"The Winter Garden"

Winter is a time of hibernation, but spending a few hours a week in your winter garden it's very likely you'll manage to keep many of the nasty winter colds and flu at bay.

Getting out in the fresh air blows away cobwebs as well as bugs and germs and where better than your own winter garden to take a few minutes a day to enjoy the open air and clean crisp winter days. As long as its not raining, winter days can be exhilarating and rewarding.

Now's the time to get the winter vegetables out in the vegetable plot. Plant out kale, late brussels sprouts, spring greens and even winter lettuce.

All this green stuff will contribute towards your healthy diet throughout the winter months.

This doesn't mean you have to get out the craft table and spend hours making alternative gifts or taking hours in the kitchen producing pots and pots of jams and pickles. They are traditional gifts, yes, but what about something different this year....

- Get a few bonsai trees going. Re-pot into pretty containers just before Christmas and tie a bow round them with a name tag. Save on the wrapping paper - doing your bit for the environment - and give a gift that will last for years.

All these Bonsai trees are available at Amazon....

Bonsai Tree in Water Pot

Bonsai Tree Fern

Bonsai Golden Gate

- For your gardening friends, wrap a few of your own seeds you have collected through the year in sachets of coloured tissue paper, clearly labelled. Place these coloured sachets in a pot and paint a simple design on the outside of the pot.

- If you have too many winter greens ready for outside planting in the winter garden, re-pot them into decorative pots and give as Christmas gifts.

- To decorate your home, collect dried grasses, pine cones from a local forest and interesting branches with berries, such as holly and mistletoe. In some parts of Europe, mistletoe grows on apple trees, starving the trees of the nutrients they need and if you remove the mistletoe you will be doing the apple trees a favour!

- Other gardening gifts that you can buy online to save the nightmare struggle round the shops are:

Books - see Amazon for a wonderful collection of gardening books - there are a few mentioned on almost every page on Flower and Garden Tips!

Seeds and containers - available from a number of wonderful suppliers. Thompson and Morgan supply seeds all around the world, as well as many garden essentials...

Thompson and Morgan UK
Thompson and Morgan US
The winter garden at Thompson and Morgan Worldwide

Tools, hand tools and larger items such as mowers and other power tools. Find these at:

Gone Gardening in the UK Winter Garden and gifts at Gone Gardening UK

and Nature Hills in the US Gift ideas at Nature HIlls US

Whether you decide to buy or produce your own, garden gifts are always welcome. Even if your friends aren't green-fingered a well-chosed pot plant or a windowsill container of herbs will always be appreciated.

Happy Gardening!

More "Garden" reading

http://www.flower-and-garden-tips.com/wintergarden.html