home, farm, & garden by Joanna Radford
Gardening is Great for Retirees The secret is out. Gardening has numerous health benefits for those of retirement age! Let’s face it. As we age, we often cannot do what we used to do. But gardening helps us to move more, and movement lubricates our joints, helps maintain or extend range of motion, and strengthens our mobility. Balance and coordination are also improved. Gardening involves bending, squatting, pulling, and stretching. And you can burn 200–400 calories per hour planting and pulling weeds! To minimize the risk of injury, increase blood circulation, and enhance muscle control, be sure to stretch before heading to the garden.
My favorite tool is my kneeler stool. It has a thick pad to cushion my knees when I am planting and weeding. It has hand grips that make standing back up easier. The kneeler can be flipped over and becomes a higher stool for sitting when tending to plants. Ergonomic pruners are the trick to pruning! Their comfortable handles and gears make cutting easier. Some of the models rotate as they cut, which reduces the strain on hand muscles. When selecting a pruner, get one that is the right size. Measure by closing the pruner and resting it in your hand. The handle should stick out about ½ inch below your little finger. The width can be evaluated by opening the pruners. One handle should fit in the crook of your thumb with your hand extended and the little finger should be ¼ inch beyond the other handle. If you cannot reach the opposite handle with your fingertips, your hand will not rest properly between cuts. Knowing how to prune correctly also eases the task of trimming and shaping plants. Hold the pruner hand so the wrist is in a straight position. This is going to be your strongest grip and you will use less exertion to make a cut. Try not to bend the wrist in a downward position because you will lose strength and you may develop tendinitis.
Gardening stimulates the mind. It helps relieve stress and provides an escape into a plant paradise. It also requires eye-hand coordination that keeps your brain and body in sync. Gardening decreases the risk of dementia. Gardeners are continuously thinking about what to plant, where to plant, and how to take care of the plants, which keeps the mind active and busy. A dose of sunshine while gardening is a good mood regulator and helps calcium absorption, bone health, and the immune system. Remember to use sunscreen and wear clothing to protect from overexposure to the rays though. Various tools and techniques are available to ease the work of gardening tasks for older gardeners. Raised beds are not new in the gardening arena but the adaptation of raising them to waist height decreases or eliminates the hard bending required in garden maintenance. Vertical gardening also decreases the bending. Many vegetables can be trellised as opposed to spreading low on the ground. This not only helps ease the strain on back muscles but helps prevent vegetable diseases and keeps vegetables clean.
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Other tips to ease the strain of gardening are to take breaks often, rotate tasks, and stay hydrated. For more information about finding ergonomic tools, modified equipment, or assistive technology, visit the National AgrAbility Toolbox at www.agrability.org/toolbox/.
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