Ecological Gardener's Wish List
- LadyBug EarthCare
- Dec 19, 2020
- 5 min read
Updated: Dec 2
Our Essential Gift Guide for EarthCare Professionals + Gardeners in Every Season!
Looking for thoughtful and valuable ways to support the Earth workers, land stewards and ecological gardeners in your life?
We put together this gift guide to share our favorite EarthCare + People Care essentials that will delight, nourish and support the land lovers in your community, so they can keep planting, repairing, replenishing, rebuilding, rewilding and getting their hands in the soil...which is probably all they want to do anyway ;-)
Gifts for Every Season
As we near the Winter Solstice, much of our work turns inward. Shorter days and cold weather mean that your favorite EarthWorker might actually have time to read a good book! Our bodies slow down and absorb the impact of working hard on the land, and quality herbal medicines offer the support we need. And of course, EVERY season is the perfect time to gift a great new or upcycled tool! Read on for our must-haves, favorites, and what makes the cut for our own WishList.
LadyBug's EarthCare Essentials
Looking for a unique gift for the aspiring eco gardener in your life? Ready to dive deeper into EarthCare and take action on your own land this year? We created the EarthCare Calendar for you!
LadyBug EarthCare is on a mission to support wildlife by helping humans reconnect through land stewardship. That's why we created the EarthCare Calendar.
Tips, inspiration, and an EarthCare Checklist for each month will help you focus on what's most important in every season, taking the mystery out of caring for your land as you get to know it more intimately.
In collaboration with our local community, the calendar is complete with stunning scenes of native plants, wildlife and pollinators.
Designed with insight from native plant and habitat stewardship experts, the calendar will guide your EarthCare journey each month. Ideal for those brand new to EarthCare and for those with experience who want new ideas about how to relate to your land in a deeper way.
Want the emails that 900+ nature lovers read?
Join EarthCare Matters - the newsletter for nature lovers who want to make a difference during the ecological crisis.
✓ EarthCare information and exploration
✓ Nature connection stories
✓ Land stewardship tips and tools
✓ Ways to expand your impact
✓ Free resources and gifts
EarthCare Tools
Our number one hand tool we love and recommend is the "hori hori" - a Japanese garden knife. This small but mighty tool has a 7" concave blade, marked with measurements for easy bulb planting. One edge is smooth, and the other serrated, to aid in cutting into and digging through tough soil, stems and roots. Read more about our favorite garden tool and why we love it! Pair with our favorite sustainable, comfortable and durable Bamboo Gardening Gloves (we get them at local garden shops).
The LadyBug Crew never goes anywhere without our Rebel Garden Tools. These innovative and powerful tools are high quality, handmade, and designed by woodland steward, forager, and citizen-scientist, Wilson Alvarez, with input + feedback from Benjamin Lavan, who also manages the brand under Susquehanna Sustainable Enterprises. While each unique tool excels in its own niche in the forest, field or garden, they're also incredibly versatile, and we wouldn't dream of showing up for a project without them.
Our Favorites:
◦ 5-Tine Broadfork - for breaking up sod, turning soil, prepping to plant trees + gardens
◦ Magna Grecia Field Model - amazing for cutting through roots, breaking up clods, sifting or removing sod + chunky bits, trenching, and even digging in a pinch! We use our Magna Grecia almost every day and would love to have a few more in our shed.
People Care Essentials
EarthWork is just as physically demanding as it is fulfilling, and there's nothing we would rather be doing. Supporting the mental, physical and emotional health of the Land Stewards in your community plays an essential role in caring for the Earth as she supports us all! Everyone deserves health and well-being, so put a bookmark in this section and treat yourself too =)
EarthCare Matters Apparel Shop :: Sustainably Sourced Gear for Nature Lovers, Land Stewards + Gardeners
We hand-picked these sustainably sourced shirts, totes and other gear to go with you on the job, on a land walk in your Place, or exploring anywhere the road takes you!
These awesome EarthCare Matters logos were designed by yours truly, the LadyBugs ♡
Perfect for gifting or refreshing your own wardrobe! Land-based work friendly but you could definitely wear these out on the town - and spread the message that EarthCare Matters!
MindCare :: Books We Recommend
◦ Beyond The War on Invasive Species - Tao Orion
◦ Braiding Sweetgrass : Indigenous Wisdom, Scientific Knowledge and the Teachings of Plants - Robin Wall Kimmerer
◦ Food Not Lawns - Heather Jo Flores. Purchase from Powell's Book Store or read for free/donation on Heather Jo's website!
Rewilding : The Radical New Science of Ecological Recovery - Paul Jepson + Cain Blythe
◦ Planting in a Post-Wild World : Designing Plant Communities for Resilient Landscapes - Thomas Rainer + Claudia West
These picks are available from Chelsea Green Publishing - one of our favorite companies.
Anything from the Wilderness Awareness Shop!
Photo Credit :: Sacred Spiral Apothecary
BodyCare :: Our Favorites
Susquehanna Botanicals is our year-round source for potent medicines made from sustainably harvested wild plants and organically grown plants.
We especially love their...
We love them so much we created a collaboration with them on gift boxes - one for Ecological Gardeners and one for Land Stewards.
Community Share :: How To Find Used + Up-Cycled Tools
With a little bit of care and maintenance, a used tool can go a long way! Cleaning, repairing and sharpening a great gardening tool can transform a piece of "junk" into a treasure for your garden-loving confidantes. Plus, a dose of DIY shop time does the soul good.
Here's where we look for Used + Up-Cycled tools in our community:
◦ Susquehanna Gift Circle (Facebook Group)
◦ Facebook Marketplace (New to you? Read this How-To Guide)
◦ Ask a farmer! They're often getting rid of tools for free or cheap.
◦ Ask a neighbor! Lend a hand with their shed or garage clean-up, keep those tools out of the landfill and give them a new home.
We hope this Gift Guide will help you show some love to the gardeners and EarthWorkers in your life in every season, because EarthCare gives back to us all.
Join the EarthCare Library!
The EarthCare Library is a stash of custom created resources for our community, offered in a variety of mediums for diverse learning styles, from PDF guides to mini-courses and videos.
The Library includes a growing collection of: ✓ Core EarthCare routines
✓ Access to shop resources
✓ Tools for every season
✓ EarthCare Summit archive
✓ Monthly Members Only ZINE
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