Sustainability

Adaptive Tools for Gardening

Whether you pulled a muscle or something more serious, like breaking a leg, or are just growing older and you’re finding gardening to be more difficult, maybe it’s time to consider some adaptive tools to help you out. They’ll make garden chores easier and actually doable.

Most gardeners already have a kneeler that allows them to sit or kneel as they work in their garden beds. It continues to be the first important tool on my list since I’ve added a side pouch that ties on, to hold my pruning scissors and a trowel or two.

Another helpful item should include a rake that isn’t as wide as leaf rake to get in-between plants in your garden. It makes cleaning up easier, and with a shorter handle I can manage mine from my garden kneeler sitting down. With a leaf bag next to me it’s just a quick drop to gather up what I’ve collected and get on with the next chore.

The next tool I modified myself. A grabber from Harbor Freight ($2.99) that I added a couple of inches of foam pipe insulation to, with rubber bands. The grabber didn’t work too well with the space in the middle so the pipe insulation fills in the space and I can pick up several stems at the same time. With this I can pick up the stems of last year’s plants as I cut them (leaving 6-10” in the ground for the native stem nesting bees to use this fall). And into the leaf bag they go.

My long-handled grass clipper works well in the garden as well, snipping off grass in front of stone walls that I don’t want to use the noisy, gas guzzling weed whacker on. Not noisy at all, and it’s lightweight to carry and use.

And last, but not least, I find my weed puller to be a great help for the aggravating weeds that seem to happen first thing in the spring. I just center it over the weed I want to eradicate, push down and then lean it back on the footpad lever. Out pops the weed, root and all, with no bending and very little exertion. I’ve found this works best after a good rain.

I’m sure I’m not the only one using adaptive tools in my native gardens and I’d love to hear what you’ve found or invented so we can all continue to garden, no matter what condition we may be in. Happy gardening!

—Sharon Gresk on behalf of the Sustainable Living Committee