Surely the way to a green-fingered person’s heart on Valentine’s Day is to make the most of the great outdoors, do some spectacular planting and wallow in luxury at the end of a hard day’s digging.

There’s an abundance of romantic gifts for the gardener, from a simple heart-shaped garden ornament to wonderful hampers of luxurious, sweetly scented organic products to wash away the toil of the day.

Think beyond the box of chocolates to items which will bring pleasure for years to come.

If your loved one is inspired by other people’s gardens, or simply enjoys a romantic day out in the open air, an annual membership to the National Trust is a must. It provides free unlimited visits to all of the 200 Trust gardens across England, Wales and Northern Ireland. Buy gift membership on 0844 8001895 or at nationaltrust .org.uk. Membership starts at £37.88.

If she’s the apple of your eye, buy her a rosy-red Redlove bare root apple tree, excellent for both eating and cooking, which bears red fleshed fruit that has a beautiful pattern running through it and retains its colour when cooking. Exclusive to Suttons, the tree has unusual, long-lasting, deep pink spring blossom. (£24.99, suttons.co.uk, phone 0844 922 0606) Add a touch of sparkle to your relationship – and your garden – with a twinkly red mosaic heart hanger, made with red-coloured glass shards and frost and weather resistant. Available in different sizes from gardens2you (from £8.99, gardens2you.co.uk).

With more hearts in mind, this delightful heart-shaped plant holder in brown rustic finish will add a touch of romance to any garden. It makes an eye-catching feature planted with cascading geraniums or ivies and can be used as a conservatory planter or outside hanging from a tree. (£22.50, simplyaddstyle.com) If you want to make your loved one smile, buy her a novelty red kneeler saying Keep Calm And Carry On Weeding (£3.95 each, dotcomgiftshop.com).