Team gloves.
Some plants can cause skin problems, if they, or their sap, come into contact with bare skin. Think of oleander and euphorbia sap, for example. I also have a sensitivity to daylily foliage (and the juices from cut foliage or disintegrating blooms); my sister and I are the only ones I personally know who have it, but it's real, and the resulting rash can be as bad as the ones from exposure to poison ivy or poison oak.
As for fingers in the bare dirt.... uh, no. There are lots of bacteria in that dirt, and not all of them are nice; some of them, such as Pseudomonas aeruginosa, are opportunistic pathogens. Then there is, as someone else pointed out, the possibility of toxoplasmosis. Anyone with compromised immunity, or who is missing any lymph nodes (due to sentinel node biopsy for cancer), is at risk for health problems if they "play" around with bare soil.
So, disposable vinyl gloves for me!
