April showers bring May flowers, but only if your garden is properly set up first.
It’s finally warm enough to get the garden going again, which also means trips back and forth to the home goods and stores for plants, trellises and bulbs and blooms.
For those who want to see if their thumbs are green but don’t have much green space outdoors, check out our options for indoor gardening with grow lamps or fully-equipped herb gardens that can thrive right on your kitchen counter.
For the traditional gardeners itching to pull on their gloves and get to digging, we have cool new gadgets for you, too, like outdoor mini-greenhouses for your backyard and beautiful and spacious flowerbeds for all your favorite veggies, fruits and flowers.
We sorted our list by indoor and outdoor gardening, as to not discriminate between our window-box having apartment gardeners and those who have sprawling yards for planting.
Best indoor gardening tools
1. Click and Grow The Smart Garden 9, $230
No natural light in your apartment? No problem.
Click and Grow has it all in the name, making it super easy to have your very own herb, flower or even a vegetable garden on your kitchen counter. First, insert whichever plant pods you would like to grow, add water and then plug it in and the machine will do the rest.
We also tested our green thumb and reviewed the device last year, loving the fresh basil, lettuce and herbs the little box was able to yield.
2. The ēdn SmallGarden, $200
Make your Apple-enabled smart home even smarter by growing your own herbs and never paying for them at the grocery store again.
Sold on Apple’s site, the ēdn brand garden is powered by your home WiFi, fully equipped with a grow light and a water notification system to make sure your herbs are properly hydrated, even if you forget. This set comes with 10 basil seed pods, but you can also buy more in a variety of herbs and flowers.
3. HAMAMA Home Microgreens Growing Kit, $40
Eat your greens — even if they are micro.
This microgreen growing kit from Amazon is a great way to get into gardening that also serves a healthy purpose. The kit comes with a seed quilt that, once watered, will sprout in about seven days and be ready to harvest again and again.
4. BloomingTables Entryway Table, $299
Why confine your green space to just the backyard when you could have blooming plants in any room of the house.
BloomingTables is just that; a blooming table or desk that makes keeping houseplants easy, all while saving precious floor space. Instead of a planter on your floor or counter, the planter here is the desk or table, with a fully functional glass topper for you to work on or enjoy a morning coffee. Water the plants like you would any other and don’t worry about overwatering, as there is a drain valve on the bottom to get rid of any excess.
5. 4-Tier Mini Portable Indoor Outdoor Greenhouse w/ Steel Shelves, $55
Spring has sprung, and it could be blooming in your own backyard.
Geared for smaller spaces, this greenhouse shelving unit is portable and can fit easily right up against a wall. The shelf comes with a plastic greenhouse covering to keep bugs out of your herbs and maintain consistent humidity to foster plant growth even during the season change. Each shelf can hold up to 20 pounds, so load up the flowers, herbs and more and bring some greenery to your backyard.
6. Kings Gardening Clever Pot Self Watering Pot, $24
Never forget to water your indoor plants again with this adorable planter.
The owl-shaped pot is not only cute to look at but also works to automatically water your plant for up to 10 days. The eyes on the owl indicate the water level, and once the planter is looking down, it’s time to refill.
7. Indoor plants, prices vary
Once you have your space all sorted, it’s time to furnish it with plants perfect for an indoor setting.
The Home Depot has you covered, selling almost every type of indoor plant from tall Snake Plants, beautiful Peace Lilies and the exotic Bird of Paradise, to name just a few. Most of the plants already come in beautiful pots, so no need to re-home your new houseplant or buy any more dirt.
8. 75W LED Grow Light for Indoor Plants, $32
Make sure your indoor plants get all the light they need and never get jealous of their outdoor buddies.
This grow light is perfect for that, as it will provide your plants with a full spectrum of lights, using IR and UV panels. The lamp is best used with all sorts of house plants including herbs, succulents, vegetables, bonsai trees and more.
9. Multi Tube Propagation Kit, $45
Make the most out of that one sunny corner in your home and start growing your own plants from cuttings.
This propagation station from Bloomscapes can hold three cuttings at a time, and also comes with a stand and a water pitcher to water the rest of your plant babies.
10. 14-Watt LED Indoor Table Top Plant Grow Light Fixture, $60
If you don’t have even a smidgen of natural light, that should not stop you from having the indoor garden of your dreams.
Enter this grow light from The Home Depot. The lamp comes in either white or black to match your kitchen, and the LED bulb comes with three grow settings perfect for a seedling, vegetative plant and a flowering one as well.
11. Easyplant Nature’s Trifecta, $145
Make gardening even easier with this set of three plants that water themselves. Yes, that’s right — the easyplant model is for the plants to be self-watering, using a once-a-month watering system.
Best outdoor gardening tools
1. Lettuce Grow The Farmstand, $348 to $649
Lettuce grow some yummy herbs and veggies this season, shall we?
Lettuce Grow is listed under outdoor planters, but can actually be used indoors as well — especially if you choose the smallest 12-plant or even an 18-plant size. The self-watering and self-fertilizing stand can actually hold up to 36 plants, the largest size Farmstand measuring about six feet tall. There’s a page for how it works on their site for newbies, but the process is really as simple as planting the seeds, filling with water, flipping a switch and harvesting and trimming as needed.
2. GARTOL Garden Tool Set Sunflower Print, $17
A great garden starts with hard work — and good tools.
Get a set of your own on Amazon, now in a super cute sunflower pattern to match your soon-to-be growing garden. The set comes with almost everything you need to get started, including a scale shovel, soil shovel, hand trowel, pruner and a pair of gloves.
3. RainStation 45 Gal. Recycled Black Rain Barrel with Diverter, $145
Rain, rain, don’t go away just yet.
Make the most of nature’s free fertilizer and keep your rain in this upscale rain barrel with room for a beautiful plant on top. From The Home Depot, the black barrel easily hooks up to your hose or drainage pipe to reuse and water it collects off your roof or drown-spout. When full, simply turn the included spigot and use the water to hydrate your other plants around the home, wash your car or have a summer water fight.
4. UKOKE Garden Tool Set, 12 Piece Aluminum Hand Tool Kit, $24
Have tools — will garden.
For those needing to start from scratch with their gardening tool belt, this kit is for you. Sold on Amazon, this set has everything you need to get going, aside from the dirt and the actual plants. The 12-piece set includes high-quality aluminum tools, gardening gloves, a spray bottle, a water-proof apron and kneeling pad and a tote to carry it all from the shed to the garden and back.
5. Dayanara Vinyl Lattice Panel Trellis, $66, original price: $90
This picture-perfect white trellis will make your garden the envy of your neighbors instantly, especially when your garden grows around it.
From Wayfair, the Sol Outdoor trellis measures 76-inches high, meaning your vines and flowers will reach for the sky when they wrap up the posts. It comes in a beautiful white color as well as in a light brown mocha to match the exterior of your home.
6. Colwelt Garden Kneeling Pad Set, $22
Don’t hurt your knees when tending to the garden.
Help prevent muddy knees and sore hands with this three-piece set from Amazon. The main attraction is the kneeling pad, decorated with green and white flowers and made to be cushioned to protect your knees and legs from getting soiled — no pun intended. Then use the matching gloves and trowel to get started in the garden.
7. Planter With Trellis And Self-Watering Reservoir, $140
It’s a planter. It’s a trellis. It’s both!
Get the best gardening two-for-one with this planter and trellis that is also self-watering as an added bonus. Sold at Plow and Hearth, the hybrid comes in both white and dark brown and comes on wheels for easy mobility when the plants need some extra sun or crave the shade. The two-gallon watering tank is great for forgetful gardeners, as it has indicator levels for when you need to refill.
8. LEMY Garden Kneeler Seat Multiuse Portable Garden Bench, $23
Kneel, sit or stand with this handy gardening bench from Amazon.
Just like a carpenter needs their tool belt, so does a gardener who knows what they are doing. This two-in-one bench works as a safe and dry place to kneel or sit while planting; plus it doubles as a storage pouch to keep all your tools and seeds.
9. Ketchum Fir Potting Bench, $154
Get your hands dirty, not your deck.
From Wayfair, this potting bench is both stylish and functional for even the most expert of gardeners. The main level has a tub for your dirt that can be removed for a wash or covered with the attached PVC sheet to turn the whole top into a flat workable surface. There are also two shelves, one on top and one on the bottom to store potted plants, watering cans, tools and whatever else you need for your potting and pruning session.
10. Metallic Series Corten Steel Planter Box, $200
Want to plant but have some pesky pets on the ground that prevent you from having an outdoor garden?
Elevate your garden, literally, with this wooden planter from Wayfair. The planter box is 16 inches high and comes with pre-drilled holes and screws for easy assembly. The metal is also pre-stained and treated for a weather-safe box, even during spring and summer storms.
11. Ukiber Plant Watering Can, $14
For days that nature doesn’t water the plants for you, this is the next best thing.
The sleek watering can is sold on Amazon and comes in the above light blue color that screams spring, as well as a white and a slate gray version. The can holds 1.8 liters of water and also has a detachable spray nozzle to slip into the spout when watering different kinds of plants.
12. Gardener’s Tool Seat, $46
Take a load off your knees and back when planting in your garden all day.
This seat from Uncommon Goods is a gardener’s dream, as it is perfect for taking a seat in the hot summer sun while tending to your flowerbeds low to the ground. The seat also has 21 slots for all your tools around the sides and then some.
Once your garden is ready, get growing with plantings from Ferry-Morse. The seedling pods come ready to plant, and can be pre-ordered now, or after March 13 to really get in on the April showers, May flowers thing.
Check out New York Post Shopping for more content.
