The Plot Newsletter

The 12 Best Gifts for Gardeners in 2025

Dear reader, happy Thanksgiving! With Black Friday and Cyber Monday looming over the horizon, I figured this gift guide would make your holiday shopping a little easier.

We all know someone who is always in their garden, but figuring out what they need seems to require a crystal ball. Most gardeners are thrifty by nature, so it’s the perfect time of year to give them what they won’t buy for themselves.

These are the gifts that make beautiful gardens and happy gardeners. You’ll be remembered every time they use their new favorite tool or read a new favorite gardening book. These gifts are perfect for a friend, family member, or let’s face it, ourselves. For avid early readers of The Plot, you will find #4 to be of special interest.

Items purchased through the Amazon links support The Plot indirectly.

1. Love Letter to a Garden

This book was released by Timber Press this Spring, so it is fresh onto the shelves. It was written by a “bad gardener” who realizes there is no such thing. It is a journey of gardening over time, space, and with the heart.

Love Letter to a Garden

2. The Illustrated History of Landscape Design

A beautifully assembled overview of global garden design.
This is a harder to find book, and I’ve read it twice. It gives you context to truly understand gardens across the world.
The Illustrated History of Landscape Design

3. Vego Modular Raised Bed

The big upgrade gift.
Durable, good-looking, and endlessly reconfigurable. These beds are having their moment, and their design will improve your space for years to come.
Vego Modular Raised Bed

⭐ 4. Become a Founding Supporter of The Plot

A gift that grows alongside you.

If The Plot has brought you a little joy this year, or helped you see your garden in a new way, this is an invitation to help shape what comes next.

The paid tier will arrive in 2026 with a monthly field guide and the ability to submit questions to be answered in the newsletter, but this early subscription is really about something simpler. If you are reading this, then you are a part of this project in the first 6 months! This tier is a way for you to simply say, “I believe in this.”

This is the most affordable item on the list, and it allows me to keep building something worth your time. If The Plot has added something good to your year, your support now will help me grow it into next year.

5. Felco #2 Pruners

The gold standard.
Every serious gardener eventually buys them, and they last a lifetime. No more fiddling around with the flimsy cheap options.
Felco #2 Pruners

6. The CobraHead Weeder

Locally born in Wisconsin and beloved nationwide.
Cuts through clay, roots, and sod. If someone gardens in tough soil, this tool earns its keep. No wonder it is from Wisconsin, as I also toil in clay.
CobraHead Weeder

7. A Quality Hori-Hori Knife

Digging, dividing, transplanting, and opening soil bags. This tool replaces five others.
Ideal for gardeners who value versatility and durability. I even keep one in the glovebox of my car for self defense.
Hori-Hori Knife

8. Deep-Seat Garden Kneeler

Comfort matters more than people admit.
This folds, supports weight, and saves backs and knees during early-spring soil work. Never let the weeds win.
Deep-Seat Garden Kneeler

9. A Harvest Basket

Useful for produce, herbs, cut flowers, and seed-collecting. You don’t want to buy this one online. Go to a small craft fair or farmers market so you can gift the story of how you found it as well.

10. Seed Bundle

Gift a bundle of seeds for a vegetable garden. It’s the perfect gift for winter because it’s the time to plan the garden for next year. Pick seeds based on what your want to be gifted when your friend grows too many or ask a local nursery for suggestions.
Seed Savers

11. A Botanic Garden Membership

A gift that builds knowledge, inspiration, and community. This is such an underrated gift, but one that they will love to use throughout the year. It gets them into their favorite places more often. My local membership let’s me and a friend into the glasshouse conservatory all Winter. That alone is worth the membership fee.

12. Field Notebook

For tracking bloom times, experiments, wins, mistakes, and design ideas.
This is the tool that turns years of gardening into noticeable improvement.
Filed Notebook

How to Use This Guide

Forward this to friends or family as a wish list and let them know what numbers you are most interested in or use it to pick out a gift for someone.

If you're treating yourself, even better. Gardening is long-term work, and the right tools and knowledge compound over time.

If you want deeper help designing your garden, improving your skills, or understanding why things grow the way they do, the paid tier of The Plot is where the magic will happen in 2026. You’ll set yourself up for a magical year in the garden next year.

Field Notes

1. Let’s face it, today is all about food. I hope you got a chance to cook some squash from your garden into something delectable. I’ll be spending the day baking myself and staying local in Sauk City, WI. (Another apple pie by request)

Plotter’s Commons:

What did I miss in the gift guide? Do you have a favorite tool or book you cant live without? Feel free to reply to this email because I can always add it to the web version.

Community Board

Learn: Inside America's Healthiest Yards: Rebecca McMackin's Secret Garden - A nicely filmed video focused on ecological gardening.

Events:

Longwood Gardens (PA) – A Longwood Christmas dazzles with half a million lights and stunning conservatory displays.
NY Botanical Garden (NYC) – The iconic Holiday Train Show returns, complete with festive after-dark nights.
Desert BG (AZ) – Celebrate Las Noches de las Luminarias or craft a succulent wreath in the Saturday workshop.
Chicago Botanic Garden (IL) – Lightscape offers a magical mile of glowing garden trails.
Mitchell Park Domes (WI) – Milwaukee’s indoor “12 Days of Christmas” floral show is quirky, colorful fun.
Wave Hill (NYC) – Reflect and reset with Gratitude Weekend—walks, yoga, and creative workshops.

Written for 165 beautiful readers. 💌
This newsletter needs your help to grow. Refer two friends with the link below for a free sticker!

Until next Thursday,
Ken Welch

About the Author

Ken Welch is a horticulturist by training and research professional at UW–Madison. He’s drawn to native ecosystems, community gardens, and helping others grow confidence in their craft.

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