Making Gardening Easy (and Safe) for Older Gardeners.

Gardening can be fun, relaxing, fulfilling, and sometimes hard work – especially if you’re older. When feeling the challenges of ageing, but not wanting to give up your favourite pastime, here are a few handy hints to make gardening easier – and safe too!

Access all Areas

As we get older, mobility may start to wane, so we need to garden smarter, not harder. Raised garden beds elevate the garden for easier access. No more bending or kneeling, reducing the risk of dizzy spells and falls. You can purchase pre-made raised garden beds from your local nursery or hardware store. Or, if you have existing retaining walls in the yard, these make for a convenient spot to incorporate a raised garden. A flourishing bed of greenery can add a touch of visual appeal to those sometimes-boring retaining walls.

Vertical Variety

A vertical garden is another option to help eliminate all the up-and-down movements synonymous with gardening. There are a few different types of vertical gardens. They can be freestanding, attached to a wall, or planter pots hanging securely from a fence or other structure. The possibilities are endless with vertical gardens. Use them to plant flowering annuals or create a wall of green with a variety of ferns.

Perfect Pathways

It’s important to be able to move safely around the garden. Create a layout that is user-friendly, and as level as possible. Clear paths of tripping hazards and ensure the surfaces are not slippery. Widen walkways too so they are easy to navigate. If there are steps in your garden, have a home maintenance expert come and check they are safe and sturdy. It’s also a good idea to install a handrail if there is not one there already.

Smart Spaces

Introduce gardening zones. Create larger sections in the garden for low maintenance plants and beds. Cover the garden in a thick layer of bark or mulch to help retain the water and reduce the weeds. However, if you can’t bring yourself to get rid of those high maintenance plants because they are just too gorgeous, feature them in a smaller area – that is easy to access.

Ask for Help

One of the smartest ways to garden is to simply ask for help. Your After-Care gardening team is ready to tackle the jobs that are too difficult to do. Leave all the hard stuff to us, so you can do all the fun stuff. Contact After-Care here to see how our gardening services can help.