March 25, 2024
Our bodies get older; it's inevitable, but that doesn't mean you have to stop doing what you love. It's that time of year again when we start thinking about what we want to plant in our gardens. No matter what age you are, gardening can be for anyone! Here are a few tips for seniors or anyone who may have difficulty bending and kneeling. These simple tips can help make gardening easy to start and even easier to tend to throughout the growing season.
- Use raised garden beds or elevated planters to reduce the need for bending over. You could also grow plants vertically to help avoid bending or kneeling. Vertical planters are also a great option for those with minimal space for gardening. At MLP, we have raised garden beds so our residents can easily access the gardens for planting and harvesting.
- Avoid using large, heavy bags of soil. Try using lightweight pre-mixed soil to avoid back injuries. If you have a lot of gardening and need a large quantity of soil, consider hiring a local gardener or landscaper to help with the heavy lifting.At MLP, our residents are assisted with the heavy lifting so that gardening can be enjoyable and relaxing.
- Choose plants that require minimal pruning. If you choose plants that need pruning, wear protective gloves to protect your hands from thorns or prickly branches. At MLP, we provide our residents with gardening gloves and lightweight tools so they can garden with ease.
