Part 3: How to Garden Despite Aches and Pains - Planting and Tending

Discerning the type of garden that best suits your space and abilities was addressed in Part 1: “Preparation” by considering planting size, height and placement. Choosing the appropriate tools will largely facilitate the ease in which a garden can be planted and maintained. This was discussed in Part 2 “Tools for the Trade”. There are still a few more hacks to be considered to actually plant and care for the garden while protecting your body.
Planting: The soil for containers or raised beds can be purchased premixed for density and water-retention or combined to your own specifications. Pay attention to what your plants require for sun and water and situate them accordingly. Consider using a mug for ease of scooping seed starter mix or container soil, fingernail scissors for thinning seedlings or a teaspoon for gentle cultivations.
Bending is not necessarily required even for working at ground level if one uses long handled tools, dibble tools (a hole maker), and seed wheels.
You can make a seed dispenser by attaching a funnel to the top of a ½” diameter tube. Simply make a trough with a hoe, then send a seed down the tube at regular intervals. Similarly, to transplant a small plant you would use a 3 inch diameter tube and send the pre-started plant into a hole made by a spade or dibble tool.
Sources and Resources:
The books, companies and organizations below, as well as many unlisted here, can provide ideas, sources of equipment and techniques to enable anyone who has the desire to garden to do so! No particular company, resource or tool is recommended more highly than another.
Use long PVC tubes for planting seeds or seedlings.
Mulch to suppress weeds and retain water.

- Adil, Janeen R., Accessible Gardening for People with Physical Disabilities: A Guide to Methods, Tools and Plants, Bethesda, MD: Woodbine House, 1994
- American Horticulture Therapy Association, www.ahta.org
- Arthritis Foundation, www.arthritis.org
- Baras, Tyler, DIY Hydroponic Gardens: How to Design and Build an Inexpensive System, Minneapolis, MN: The Quartus Group, 2018
- Bartholomew, Mel, All New Square Foot Gardening, 3rd Edition, Minneapolis, MN: The Quartus Group, 2018.
- Chicago Botanical Gardens, www.chicago-botanic.org
- Coleman, Elliot, The New Organic Grower: A Master’s Manual of Tools, and Techniques for the Home and Market Gardener, 30th Anniversary Edition, White River Junction, VT: Chelsea Green Publishing, 2018.
- Dowding, Charles, Organic Gardening the Natural, No-Dig Way, N.P.: Green Books. 2018.
- Fiskar https://www.fiskars.com/en-us/gardening-and-yard-care/products
- Gardener’s Supply Company www.gardeners.com
- Johnny’s Selected Seeds, https://www.johnnyseeds.com/
- New York Botanical Garden, www.nybg.org
- Radius Tools https://radiusgarden.com/
- Warnock, Caleb. No-Till Gardening: The No-Till Method for Richer Soil, Healthier Crops and Fewer Weeds, N.P.: Familius LLC, 2015.
- Yeomans, Kathleen, The Able Gardener: Overcoming Barriers of Age and Physical Limitations, Pownal, VT: Storey Communications 1992