The last gift my father gave to my mother for Christmas was a little red wagon. She had a passion for gardening, and he was always looking for ways to make her life easier and more enjoyable. This simple gift allowed her to conveniently trundle her various gardening tools around her various gardens. At the end of the day, everything could be arranged in the wagon and easily stored. As simple as it was, she loved it, and she loved him for it. This was many years ago, and gardening gifts have evolved, but the idea remains the same.

Gardeners, whether amateur or professional, each have a unique style and grace; like snowflakes, no two are alike, but they share at least two common bonds: they are wonderfully obsessive about the soil and its variegated offspring, and they absolutely love gardening gifts. They take pride in the beauty they foster, and they can never have enough tools with which to work their magic.

Gardening gifts have become more sophisticated in the years since that little red wagon, but one thing hasn't changed: gardening is hard work. So what is the answer? Quality and comfort. Hours are spent in the hot sun, the humid climate, the thorny bushes, and the often uncooperative earth. Gift your passionate gardener with a comfortable environment, the tools he or she needs to assist the growth of beauty, and the caring to understand the unconditional commitment to an award winning landscape, or a small, special, secret place.

Fortunately, simplicity works for both gardening and gift giving. Where do you start? Start with water; living things need it to survive. How do you deliver water? Expensive sprinkler systems are functional, but are they fun? A true gardener seeks a hands-on experience. In the past, hoses have been necessary, but burdensome; sure progress has been made, but after a hard day's gardening, who wants to coil 50 or 75 feet of heavy green vinyl? Mounted hose holders have helped, but there is still all that cranking. A spring-coiled polyurethane hose makes a wonderful gift for your gardener. They are light, and the coiling allows them to return, effortlessly and untangled, to their original, small, easily storable shape.

When looking for gifts, think of your gardener as a chef: a chef requires a place for everything, and wants everything in its place. Consider an all-in-one package that includes a convenient folding chair that has pockets to hold the basic tools: trowel; gardening shears, spading fork; etc., and has underneath storage space for miscellaneous items. The easier the access, the more efficient and less tiring the process. As with the hose, this configuration allows for quick and easy storage at the end of the day.

Part of the oft-quoted definition of "Success" notes that "To leave the world a bit better, whether by a healthy child, a garden patch or a redeemed social condition... this is to have succeeded." Help you gardener succeed with gardening gifts. He or she will love you for it.

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