Seriously, why did I ever doubt that, when it came to plastic play gardens, no one could beat Playmobil? The suggestions for different Playmobil garden options took over my inbox yesterday like kudzu engulfing a Georgia Tech co-ed's parked car during Spring Break. True, some sets are discontinued, and most have parts so small, they're not even choking hazards so much as "get lost in the flokati rug" hazards. Still, for your shoppertainment, here are a few of the options:

#3134, Superset Flower Garden, which kind of reminds me of the deck Matt Haughey built in his backyard. Sadly, the former is discontinued while the latter is going strong.

#4481, the Green House was the one we went with, not because you can plant actual seeds in it, but because, unlike #4482, Plant Beds with Shed, it has flower pots. Though the shed would match the kid's Playmobil Porta-Potty quite nicely.

#4484, Flower Shop, has no dirt, which was a specific request. And while I saw #4480, Garden Center, at Kid-O in NYC over the weekend, it was really too big.

Putting it all in one spot like this, the whole thing makes me want to get Playmobil #44XX, Tank Full Of Round-Up.

update: whoa, what a chump. I purposely did not link to any particular retailers on this post, but I just realized what a shellacking I took from Kazoo Toys, a Denver outfit where I ordered the kid's Green House. I just got a shipping notice that says they charged me $30 for shipping and handling. I could've sworn it said $8.95 when I ordered. Anyway, I need to pay more attention to these things.