14 Oct Easy Gardening for the Elderly
Tips and Tricks for Older Gardeners
As a person grows older and their needs change, a garden should be adapted to accommodate them.
Lots of older people take real pride in their gardens. After all, gardening is a relaxing hobby that’s not only fun, but rewarding too. Plenty of elderly people say that gardening keeps them active after retiring, and stops them from becoming bored with their new-found free time. However, gardening can be pretty physically demanding. Things like pushing a heavy lawnmower and getting down onto your knees to weed the flowerbeds can be too much for some older gardeners. So how then, can we make the job a little easier?
Artificial lawns
You can’t beat walking out into a garden and seeing a lush, green lawn. As someone gets older though, they can begin to struggle coping with one. After all, it’s not just mowing it that you have to worry about, there are things like weeding and taking care of dead patches to consider too.
If someone is struggling with their mobility and cannot cope with a lawn’s upkeep, it may become overgrown and unsightly very quickly. For a green-fingered older person, not being able to keep their lawn in a good condition could seriously affect their confidence and enthusiasm for gardening.
Having artificial grass installed is the perfect solution for a gardener who loves the look of a lawn but can’t keep up with maintaining one. They can enjoy it all year round without needing to work on it, and focus on smaller, more manageable jobs instead.
Accessible plants
Raised borders are perfect for those who are struggling to get down on the ground to tend to their flowerbeds. High borders can be worked on from the comfort of a chair, making this area of gardening much less of a chore for older people. Perennials are a good, easy option for flower beds as they come back year after year – try the RHS flower finder for some inspiration.
Another good idea is to keep some potted plants on a higher surface such as a table or windowsill for easy access. Herbs are well suited to little pots, and are easy to look after. Being able to use them in cooking will really suit older gardeners, who will find growing their own produce really rewarding.
Preventing accidents
A step free patio will help to minimise any risk of falling, and will make gardening a lot easier for someone using a stick or a wheelchair. If an older person is wheelchair bound, widening paths is a good idea too. A step-free patio that leads direct onto an artificial lawn also makes a garden flow much better.
Some seating options should also be considered. A bench will allow for an elderly person to sit down and rest if they need to. Many benches also have some built in storage, so someone can keep all of their tools in one place. Chairs that can be folded up are useful too, as are trolleys that gardeners can keep their equipment in as they make their way around the garden.
Gardening for many years to come
With so many ways of making gardening easier, there’s no reason why older people can’t enjoy the great outdoors. Installing an artificial lawn means that gardening instantly becomes more manageable for the less mobile, who can then concentrate on growing beautiful flowers and tasty herbs. The benefits of getting up and active in the great outdoors cannot be underestimated; and we should do all that we can to keep our elderly relatives and friends able to garden for as long as they can. Take a look at some of our recent artificial grass installations and order your free sample today or ask us for a quote – Contact us on 020 3633 1505 or 07519 017125
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