22 Sep Passion: You Can Keep Gardening for Life
Gardening is one of the healthiest activities for anyone, especially for seniors. It gets you out of the house and into nature and fresh air. It also involves bending and stretching, which helps with flexibility and balance, increasing your strength and, ultimately, your range of motion.
For those of us who have received our AARP card, a routine activity such as gardening every day can reduce our risk of stroke and promote a longer, healthier life.
Researchers for the British Journal of Sports Medicine followed a group of 4,000 60-year-olds in Stockholm, Sweden, for 12 years. Participants with the highest level of daily physical activity had a 27% lower risk of heart attack or stroke and a 30% reduced risk of death from all causes.
The bottom line is that a lot of people love to garden, yet many chores, such as raking, weeding, pruning, digging, and even harvesting, can play havoc with our bodies.
Drum roll, please … Adaptive gardening to the rescue!
“I find the love of gardening grows upon me more and more as I grow older.”—Maria Edgeworth
What Is Adaptive Gardening?
For gardeners of all ages with a limited range of motion, who are wheelchair users, or who want to reduce stress on their joints, adaptive gardening offers dozens of ways to identify what works for them in their garden according to their physical realities.
I bring nearly 30 years of experience to this kind of problem-solving. The business I started in 1990, Toni Gattone & Associates, has given me great opportunity to find the best ergonomic tools in an ever-changing garden market. My approach will enable you to think through what you may need in the future so that you can make changes now and not have to undo your hard work later.
The objectives of adaptive gardening are threefold:
1. To raise awareness of adaptive techniques that enable gardeners to rethink how and when they garden for greater ease. 2. To describe how gardens can be changed or modified to ensure the gardener’s safety and comfort. 3. 3. To modify favorite tools to increase their usability or replace them with options that are more ergonomic.
Why Do You Need It?
We have all been given a gift. Did you know the average life expectancy in the U.S. has grown by 30 years during the past century alone? We all want to thrive in our lives, and living longer means that we have more time to do the things we love. We are all pioneers finding new ways to live vital, meaningful, and happy lives into our 70s, 80s, 90s, and beyond.
Research shows that happy adults usually have a support group of like-minded individuals. Luckily, garden clubs abound. Happy adults are also passionate about something they enjoy doing. Well, gardening is a hobby that millions of people are passionate about. Gardeners love nothing more than to spend time in our gardens. Actually, being in any garden, anywhere, makes us happy.
But however much we love to garden, back, knee, shoulder, or hip pain doesn’t make it easy. You may have thought you might have to give it up or, at least, find new ways to approach it. If you learn to adapt to avoid the pain, gardening can bring you joy for the rest of your life.
10 Adaptive Gardening Rules to Live By
1. Our bodies change. That’s life. When we realize we have limitations that stop us from doing what we want, we have to learn to “accept what is” first. Only then can we develop resiliency by looking for other ways to get it done.
2. You deserve a safe and comfortable garden to work in.
3. One of the best things you can do for your body is stretch before you start gardening. Do yoga, tai chi, or dance to some upbeat music that gets you moving and warmed up.
4. Switch it up. This keeps things interesting and saves you energy. Every 30 minutes, start a different chore using a different part of your body. Repetitive movements are what cause pain, so switching it up will keep you from feeling sore the next day.
5. When you garden smarter, it takes less time to do more. Anticipate the chores you plan to do and decide what tools and gloves you will need. Then grab a tote and bring your tools to the job so that you won’t have to double back for “one more thing.”
6. Save time and money by planting perennials or shrubs rather than annuals. By following the concept of “right plant, right place,” you won’t make costly mistakes like buying a fig tree that wants to be 30 feet tall when you only have room for a dwarf.
7. Don’t be afraid to ask for help. Make sure your requests are specific and you include a deadline for any help you hire. Have more fun by inviting friends over to help. If you grow succulents, let your friends take home pups you have propagated. From your garden to theirs—everybody wins!
8. Look for ways to make your gardening life easy. When you buy new containers, make them self-watering. Buy a tool sharpener so that every cut you make is with a sharp pruner.
9. Only use ergonomic tools that are comfortable. Adapted tools are easy to create and cost pennies on the dollar compared to new tools.
10. If you have a bad back, it is pure joy to stand up and garden. Find eye-level, vertical gardening opportunities. Then stand back to admire your work.
Who Needs It?
Seniors and gardeners of any age who have limited mobility or physical issues, as well as children and caretakers of senior gardeners, can benefit from adaptive gardening.
I remember reading a story about a woman who thought she would have to give up gardening entirely, due to her limited mobility issues. But now, her caregiver helps her maintain her herb garden and the fruits and vegetables grown in her raised beds.
With her caregiver’s help, the woman is still able to feel the joy that comes from doing what she loves—being in her garden. She’s not doing all the work herself, but she is enjoying teaching someone else. She could have thrown in the towel and said, “I can’t garden anymore because it has become too hard for me to do it alone.” Instead, she found a way to get it done.
I believe there’s always another way to get it done. We must be resilient and resourceful. Believe in yourself and do what makes you happy.
When Should You Start?
Now! Start where you are. Think about what hurts when you garden. Decide what chores have become increasingly difficult to do. Then take a hard look at your garden and plan for whatever the future may hold.
Let’s face it: We live in a stressful and complicated world. And that’s all the more reason to take time to get down to earth. As I write this in fall 2018, I’m struck by how different our world is from just a few years ago. If watching the news makes you crazy, why not spend more time in your garden to shift your gears?
Years ago, I had a high-energy sales job and worked for an insecure sales manager who enjoyed pulling the rug out from under me as a way of testing me. I was super stressed. And whenever I got home from work, I would pour myself a glass of wine, grab my pruners, and go out to my garden.
What began as a little deadheading resulted in creating a beautiful bouquet of roses and cut flowers to bring indoors. While still in my business suit, my stress melted away—replaced with a feeling of joy. Gardening has always been an attitude adjustment for me, and if you are reading this, I’m betting you feel the same.
Seasons change. Storms come and go. Changes will occur. These are certainties. No matter your age or your abilities, we have to roll with the punches as life runs its course and find solutions to whatever we think is holding us back.
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