UNS Aquascaping Tools - Stainless Steel, Rust Resistant, Freshwater Planted Tank, Saltwater Reef Aquarium Maintenance Accessory - Planting, Coral Setting - Straight Pinsettes, Grey

Why it's worth it

These are long stainless tweezers for pushing plant stems into gravel and setting coral frags without wrecking the layout. They resist rust, they work in fresh or salt water, and they're small enough for a stocking while still looking like a real present.

Planting a stem with your fingers means burying your hand to the wrist, clouding the water and uprooting the two plants beside it. Tweezers let you push the stem in at an angle and back the tips out cleanly. Anyone who has aquascaped once already knows this. Plenty of them still haven't bought the tools.

This is the rare aquarium gift with no compatibility question at all. Stainless steel doesn't care whether the tank is planted freshwater or a reef, and owners specifically note that these don't rust after time in salt water. Straight tips suit general planting; curved tips reach around rock and driftwood for moss and carpeting plants.

From our review of 7 gifts for aquarium hobbyists

What we like

• +Planting a stem with your fingers means burying your hand to the wrist, clouding the water and uprooting the two plants beside it
• +This is the rare aquarium gift with no compatibility question at all
• +They look like a gift, too

What to know

• –They run short. Owners with deeper tanks wish for a longer version, and if your recipient keeps a tall tank they'll still be…
• –Tips this fine will bend if somebody uses them to pry rock around