Pick the best tools, supplies, and products for organic gardeners at gift-giving time to make organic gardening easy and enjoyable.

Organic gardeners are, by nature, passionate about their hobby, as this endeavor can’t be successful without a considerable amount of sweat equity. Help the organic gardener in your life with a gift that recognizes the value of natural balance and sustainable practices in the garden.

Composting Supplies

Ask any organic gardener about his or her compost pile, and be prepared for a wistful look. You might even receive a tour of this treasure mound. Compost isn’t called “black gold” in organic gardening circles for nothing. Support the gardener’s effort to enrich the soil by giving some compost starter, a worm compost bin, a kitchen scrap bucket, or a compost tumbler. Don’t be dissuaded if the gardener already has a compost bin: a second, smaller bin can be tucked into small garden areas to receive scraps on the spot.

Books and Magazines

For beginning organic gardeners, an all-purpose reference book on organic gardening is helpful. Rodale’s Encyclopedia of Organic Gardening is a classic book. If the organic gardener has found a specialty gardening niche, extend his or her library with a book on organic herbs, orchards, tomatoes, or edible flowers.

Suitable magazine titles for gift subscriptions include Organic Gardening, Organic Farming, Mother Earth News, and Acres U.S.A.

Natural Insect Repellent

If a gardener eschews chemicals in the garden, chances are chemicals are unwelcome in bug sprays as well. Look for repellents that contain essential oils as an active ingredient. If the gardener has sensitive skin, purchase citronella candles or hats fitted with insect netting.

Seed Starting Supplies

Many organic gardeners start their own seeds to guarantee the exclusion of chemicals and genetically modified plants from the garden. Some seed starting supplies are exhausted each season, so the gardener always needs items like seed starting mixes, cell pack inserts, nursery flats, plant labels, row markers, rooting powders, and rooting gels. Take the gardener’s seed starting activities to the next level with a heated propagation mat or a miniature greenhouse.

Gardening Calendar

Serious organic gardeners improve their yields from year to year by looking at trends and learning from past mistakes. A good gardening calendar is more than a series of beautiful garden photographs; in fact, the calendar doesn’t require illustrations at all. What’s more important is ample room to record germination rates, crop failures, weather anomalies, and pest infestations so the gardener can prepare for subsequent growing seasons.

Wild Bird Supplies

If the gift recipient has every gardening gadget imaginable, give the gardener wild birding supplies. Wild birds quietly act as the organic gardener’s helper by devouring thousands of insect pests every season. When winter arrives, the birds need help to survive and the gardener can enjoy watching them when hands are idle. Consider bird feeders that dispense a particular kind of food, like suet or thistle seed. Birdhouses and heated birdbaths are also thoughtful gifts.

Related Article: Gifts for Flower Gardeners