Even garden gnomes need homes for the holidays.
If you’ve got a friend who is constantly working in their lawn or garden, they may be looking to improve the look – as an ever changing garden has an aurora of style and class to it. This Christmas, you can help someone right along with this mission. If you are looking for a gift that can easily enhance the style of q lawn or garden – give the gift of a garden gnome! A classic garden gnome is relatively inexpensive ($34.99), and can be a great addition to all the plants which are sitting in anyone’s garden. This gnome can serve as guardian, watchman, good luck charm, or just the little ceramic guy hanging out in the garden near the annuals. Whatever the case may be, a garden gnome is the way to go this holiday season. If you have a friend who is a big fan of the French movie Amélie, or really likes those Travelocity commercials with the garden gnome in them, then this classic garden gnome is an ideal gift for them. 
Thursday ~ December 12, 2008 by chris Posted in Garden Tools | Add Your Comments
Oxygenating watering cans are wonderful Christmas gifts.
There are so many things to get for someone this Christmas – especially for gardeners and lovers of nature alike. This Christmas, purchase the perfect gift for a gardener and a tech junkie – an oxygenating watering can. This watering can increases oxygen saturation levels up to around 150 percent. Just to put it in perspective – normal tap water only has oxygen saturation levels of about 30 to 40 percent. That’s quite an impressive jump from the norm. To use this can is easy – fill it up with water, and plug it into the wall for five minutes. The water will bubble like crazy and then will mellow out – leaving an hour or so to water plants with increased oxygen in the water. This watering can is an excellent idea for the home gardener – especially one who is looking to yield higher numbers of crops produced, and is looking to spice up the look of his/her fruits/vegetables/plants as well! This can holds a gallon of water and costs $79.99, but will result in bigger, riper fruit and a sound piece of mind.
Tuesday ~ December 12, 2008 by chris Posted in Garden Tools | Add Your Comments
Every gardener wants a tool bag with tools this Christmas.
This Do you find yourself looking everywhere for a sleek, stylish, garden tool bag for a Christmas gift? They can really work as a great present for any gardener with any level of expertise – from the novice, to the most experienced gardener of the neighborhood. This garden tool set and bag is ideal for any busy gardener this holiday season. This attractive polyster bag is coupled with garden tools (a trowel and a cultivator), which are handcrafted from stainless steel alloy (the tools themselves) and red oak hardwood (the handles). There is plenty of additional space in the bag to where the avid gardener can place anything that may be necessary for a day out on the lawn – be it additional tools, organic pest spray for the plants, or even an ice cold beer or two (any gardener should use garden tools and drink beer and his/her own risk, however). This lightweight bag is only 2.03 pounds, and sells for $39.99. It’s a wonderful gift idea for anyone who spends any amount of time in the lawn or garden. In addition, it also allows tools to be carried around a lot easier, instead of trying to carry seven tools in one hand – you can have them sit neatly in the bag – it has 10 pockets which are ready for whatever situation may arise.
Monday ~ December 12, 2008 by chris Posted in Garden Tools | Add Your Comments
Lawn aerator shoes – an interesting Christmas gift.
A proper aerated lawn can result in a greener, healthier lawn. This is because more air pockets in the lawn results in a better use of nutrients. Therefore, if a properly aerated lawn equals a happier lawn, why not get creative and look for different and unique ways to aerate a lawn as a Christmas gift? If you have that friend who is always working in the yard and prides themselves of having the best lawn on the block (much like Walter from the 1989 film The ‘Burbs), surprise them this holiday season and give them the gift of these lawn aerating sandals. At just $14.99, they are quite a deal. The trick to the sandals is that they can strap over shoes, and have long spikes on them that penetrate deep into the ground. Hence, by using the weight of one’s body, air pockets are created. By slipping the aerator sandals on over a pair of shoes while mowing – two birds can be killed with one stone. It’s a unique gift idea that will resonate loud and proud through the holiday season.
Saturday ~ December 12, 2008 by chris Posted in Garden Tools, Gardening Lifestyle | Add Your Comments
This juicer makes Christmas tasty.
There are many interesting presents to get someone for the holiday season. Sometimes, kitchen appliances and things of the like can be perfect – especially for someone who may have just moved into a new house or apartment or has made their first purchase. In regards to this, kitchen products make great Christmas gifts! A standard juicer or a wheat grass juicer is an excellent gift idea for any health nut. If you know someone who likes to go get a weekly shot of wheat grass with a smoothie at the local smoothie joint, a juicer such as this one is an excellent idea for a gift. Think about it, the price is right – only $49.99! If an additional shot of wheat grass is the choice for whomever you are purchasing this juicer for – it’s easy to grow hydroponically. No soil required – just clip some grass off and go for it. This juicer also works well for leafy vegetables – or really anything that can be juiced. Some people like to paint to relax – others like to juice.
Thursday ~ December 12, 2008 by chris Posted in Garden Tools | Add Your Comments
Electronic soil tester – high tech Christmas gift.
Gardeners across the globe can at times get obsessive about their soil and the conditions in which they are grown. This is no big surprise – after all, so much can really depend on the nature of the soil and where and how the plants are grown. However, this equals a great Christmas gift idea. Think about it, there are a wide variety of products available that can fuse technology with gardening and soil conditions into a great gift idea! If you know someone who is really into what they are doing, make their life easier with an electronic soil tester. This will allow them to measure the pH level of the soil in which crops are growing. This is important, because different plants and vegetables sometimes require different pH levels to properly make use of the total amount of nutrients available when growing. By monitoring the pH level properly, the result can be a higher yield of plants and crop growth, and larger, tastier product in the end. With this particular soil tester, you can also check the moisture level, and there is a light meter which can tell if the plants are receiving the necessary amount of sunlight as well. This electronic soil tester is basically a win-win situation. At $37.99, it’s a solid buy that will make an excellent holiday gift idea.
Tuesday ~ December 12, 2008 by chris Posted in Garden Tools, Outdoors, Serious Gardener | Add Your Comments
A trake makes the perfect garden gift for Christmas.
When shopping for Christmas presents, it can get sort of extensive when looking for a friend who enjoys gardening. There are a plethora of tools available for the gardener, and choosing a holiday gift can be somewhat an ordeal if you are trying to find an item that is a little outside of the box. For example, just purchasing a trowel or a rake can seem like an average, run of the mill gardening present. If you know someone who is indecisive about something like going out to eat, it’s a fair bet that they are just as indecisive when it comes to figuring out what garden tools to carry around the yard/garden with them. While it is true that gardeners may be plagued by the questions of carrying a trowel vs. carrying a trake in the garden, there is a solution. Do your part to give a good gift and help a friend in need – give them the Trake. At just $16.99, this bad boy is ideal for gardening. It’s a handy 2 in 1 tool (yes, a trowel and a rake…hence the name) that can fit easily in a gardening apron or in someone’s hand. It’s easy to use, and reduces the number of tools the typical gardener may have to carry around. So if you know an indecisive, tool junkie, or just someone who is looking for something different in the garden, the trake is where it’s at!
Wednesday ~ November 11, 2008 by chris Posted in Garden Tools | Add Your Comments
Christmas gift idea – 4 Ergonomic gardening tools
ergonomic gardening tools Garden tools make great gifts, and the best time of the year to receive gifts is Christmas! These ergonomic gardening tools are sleek and stylish, making them a great choice for Christmas this year. Anyone who spends a lot of time in the garden will tell you that over time, it can put some wear and tear on the hands. Part of the reason for this is the constant use of gardening tools. Let’s be honest, not all of them are really that ergonomically sound. Well, here’s a garden gift idea that may shed some light on that topic: an ergonomic gardening set. The set includes a bulb trowel, a weeder, a cultivator, and a regular trowel. These can be purchased as a set for $54.99, or individually for $17.99. Whatever the case, these tools are specially designed to help easy some of the tensions and stress caused on the hands while gardening. 
Tuesday ~ November 11, 2008 by libba Posted in Ergonomic Gardening, Garden Tools, Gardening Gifts for Women | Add Your Comments
Brill Razorcut 38 reel mower. You push, it mows!
Looks like Brill has updated the design of their German made reel mowers with the introduction of the Razorcut 38 push mower. I, for one, am glad that they changed the name from Luxus 38 to Razorcut 38. I don’t know how many times I heard people call the old one the “Lexus.” The Brill Razorcut has an updated handle design that is stiffer, and nicer looking. They also added a “spoiler” along the back side that does a little bit better job of preventing grass from getting on your shoes when you are pushing the mower. You can add a grasscatcher to it, if you want. But if you do, be sure to compost the grass clippings! Don’t throw them into the landfill. 5 blades. Weighs just 17 pounds. Has a 15 1/2″ wide cut. Goes from .75 inches to just under 2 inches for the maximum cut. The Brill Razorcut 38 reel mower is available from Clean Air Gardening.
Wednesday ~ January 01, 2008 by Ulrich Posted in Garden Tools | Add Your Comments
The Garden Insect DVD
“Son, what’s this one? Should I kill it?” “No Dad. That’s a Patagonian whooping caterpillar…they kill mosquitoes and find truffles. People pay good money for these” “Oh …How ‘bout this one? “That’s the dog, Dad. Not an insect,” “Are you sure? He looks kinda shifty…” “Yeah…See, the collar? That’s our phone number there…it’s a dead giveaway” “That’s our old number…that’s why I thought….” “Trust me” I think he’s just getting revenge on me. If you don’t have a entomologist for a son, or just don’t trust the little monster this DVD could help. It’s 50 minutes long and was made by filmmaker who also is a organic gardener. It teaches you which bugs are which and which ones are helpful and which ones will eat your socks. The Garden Insect DVD is available from Clean Air Gardening for $24.99
My kid knows everything about bugs. It’s my fault really; when he was just a toddler I used to tell him that whales were insects and giraffes lived in the ocean and all sorts of nonsense. I never expected him to believe this stuff but when he started school and found out I’d been messing with his head he set out to find his own answers rather than asking me. Well, it’s paid off because now when I come across some insect in the back yard I just drag him away from the video games and get him to identify it
Sunday ~ January 01, 2008 by Steve W Posted in Garden Tools, Natural Pesticides and Fertilizers, Organic Gardening, Outdoors | Add Your Comments
Steam Punk Rain Gauge
But it’s moved beyond the realm of fiction literature. People are remaking modern equipment such as home computers and TVs with lots of ornate brass and wood work to give the overall effect of steam powered Victorian era contraptions put together by some mad scientist. Along those same lines we have Jeffersonian Steampunk Rain Gauge. This 31” tall contraption made out of glass and brass not only gives you that quaint Stempunk look in your garden but it’s actually a functioning rain gauge; and it even has a lifetime guarantee. The rain gauge is available from Clean Air Gardening for $159.99 
Steam Punk, it’s what all the cool kids are doing these days. The term came from a parody of cyber punk and originated in the fiction works of authors such as K. W. Jeter and Tim Powers. Those authors themselves derived a great deal from HG Wells.
Tuesday ~ December 12, 2007 by Steve W Posted in Garden Sculpture, Garden Tools | Add Your Comments
The Aluminum Can Crusher
The upshot of this is that I find myself swimming in aluminum cans pretty much constantly. Oh we have special trash cans for the recycled cans; but by the end of the week the cans just roll off the over full receptacle and onto the ground. But there is a better way. This nifty little gadget seems to be just the thing. You put the can in, pull the handle and squishes it flat. It then dumps it into its own container. You’re on your own when it comes to getting it out to the recycling bin. The Aluminum Can Crusher is available from Clean Air Gardening for $79.99
They say the body is 60 percent water. Having grown up shuffled between home where the water was a none-too tasty municipal concoction and my grandparents who lived in a city in Arkansas quite literally named after its horrible tasting mineral water I got out of the habit of drinking the stuff. I’m pretty sure I’m in fact 60 percent carbonated water.
Sunday ~ December 12, 2007 by Steve W Posted in Garden Tools | 1 Comment
Ultra-Bright Double Spotlight
Like garden lighting; a host of companies are making practical, usable pathway lighting at reasonable costs. Until recently, however, most of the solar powered spots were a bit lacking. I have a friend who installed a pair of bargain basement garden spots on the side of a building to light up a sign. He carefully measured out and mounted the spots, aimed the solar panels at the sun, and that night walked and looked up at the sign. I won’t repeat what he said but let’s just say you could sort of tell they were on but that was about it. These 16 LED equipped spots show promise, however. They light from dusk till dawn, and are bright enough to actually be considered spots. In addition, unlike the cheap ones you find out there, you can put the solar panel up to 15 feet away so you can even put the spots inside and have the panel outside. In any case if you need to light up statuary in your garden, or need to light up the inside of your shed. This might just be the eco-friendly solution you have been looking for. The Ultra-Bright Double Spotlight is available from gardeners.com for $89.95
I’ve said it before, I have a soft spot for solar. The idea of us having so much grief over energy when the surface of our planet is being constantly bombarded by solar energy just seems so absurd on so many levels. Now, I understand that for a whole heck of a lot of applications solar is just not a practical solution. Panels that put out any kind of REAL power are expensive to make and therefore expensive to buy. But that doesn’t mean that we should do everything we can to capitalize on this relatively free energy whenever it is practical.
Saturday ~ December 12, 2007 by Steve W Posted in Garden Tools | 1 Comment
Chicken Coop Cubbies
It took a lot of guts for a city kid like me to evict the feathery tenant of each compartment; at my age the birds were about eye level and would peck right at your face. But the pay off was worth it…especially when you got that mystical double yoke egg and could be sure that Grandma would cook that one for you. Last time I was up there, just before we sold off the old family farm, the old chicken coop was no more. They tell me it just plain fell down in a storm some years ago. I would have hauled it back home no matter what the neighbors said because in addition to the sentimentality I feel for such things in my ever so evident middle age it was just about the right size for a decent garden shed and all those compartments…well I guess I’m not the only one who thinks they could be put to less odorous uses. Obviously whoever came up with this idea had a similar childhood to me. Available in two sizes each unit gives you rows of individual cubbies to put whatever you might need to stow. Each compartment features an upturned lip to keep the The Small Chicken Coop Cubby measures 27 1/2″ W, 11″ D, 26″ H and the larger one is 34 1/2″ W, 15″ D, 30″ H. From Smith & Hawken
When I was a child I when most kids went to summer camp me and my sister would go to see my grandparents on their little farm up in Arkansas. I did go to a summer camp one time and we were the lucky ones, I can assure you. Nights I would sit up and listen to hum of the antique oscillating fan in my room while I read Louis L’Amour novels and the only work I had to do in the morning was go out to the little chicken coop and get to get eggs for breakfast. I would open the door to the coop and once my eyes would adjust to the darkness I could make out which of the little compartments held chickens; and by extension the eggs. eggs items from sliding out onto the ground. They are made out of naturally weather resistant cedar rather than cheaper wood which would have to be either painted (painting over natural wood grain always makes me sad) or otherwise finished to protect it from the ravages of time. If only my grandmothers coop were made so well.
Thursday ~ December 12, 2007 by Steve W Posted in Garden Furniture, Garden Tools | 2 Comments
Frog Sundial
Right off the bat I can tell you that this sundial is pretty useless for telling time after dark. In fact, if you really need to be somewhere at a specific time you are probably better off using a cheap wrist watch than you are trying to figure out the time of day from a sundial. But that doesn’t make this time piece any less of a great addition to your garden. It’s made of cast aluminum with a baked on finish for years of daylight only time keeping and can either be mounted on it’s optional pedestal or placed directly on the ground. Tell your kids it’s the way you had to tell time when you were a kid…even use the match joke. But be warned; my kid won’t even believe me about black and white TV. The Frog Sundial is available for $69.00 from Smith & Hawken.
Pappy Boyington, the WWII Fighter Ace, wrote about making a sundial in the Japanese POW camp he was held in after being shot down in the pacific. The prisoners made the sundial out of boredom and when one of the not so bright guards asked how you would tell time with it after dark, they replied “use a match”. The guard took a while to think about it before realizing he had been had.
Tuesday ~ December 12, 2007 by Steve W Posted in Garden Sculpture, Garden Tools | Add Your Comments
Mission Poly-Wood Sofa, Loveseat, Chair, Ottoman, and Coffee Table.
Craftsman furniture builders built this furniture out of the then-abundant quarter sawn white oak that they fumed with ammonia to naturally darken the wood from the reaction the fumes had with the natural tannins in the wood. They chose quarter sawn wood because of its inherent strength, and they chose white oak because it is strong, durable and resistant to weather. By design the furniture de-emphsized the grain of the wood and drew the eye instead to the strength and practicality. Well, that was then and this is To Gustav Stickley furniture was a movement; a philosophy of function over form and a celebration of design and engineering. He produced a periodical called The Craftsman that came filled with plans for everything from furniture to entire houses. As an insult, his detractors referred to this furniture as mission furniture…implying that his designs were crude and unsophisticated; Stickley preferred the term craftsman, but Mission stuck and it is no longer considered an insult by any means.
now. Stop by any woodworking shop and you’ll find that quarter sawn white oak, if they even have it, is one of the more expensive hardwoods. There are only so many trees left of sufficient size. But instead of depleting our dwindling white oak supply these pieces are made from poly-wood. It’s a material that is made from re-cycled plastics and although it can be worked like wood, and used like wood it is resistant to…well…just about everything. You can put this in your house, on your patio, wherever and it will stay pretty much like new forever. The Mission Poly-Wood Sofa, Mission Poly-Wood Love Seat, Mission Poly-Wood Chair, Mission Poly-Wood Coffee Table and the Mission Poly-Wood Ottoman all pay tribute to this great philosophy of practical design and they are available from Clean Air Gardening.
Sunday ~ December 12, 2007 by Steve W Posted in Garden Furniture, Garden Tools | Add Your Comments
Yard Machines 19″ corded electric mulching lawn mower
Now, electric mowers are not for everyone; if you have a huge yard or a lawn service you are still going to need to burn some fossil fuels to get the job done. But for the rest of us it is worth switching over to an electric mower like this Yard Machines 19″ corded electric mulching lawn mower. It works as either a mulcher or a rear bagger and is available from Clean Air Gardening for $229.99
I grew up fascinated by Gasoline engines, and learned my way around a wrench by working on the family’s gas powered lawn mower. I felt kind of sad when I pushed my last gas powered lawn mower out to the curb. I soon added the gas powered string trimmer that had stopped working to the pile as well. But I’m a realist; and the facts are that small gasoline powered motors pound for pound are not small polluters. Couple that with all the oil changes, tune ups, and runs to the gas station it was becoming evident that an electric machine was really the way to go. I’ve never looked back.
Friday ~ November 11, 2007 by Steve W Posted in Garden Tools | Add Your Comments
English Carbon-Steel Spades and Forks
In my home town, we don’t have basements. We have a pre-prepared list of excuses we give to those out of towners that ask: · We don’t have to dig below a frost line here; we don’t have frost. · This is Texas; we have lots of space so we just build out horizontally. · We don’t want to be accused of Urban Gas Drilling. But the truth is that just a few inches below the surface around here we have rocks; and we’re not talking a few rocks here and there but honest, proper, tool shattering rock. If you dig down and don’t find rock your house was probably built on a landfill and you have bigger problems. It’s just not worth the hassle of digging up anything near as large as a basement. The above ground pool people do a booming business. But if you are the adventurous sort and plan on doing some serious earth moving you might want to take a look at these. We’re talking spades and forks made out of English carbon steel and American ash handles so that they are tough enough to stand up to the kind of punishment and abuse that environments like my home town dish out. Ash is the hardwood they make baseball bats out of; You are going to have to work to break one of these handles. They carry a 10 year warranty but I bet your grandkids will be fighting over them some day. English Carbon-Steel Spades & Forks are available from Lee Valley. Prices range from $49 to $89
Thursday ~ November 11, 2007 by Steve W Posted in Garden Tools | Add Your Comments
Hose Bowl Planter
The trouble with garden hoses in my experience is that most of them are lawn colored. Now this may be a boon to those who are more organized or indeed have better eyesight than me; you can leave your hose out while watering the lawn and not have it stick out like a sore thumb. For me it simply becomes a hazard because invariably the hose winds up wrapped around the blades of my mower; such is the nature of camouflage. These days I prefer a easier to avoid yellow hose but then my lawn then looks like…Well, it looks like a lawn with yellow hoses. Hose reels are no more attractive either because now not only can people see the hose it’s elevated and there’s this big contraption looking like part of a medieval siege engine hiding in your bushes. But not to worry, this ingenious product takes care of the organization and hides the hose nicely to boot. This nifty poly resin bowl has a hole in the back to feed the hose through, and inside you can coil up 75 feet of “as ugly as you want it” garden hose. The lid doubles as a planter perfectly hiding whatever color water hose you may keep in there. The Hose Bowl Planter is available from Skymall for $59.99
Sunday ~ November 11, 2007 by Steve W Posted in Garden Tools, Serious Gardener | Add Your Comments
Electric Snowblower
Then I moved to Utah for a job and for the first time snow, along with the street names, were something that kept you from getting where you needed to go. That is; until you got used it and figured out how to use a snow shovel (and a grid style street layout). I’m older now though and if I still lived in a climate where snow was more than an oddity I would absolutely have to have one of these. It’s a snow blower; and it’s electric. That means no more getting up on a cold morning and wresting a heavy gas snow blower out of the garage only to find out it won’t start or you’re out of gas. The Electric Snowblower weighs only 20 pounds, clears a foot wide, 6 inch deep swath per pass. It’s available from Clean Air Gardening for $139.99
I grew up in Texas; where the fabled activity of shoveling snow was something they only did on TV shows for the week or so before Christmas. We got snow once in a while, sure…. If it was in your way you scraped it aside with your foot.
Thursday ~ November 11, 2007 by Steve W Posted in Garden Tools | Add Your Comments
