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GIMME: Colorful, Stylish, Sustainable

Thu, 04/20/2023 - 13:32
Durell Godfrey Photos

1.TRADITIONAL: Gardeners trudge around in the morning dew and the occasional downpour. To be ready for anything Mother Nature hands out, consider high boots or low booties. You can enjoy your outing and, in great colors, you’ll always be able to tell where your feet are. Booties $139, high boots $179, Marders Nursery and Garden Center, 120 Snake Hollow Road, Bridgehampton

2.WEATHER: Yes, it rains. What’s more fun to do than a garden-y jigsaw puzzle while waiting for the sun to shine? 8-inch-square mini rose puzzle, $15. LongHouse Reserve Shop, 133 Hand’s Creek Road, East Hampton

3.CLEAN IT UP: Liquid soap for gardeners is less messy than bar soap and is scented with magnolia and marigold. This one’s from Tucker Marder, who knows his stuff. $14.95, Marders Nursery and Garden Center, 120 Snake Hollow Road, Bridgehampton

4.WHIMSICAL: Festive plates for carrot salad, watercress sandwiches, or stuffed tomatoes from your garden. Children will enjoy eating their veggies just like Peter Rabbit. Microwaveable and dishwasher safe. Set of four 8 1/2-inch plates $59.95, Williams Sonoma, Bridgehampton Commons, Bridgehampton

5.LOOK IT UP: You don’t know how much you don’t know until you start looking things up. Grow your garden and your library by visiting your local bookstores and garden centers for helpful titles. BookHampton, 41 Main Street, East Hampton; Marders, 120 Snake Hollow Road, Bridgehampton; Sag Harbor Books, 7 Main Street, Sag Harbor; Southampton Books, 16 Hampton Road, Southampton; Canio’s Books, 290 Main Street, Sag Harbor, and Black Cat Books, 54 North Ferry Road, Shelter Island

6.GOOD-DEED SEEDS: Your indoor cats will be so happy with a crop of cat grass growing on your windowsill, and the bees will be thrilled when you have a flower garden planted outside with their favorite flowers. Birds will thank you for keeping your cats inside, and the bees need all the help they can get. Seed packets, various prices at your favorite garden centers, including Wittendale’s, 89 Newtown Lane, East Hampton

7.KEEP ON TUCKIN’: We love the outside, but we hate ticks. Since you need to tuck your pants into your socks, why not have fun with them? $19.50, J. Crew, 14 Main Street, East Hampton

8.YUMMY: So you’ve grown your victory garden, or located a great farm stand. Drizzle this intensely fruity oil over your bounty and rejoice. The fabulous bottle should be saved to show off your forsythia cuttings or your best daylily, $52.95. Williams Sonoma, Bridgehampton Commons, Bridgehampton

9.BAGGAGE: Useful for shopping, harvesting, and hauling. This waterproof tote helps the planet by eliminating single-use bags at the market. Bright colors make everyone happy. $145, The Monogram Shop, 19 Newtown Lane, East Hampton

10.DELICIOUS: Support your local bees who help the planet in so many ways. Enjoy the honey they make for us in trade for planting pollinator gardens and not using pesticides. Lovely honey pot, $205. East Hampton Gardens, 16 Gingerbread Lane, East Hampton

11.RIGHT STUFF: Mother Nature knows organic gardens need to be fed with the right stuff. Liquid plant food concentrate is made from (are you ready?) earthworm castings (a.k.a. worm poop) and bat guano (look it up!), all excellent fertilizer for indoor and outdoor plants and vegetables. One-quart containers $27.99, Fowlers Garden Center, 175 North Sea Road, Southampton11.DELICIOUS: Support your local bees who help the planet in so many ways. Enjoy the honey they make for us in trade for planting pollinator gardens and not using pesticides. Lovely honey pot, $205. East Hampton Gardens, 16 Gingerbread Lane, East Hampton

12.REMEMBRANCE: Consider a little spot in your yard or garden for a memorial to your dear pet. Place under a pussy willow or a dogwood or surround with forget-me-nots. $39.99 each, Fowlers Garden Center, 175 North Sea Road, Southampton


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