals Nursery.

Harvest 1 cup of fresh leaves. In a large thermos, mix the leaves with 4 cups of boiling water and. Seal the cap tightly and let sit for 24 hours, then pass the decoction through a sieve, squeezing the most you can out of the leaves. Add juice of one freshly squeezed lemon to the mint concentrate - it is an essential part of the recipe that keeps active ingredients of Kama Sutra Mint at most effective level and helps making your skin smooth and velvet. Add 1-2 table spoons of your favorite bath gel, stir. Fill a bath with cool or slightly warm water. Add mint/lemon potion.

References:

Culbertson, Molly ed.. Book of Herbs. 1st. Des Moines, Iowa: Meredith Corporation, 1994.

Tolley, Emelie, and Chris Mead. Gifts from the Herb Garden. 1st. New York, New York: Clarkson N. Potter Inc., 1991.

Top Tropical Nursery, Retail Garden Center located at 300 Center Road, Ft. Myers, Florida  http://www.toptropicals.com/