Keeping on gardening
It’s funny how attitudes and perceptions change as our circumstances change. For instance, although I’ve written over the years about gardening ergonomics and how to stay healthy while working in the yard, the topic has never had any particular meaning for me. Other than looking for tools that fit my height and my hands — rakes, shovels, pruning shears, gloves — I’ve never really focused on products designed with seniors or people with limited/decreased mobility in mind.
During the past year, however, that’s started to change, with some nagging, irreparable things going on in both my hands and, more recently, in my lower back. Now it’s even more important for my hand tools to be lightweight, ergonomically shaped, and easy to grip. Now I’m paying attention to using my knees, not my back, when I need to pick up things on the ground. That, in particular, means that I’m having to rethink how I’m going to be able to continue gardening. The days of easy weeding seem to be over.
Over the non-gardening winter months, I didn’t realize quite how much the changes in my physical being were weighing on me. The fullness of the situation didn’t hit me until earlier this month when I visited the Philadelphia Flower Show.
Surprisingly, one of the displays that captivated me the most was an entry that spoke directly to the older or mobilitylimited gardener. It was one of the Class 161 “Balcony” entries. In this category, each display must occupy a 10’ x 6’ balcony space, with a back wall featuring a large open space to give the impression of a sliding glass door. This enables viewing from two sides.
All were gorgeous, but the particular entry that caught my eye was designed to portray the garden nook of a person with mobility challenges. Elements I particularly noted were the large, waist-high cedar planter, the step-ladder used as a support for hanging plants, and planters set on tables, blocks, or inverted containers to provide height. Even so, it took the whimsical use of a walker, with its basket stuffed full of plants, to connect the dots for me.
In sixty square feet, there it was: proof that you don’t have to give up gardening just because it’s gotten too hard to onto and off of the ground. Bring the ground up to you! Looking at the display, I felt a wave of encouragement that I haven’t experienced in a while. The message was clear: I can still garden; I just need to get more creative about it. It’s tough, because I love digging in the
dirt, love kneeling on the ground. Pain is a great motivator, though, forcing me to think about alternatives. It’s still good to get fingers into good earth.
Something hugely helpful is that over the past ten years or so there has been a definite turn toward manufacturing garden tools and aids to support aging members of the Baby Boomer generation (like me) in their desire to keep on gardening as long as possible. A simple Google search will yield a host of raised beds and boxes, rolling garden scooters, and kneeling benches, as well ergonomic hand tools, e.g., http://www. goodgiftsforseniorcitizens. com/2016/04/26/gardeningtools-for-the-elderly/ If you don’t like shopping on the internet, contact Gardeners’ Supply Company (1800-427-3363) and request a catalogue.
I’m wondering, have any of you modified your gardening practices, structures, or tools to accommodate physical limitations? If you’d be willing to share what you’ve done, I’d love to hear from you. Pam Baxter is an avid organic vegetable gardener who lives in Kimberton. Direct e-mail to pamelacbaxter@gmail. com, or send mail to P.O. Box 80, Kimberton, PA 19442. Share your gardening stories on Facebook at “Chester County Roots.” And check out Pam’s new book for children and families: Big Life Lessons from Nature’s Little Secrets. Available at amazon.com.