Summer Garden Solar Lantern

This solar lantern charges in daylight and turns itself on at dusk, so the flower bed keeps a little color glowing after sunset — no switch, no cord, no extension lead across the lawn. Gardeners hang one from a shepherd's hook over the border, set one on the patio table for long summer evenings, or send one to the friend who grows the tomatoes everyone brags about. It is the rare garden gift that is not another pair of gloves.

A 9.25-inch (23.5 cm) cylindrical solar garden lantern. The wrap-around panel carries a stained-glass-style design and is framed in metal with a brushed antique bronze finish, with a half-round carry handle and a round solar disc on top. At dusk the built-in light makes the whole panel glow from within, like a small stained-glass window standing among your plants.

• Panel: one continuous translucent, weatherproof polycarbonate panel with a glowing, stained-glass-style design — light, durable, and made to live outdoors
• Frame: metal with a brushed antique bronze finish, slim vertical ribs, and a half-round carry handle
• Top: round solar disc that charges the built-in rechargeable battery — no wiring, nothing to plug in
• Weather rating: IP65 — rain, sprinklers, and dust are fine; a small drain hole in the base lets water escape

• A flower bed, border edge, deck rail, or the patio table where summer dinners happen
• A gift for the gardener in your life — Mother's Day, a birthday, or a thank-you for all the cuttings and zucchini
• Housewarming for a first yard or a new garden
• Marking the start of patio season — it goes outside when the tomatoes go in
• Matching the flowers already in the garden: sunflowers, lilies, lupine, bluebells, or a dogwood out front

Wipe the panel with a soft damp cloth; no polish needed. Keep the top solar disc clean and give it several hours of direct sun for the brightest glow. It can stay out year-round in rain (IP65), though a sheltered spot during hail or a hard freeze will lengthen the life of any solar light.