like most things in life you get what you pay for......
that said I am a big fan of the Opticron Taiga 8x25 they cost approx £90 and weigh 302g
see here (
http://www.alula.fi/GB/index.htm and click corrected reviews from number 1/2006 (PDF, 430 Kb) )
for a review of how they compare to the 8x20 bins from Leica, Swaro, Nikon and zeiss - and they do rather well.....
if you spend more then you'll get a better binocular but for looking in the garden the taiga's will be more than adequate.
If you want to spend more then I'd recommend the RSPB BG 8x32 £299 and 520g. Seriously good optics.
If I may ask where do you live? its usually a good idea to go somewhere and pick them up.