6 Special Mother’s Day Ideas For Moms Who Love To Garden

As you look for mother’s day ideas, think flowers, plants and gardening help, or make a terrarium or a sweet garden stepping stone.

A mother and daughter smile and garden
(Image credit: Mindful Media / Getty Images)

Looking for Mother’s Day ideas? It’s almost time to give Mom a gift as unique as she is, but the question is, what to get her? Well, you could always go with the classic Mother's Day flowers. Maybe give a DIY craft or, even better, how about spending the day with Mom helping her in the garden? Whatever you decide to do for Mother’s Day, that extra personal touch will make it one Mom remembers for years.

Mother’s Day Ideas for Gardeners

For the mom who is obsessed with all things garden related, we’ve compiled our top 6 Mother’s Day gift ideas.

1. Give Her a Classic Bouquet

What girl doesn’t like flowers? Okay, there are some, but if your mom is gaga over blooms, you can always go the traditional route with a bouquet of Mother's Day flowers.

Of course, the florist is just a call away, but to make the gift even more personal, how about making your own bouquet? You can source flowers from your own backyard or take a trip to a local store that stocks a variety of cut flowers that you can coordinate into a bouquet your mom will love.

If you would rather give Mom a gift that lasts longer than the week or so a cut bouquet gives, how about getting her a flowering houseplant or even putting together a mix of annual and perennial bloomers accented by some greenery in a pretty container or window box? This gift will convey your love and appreciation throughout the growing season; not as long as a mother’s love lasts (forever!) but it’s a start.

2. Pick Unique Plants for Nontraditional Moms

Maybe your mom is into plants but in a nontraditional way. In this case, forego the floral bouquet and get her a living flowering shrub or tree. Go a step farther and help her choose a location and then do all the dirty work of digging and planting as part of your gift.

Maybe your mother loves cacti or succulents. You could put together a mini arid garden for her home, or how about creating a terrarium of small, humidity-loving plants?

If you’re artistic, or even if you aren’t, how about making mom a gift? Maybe paint a plant pot for her, decoupage floral themes cut from old magazines onto a coffee table, or make her a handmade card complete with pressed, dried flowers.

3. Make Her a Centerpiece

Since it’s Mom’s Day, I hope you’re doing all the cooking. Take it a step farther and not only host mom for dinner, but make it special by creating a Mother's Day floral table arrangement in her honor.

Since Mother’s Day is smack dab in the middle of spring, you have plenty of floral options from spring bulbs like tulips and daffodils to azalea blooms, lilacs, or flowering branches of crabapple or dogwood.

Flowers and greenery can either be cut and arranged in a vase, or think outside the box and arrange various sized clear or colored glass vases or other containers filled with spring bulbs you’ve started inside. Maybe set each place with its own colorful primrose in an adorable terracotta pot. The options are as endless as your imagination.

4. Plant a Mother’s Day Garden

Moms like nothing more than to just spend time with you so what better idea than to do just that. Plan, purchase, and deliver all the makings of a Mother's Day garden. Mom can help or opt out, sit back and watch her kid(s) turn a strip of dirt into a fairytale wonderland of color.

Choose flowers and plants that are suited to the area; sun or shade lovers for example. Mix it up. Pick some perennials and some annuals with varying colors, textures, and bloom times. Plant according to mature height so the tallest plants will be at the rear of the bed and the shortest at the forefront. Mom’s gonna love this project!

5. Check To-Do Items off Her List

Even when you love to garden, sometimes the list of chores seems endless. Give Mom a hand by dedicating a day to helping her cross off some of her to-do list. By May, mom may need help weeding and mulching, spreading compost and tilling it in, dividing and/or moving plants, and so many other chores that keep the garden in tip-top shape.

If she doesn’t need help in the garden, how about washing the windows or her car or power- washing the driveway and walkways?

This is truly a gift of time and won’t cost you a penny. Mom will love your thoughtfulness and this gift works for every mother of any age!

6. Personalize a Stepping Stone for Her Garden

Who doesn’t need a stepping stone or two in the garden? You need a designated spot to plant your foot rather than on a plant.

This Mother’s Day, make mom some DIY stepping stones. Even the grandkids can get in on this gift; there’s nothing more adorable than seeing those tiny handprints immortalized in concrete.

If you're handy, you can make your own mold or purchase one in a slew of shapes and sizes. Mixing mortar or premix concrete is easy. All you need to do then is get creative with a way to decorate the stones.

Maybe an imprint of her pet dog's paw or grandchild’s hand. Press in ferns, branches, photos, pretty rocks or seashells, broken glass or other decorative embellishment into the wet concrete.

You can also personalize the stepping stone with a witty saying, inspirational quote, bible verse, or just the date the stone was made.

Remember, the gift is almost beside the point. Mom just wants to know she’s loved. Spending time with her is worth its weight in gold.

Amy Grant
Writer

Amy Grant has been gardening for 30 years and writing for 15. A professional chef and caterer, Amy's area of expertise is culinary gardening.