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Plant Life Valerie Easton

Whether Beautiful Or Just Useful

These gifts are worth planting under the tree

While my new favorite garden tool might seem a little, well, incendiary for a Christmas gift, a weed torch will delight any practical-minded gardener on your list. These sticklike tools with little detachable propane cylinders make for the most satisfying weeding ever. Even broadleaf weeds are sizzled to death in an instant, and there's no bending down, getting dirty or struggling to dislodge stubborn roots. Just burn, baby, burn, and weeds are gone forever. Anyone with a gravel driveway or a patio that sprouts weeds between the pavers will be so grateful for this tool. Red Dragon Weed Dragons are available from www.absolutehome.com ($69.90); a Primus Gardener Weed Torch costs $61.99 from www.gardenersedge.com. Larger hardware stores stock a variety of brands; I found my Weed Dragon at Sebos.

Any gardener suffering from nature deprivation, a malady as common as daylight deficiency this time of year, will welcome a gift of a Leif Holland sculpture. His work brings botanical beauty indoors, capturing the essence of familiar plants by framing them as sculptural objects to hang on the wall. Thorny rose twigs, birch branches and bamboo canes are stunning showcased in Holland's handcrafted black boxes. His pieces run from 6 inches square, ideal to hang in groups of three, to wall-sized sculptures. Prices start around $200, and Holland welcomes custom orders. View his work at the shop he co-owns, Square Room, 910 Pike St., Seattle, 206-329-1214 or at www.squareroom.us.

If the gardener on your list is a modernist, consider a couple of outdoor items from the Eva Solo line, carried by DIG IN, a snazzy new design shop on Vashon Island. The Eva Solo bird house is sleek and simple, but oh-so-cleverly designed. It's made of wind- and waterproof terra cotta glazed in glossy white. Four sizes of black entry holes make it customizable for specific kinds of birds. There's even an internal ladder for chicks to climb up, peek out and safely launch themselves into the wide world.

Or how about the equally stylish outdoor oil lamp? Ideal for lighting up the front porch or deck, it's made of handsome white porcelain with an everlasting wick. Just unscrew the stainless-steel top to refill with oil for a warm glow that's safer and cleaner than candles, but every bit as romantic. The bird box costs $72 and the oil lamp is $69. Both are available at DIG IN, 19028 Vashon Highway S.W., Vashon Island, 206-463-5096, or see www.evasolo.com.

Two grande dames of horticultural literature have published books just in time for gift-giving:

Helen Dillon mixes an irresistible Irish wit with common-sense design advice and plant knowledge in "Down To Earth With Helen Dillon" (Timber Press, $29.95). She describes the arc of her gardening life and the evolution of her famous Dublin garden in frank words that will appeal equally to beginning and seasoned gardeners. She'd object to my using a euphemism like "seasoned," though; in her chapter "Gardening in Old Age," she complains that Americans refer even to dogs as "seniors." Dillon gives a great list of "shouldn't haves" that includes wearing a dress she claims makes her look like a sofa, along with an impressive list of gardening disasters to balance out her many triumphs.

Do you ever think the joys of Northwest winter gardening are overrated by those who have moved here from Minnesota? Suzy Bales' heartfelt new book on getting outside in the worst of weather may change your mind. "The Garden In Winter: Plant for Beauty and Interest in the Quiet Season" (Rodale, $34.95) inspires us to do more than look out the windows this time of year. Most of the lovely photos come from Bales' own estate garden on Long Island, and I envy all the sparkly, light-reflecting ice and snow. Whether discussing decorating with nature's bounty or dwarf conifers in containers, Bales exudes enthusiasm for celebrating the garden at a time most of us might well miss its pleasures.

Valerie Easton is a Seattle freelance writer and author of "A Pattern Garden." Her e-mail address is valeaston@comcast.net.

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