The 10 Best Colorado Gifts for Plant Lovers

Green-thumbed pals can be tricky to buy for—what else can you gift them other than more plants? Well, it’s time to think outside of the pot. Below, our favorite local maintenance tools, botanical books, and essential goodies to help their gardens grow.

Crocs Classic Clog

We almost hate to admit it, but there’s no better gardening shoe than the style icon herself: good ol’ Crocs ($50). This Broomfield-based business hits the footwear sweet spot for horticultural tinkerers: lightweight, washable, and easy to slip on and off. Plus, your loved one can customize their clogs with any number of floral charms, adding more flair to these already-sweet kicks. Available online and at various retailers

Leaf People Hand & Body Lotion

There’s no denying that certified herbalist Julie Williams loves plants as much as the garden gods and goddesses on your list. After all, she’s studied them on six different continents to better understand their medicinal benefits. Those experiences inform every product she handcrafts for her acclaimed skin care line, Leaf People. We’re especially fond of this hand and body lotion ($22 for a two-ounce bottle), which incorporates arnica (an herb in the sunflower family) that the team ethically harvests near Williams’ home outside of Aspen. Then again, the ​​Clean Beauty Award-winning Men’s Complete Face & Beard Oil ($35 for a two-ounce bottle) makes a great stocking stuffer, too. Available online and at various retailers

Denver Plant Delivery Plant Club Subscription

Located in Centennial with hundreds of plants to choose from, Denver Plant Delivery has built its business around bringing healthy and unique houseplants right to your front door. For plant aficionados who enjoy the element of surprise, the Plant Club Subscription ($39 to $65) makes a great gift. Every month (or quarter), a new plant and planter will arrive at your giftee’s home. Denver Plant Delivery changes up the variety so subscribers don’t ever get the same plants, and it often secures unique varietals like Monstera Swiss cheese. New this year: Add charcuterie or wine to go with their gift of green (pricing coming soon). Available online

Stem & Roots Terrarium Bar

Keen to go the experiential gift-giving route and spoil your soil lover? Schedule an appointment for two at the terrarium bar (starting at $16 per person) housed in the lower level of Fort Collins’ plant boutique Stem & Roots. (Walk-ins are also welcome.) You and your special someone will choose a glass container and a plant, then get your hands dirty selecting different soils, rocks, mosses, and more to create the terrarium of your dreams. Stem & Roots, 516 S. College Ave., Fort Collins

City Floral Gardening Supplies

Help your green thumb get a jump-start on spring planting with a functional present from Denver’s City Floral Garden Center. Pop in to pick up bulbs, seeds, or clay pots. Or really get into the holiday spirit by putting a bow on some gardening tools. May we suggest a “hoe, hoe, hoe”? (Prices vary.) City Floral Garden Center, 1440 Kearney St.

Spade & Spoon Vegetarian Box

If you’ve got a practical plant lover on your list (aka, someone who grows them for sustenance), sign them up for the Vegetarian Box ($106) from Spade & Spoon. The Denver-based meal-kit company will send recipe cards plus fixins’ for a trio of veggie-forward, chef-curated meals that feed four people, such as sage and sweet potato chowder and honey crisp kale salad with ingredients from local artisans such as Altius Farms, Not Bad Cooks, and Hearth Bakery. Vegan ($101) and Produce ($45) boxes are great options, too. Available online

Dram Colorado Pine Syrup

For the sweetest foliage lover on your list, we suggest the Colorado Pine Syrup ($25 for an eight-ounce bottle) from Dram, a Salida-based apothecary. Made by botanist Shae Whitney with evergreen needles foraged in Colorado and featuring a hint of vanilla and citrus, this versatile syrup adds flavor to a stack of flapjacks (of course) but also works as a finishing glaze on proteins or a twist on traditional cookies or cocktails. “It tastes like how a Christmas tree smells, which sounds unusual but is actually delicious,” Whitney says. Just make sure to snag this limited-release product before it sells out. Available online

Made in Colorado Aspen Leaf Lace Charm

All Coloradans love gilded aspen leaves, but plant parents may love them a little more. Why not gift such a person a literal gilded aspen leaf? Crafted by one of the artisans at Made in Colorado, this aspen leaf ($15.50) is plated in 24-karat gold or fine silver to complement a variety of preferences and clips on to an existing charm bracelet, so your favorite gardener can watch it glimmer in the sunshine while working among the weeds. Available online

Mushrooms of the Rocky Mountain Region

Mushroom hunting is booming and this guide is a great place to start for anyone looking to begin their foraging journey. Not only does the book ($30) include full-color photos to easily reference (poisonous mushrooms are a thing, after all), but it also details the basics about mushroom structures, life cycles, and habitats. Plus, it includes ’shrooms from all over the Rocky Mountain region, so the fun continues beyond the state lines. Available online and in area bookstores

Erika Donaghy Bud Vase

Looking for the perfect gift for your favorite pothead? No, not that kind of pothead. The simple-yet-stylish Bud Vase ($18) from Dillon-based maker Erika Donaghy is ideal for propagation or small bouquets. Though Donaghy says watercolor is her first love, she took up pottery in 2019, renovated a backyard shed a year later, and now creates her work from her personal ceramics studio. Available online