Gifts that grow knowledge

When buying a gift for the gardener in your life, don't be limited to garden equipment, writes JANE POWERS

EACH CHRISTMAS I write about the best things to give gardeners: the best secateurs (Felco), the best watering cans (Haws), the best trowels (copper by PKS), the best diaries (RHS series by Frances Lincoln), and so on. But this year, I want to take a break from that. I've been thinking about what a lot of gardeners – both old and new – really want. And all of us, without exception, want to knowmore about gardening.

So, one of the things that could be nice to give to a gardening loved one this year is the gift of “knowledge”. In other words, you could subscribe them to a magazine, or send them to a day class, or enrol them in a course.

At present, specialist magazines are dropping like flies, and the Irish Gardenis the last man standing. It is the only periodical publication in Ireland completely dedicated to gardening, and is a sturdy thing written by Irish gardeners, for Irish gardeners, and with the right emphasis on our gardening conditions. A year's subscription (10 issues) costs €46 (www.irishgardensubs.com; 01-2947712).

Gardening classes, on the other hand, are springing up all over the country (your local garden centre will have details of those in the vicinity). Here are a few that have come to my attention recently. Springmount Garden Centre, near Gorey, is hosting a one-day course on vegetable growing for beginners with Geoff Stebbings, the editor of Garden Answersmagazine, and the author of the recently published Growing Your Own Fruit Veg for Dummies. The course will be held four times, March 13th and 14th, and April 10th and 11th. It costs €50, which includes morning coffee and lunch (vouchers and information from Springmount Garden Centre, Ballycanew Road, Gorey, Co Wexford; 053-9421368; www.springmount.ie).

In west Cork, organic gardener Jean Perry offers classes in the beautiful and productive Glebe Gardens (Baltimore, Co Cork; 028-20232; www.glebegardens.com). Subjects include vegetable gardening, herb growing and gardening for wildlife. Classes cost €60 for day courses, and €120 for two-day courses. Lunch in the award-winning Glebe Restaurant is included in the price.

At Hunting Brook Gardens, near Blessington in Co Wicklow, Jimi Blake has a full calendar of classes (from €120-180). Keen plantspeople would welcome a voucher for Carol Klein’s propagating masterclass, or for a day with Fergus Garrett, head gardener at Great Dixter (Hunting Brook, Lamb Hill, Blessington, Co Wicklow; 087-2856601; www.huntingbrook.com).

If there is a garden designer on your list, then they’d be more than happy if you sent them to the Garden and Landscape Designers’ Association (GLDA) annual seminar on February 6th, the main event on the garden design calendar. Tickets cost €110 for non-members, and if you buy before December 15th, you’ll get a 10 per cent discount. Speakers this year include the Vietnamese and French duo Andy Cao and Xavier Perrot, Dutch landscape architect Christian Dobrick and Irish designer Mary Reynolds (www.glda.ie; 01-2940092).

Or maybe you know someone who really wants to get their garden sorted, but isn’t quite sure how to do it. A half-day, one-to-one coaching session with GLDA member Susan Maxwell can be had for €234, within the greater Dublin area. She will visit the garden and give expert advice on maintenance, layout and planting. She is willing to travel further (within 120km of Dublin), in which case travel expenses will be charged (sdmaxwell@eircom.net; 01-4978624).

Perhaps someone close to you has a favourite garden nearby that they like to visit? Why not buy them a season ticket so that they can wander in whenever the urge takes them? Prices vary widely from garden to garden. At Belvedere in Co Westmeath, a season ticket for one person is €80; for a couple, it’s €115; and there are special rates for families, unwaged and seniors (www.belvedere-house.ie; 044-9349060).

At Mount Usher gardens in Co Wicklow, the rate is €25 for a single, €50 for a double, and €60 for a family of two adults and two children. Reduced rates apply for seniors (www.mountushergardens.ie; 0404-40205).

Some gardeners don’t have gardens, or the space they have is too small for their grand plans. If this is the case, then an allotment might be just the thing to stick in their Christmas stocking. As far as I know, there are waiting lists for all the local authority plots, but there are privately owned allotment schemes in several counties. The website Allotments.ie has a list of many of them. Prices vary from €130 to €500 per growing year. If you opt for one of the more expensive ones, you can club together with some other present-givers to raise the dosh.

When considering an allotment – especially a costly one in a privately owned operation – check that there is car parking, a water supply, good paths, a toilet, and rabbit-proof fencing. Some schemes offer rotovating services, tool storage, sheltered potting areas, tea-making and barbecue facilities, and manure. Don’t be afraid to ask for all of them. You want your new allotment holder to be a happy camper.

One of the sad realities that hits the older or infirm gardener is that of watching a much-loved plot succumbing to the grasp of nature. The gift of a day’s work will put manners on their garden, and a smile on their face. If you’re a good and able gardener, you might offer your own services; otherwise, ask your garden centre to recommend a dependable person. In the same vein, you could give the gift of an afternoon’s driving – to buy plants and compost, or to visit a garden.

jpowers@irishtimes.com