Put down roots with Dad on Fathers’ Day

DITCH the socks and ties for Father’s Day tomorrow and form a deep-rooted attachment with the old man through a gift of a garden plant or shrub.

That's the advice from state agency Bord Glas promoting a boom in blooms for the special day.

The horticultural board said new research reveals an increasing number of men are devoted to gardening.

"Interviews with gardeners countrywide indicate that while the traditional division of labour prevails inside the home with women still doing considerably more than half the housework there is substantially more equality between the sexes when it comes to gardening," said the board's Teresa O'Malley.

It was not possible, she said, to hazard a guess on the likely spend for Father's Day but the sales of plants, shrubs and gardening products will add considerably to the value of the Irish gardening market, which now tops €430 million yearly.

Sales of power tools, DVDs, CDs and car stereos are also on the up and up around Father's Day.

However, Pat O'Donovan, from a new male hair-and-beauty store in Cork's South Main Street, said an increasing number of men are looking for more than a hot-towel shave when they visit their local barber.

Massages and manicures, face and body treatments are no longer the preserve of the female sex, he said.

"We have a genuine Turkish masseuse here at Man Kind and since we opened, male beauty treatments account for about 30% of the business," said Pat. "There's been a surge in treatment vouchers all week."

Compared to the pomp associated with Mother's Day, most dads are low maintenance preferring a lazy family day.

However, on a registered children's website, KidsCom, 10-year-old Melissa disclosed: "My dad wants a big Ford Galaxy car, a mansion with a swimming pool and some new clothes but I don't think that I can afford all of them."