With or without a green thumb, you may know someone who appreciates all things green. Maybe they admire and identify the plantings in their street’s tree boxes, subscribe to podcasts on growing or might be the person excited about next season’s seed catalog as soon as they’ve harvested the last tomato from their backyard garden. Others might be raising a family of plant babies and always finding space to adopt one more. Or maybe you’re at a loss for what to give that person who seems to either have everything or is very particular – but a gift card doesn’t seem like the right thing. 
Plants provide a host of benefits, indoor and out. They clean the air we breathe, and their presence is known to lower stress levels, put your mind at ease and boost your mood – a positive side benefit, especially in winter months. They’re also the evergreen present. You don’t really need to get the right size (unless you’re bringing a mature ficus tree into a small space) and the style is unlikely to offend a picky in-law or co-worker, needing a post-holiday store return or exchange. (Although, be sure to ask about various plant appropriateness if the greenery will be sharing space – some plants can be toxic for pets or young children.)
Where to go for the perfect plants, accessories, tools and books? There are so many options nearby. Visiting these welcoming spaces and chatting with plant enthusiasts will provide some joy and offer a true respite during the hectic holiday season. See the people who work around plants – they’re in pretty good spirits.
If you’ve lived on or near Capitol Hill for any amount of time, you’re already familiar with Frager’s Hardware, although you may not have visited Foliage by Frager’s, their plant boutique, where you can also find seasonal home decorations, birding supplies and extensive gardening essentials. Throughout the plant arena, assistance is found whether picking out the perfect plant for a favorite teacher, a special plant pot or small garden tools for indoor re-potting projects. Know someone with a propensity to over-water? They have a gauge to monitor moisture in your plants, too. Wander out the back door and you will find the year-round garden center, for further inspiration.
For over 30 years Ginko Gardens has brought together passionate horticulturists and landscape architects to create sustainable gardens for your home or office. The indoor plant store covering two floors provides ample opportunity to find the perfect orchid, hanging air plant (pretty forgiving for those who need a low maintenance or an easy way to start), winter indoor bulb (think of the aromatic paperwhite or the showy and beautiful bright red amaryllis) or even a wood-framed and preserved moss assembly to hang on the wall, bringing green into a space with no caretaking required. 
On the corner of East Capitol Street and Lincoln Park you’ll find Surroundings (1023 East Capitol St. SE, surroundingslandscapings.com). In addition to small potted cedars and substantial rosemary plants that can do double duty as your holiday tree or Hannukah bush, they have cut holly branches, and lucky bamboo that’s perfect to usher in a good New Year. Pick up a grouping of pussy willows or bouquet of beautiful cut flowers to bring as a hostess gift for a holiday dinner – particularly those lush hydrangeas – and you’ll be on the permanent guest list.
WS Jenks (910 Bladensburg Rd. NE, wsjenks.com) has been around for over 150 years and their robust offerings in the garden department included classes. Check out upcoming educational offerings (here at eventbrite.com/o/ws-jenks-52340767503) with classes like Plant Your own Succulent Arrangement, Planning and Starting your Garden from Seed and even Fermentation for Beginners: Sauerkraut and Kimchi. Their AeroGarden kits are particularly great for someone wanting to grow some edible greenery – like lettuce or herbs on a counter indoors, particularly good for a space without a lot of light. WS Jenks carries kid-sized gardening tools and water pails, and you might consider a plant for a teen like mint that is easy to grow and has a nice aroma.
Books are the perfect gift for practically everyone on your list, and East City Bookshop (645 Pennsylvania Ave. SE, eastcitybookshop.com) has a section dedicated to home and garden. Whether you’re looking to beautify your private garden patio, start a container garden (great for the front stoop), plant herbs on a window sill or need a garden notebook to track each season’s plantings, they have plant- and flower-themed items to provide inspiration for the experienced or budding grower on your list.
Lucky are we to live in the same town as the US Botanic Garden (100 Maryland Ave. SW, usbg.gov) where you can step into a stunning conservatory space offering many ecosystems and corresponding plants. Gift a membership or become a friend and depending on membership level, receive a variety of benefits like hard-to-get tickets to the annual holiday exhibit or discounts at the gift shop. And if there’s a particularly cold, gray day in February, a visit to their tropical exhibit will transport you to a biodiverse, warm and lush environment to recharge until cherry blossom time.
Annette Nielsen, a writer and food systems advisor, returned to Capitol Hill from New York where she served as the executive director of the Hunter College NYC Food Policy Center.
