Creating a Senior-Friendly Garden
Summer is a great time to plant a garden for people of all ages. For seniors, it can be something fun, productive and fruitful to do on their own or with their loved ones. Not only does it offer an activity as you plant the garden, it also provides something to do all summer long as you tend to the garden, look at its beauty and take in its delightful smells. It can provide serenity, as well as a sense of satisfaction. Gardens also can help encourage seniors to get outdoors, provide mental well-being and give them more physical activity. As you plan for a garden this summer, here are some things to keep in mind.
Plan for Easy Accessibility
When designing a senior-friendly garden, accessibility is key. Start by considering the physical abilities and limitations you, or your senior loved one, may have. You may want to create wide, well-maintained pathways that accommodate mobility aids such as canes, walkers or wheelchairs. No matter how big they are, ensure that the garden’s pathways are smooth and level to prevent trips or falls. Make sure there aren’t any big tree roots sticking up or wayward branches sticking out in the path of the garden. Another option is to consider a raised garden, or container garden, rather than a garden planted directly into the ground. Raised gardens can even be placed into containers on a smooth patio, which will lessen the chance of tripping, as well as any back strain associated with getting on your hands and knees to tend to the garden.
Smaller Scale Gardening, Elsewhere
If you’re not up to planting an entire garden in your yard, or don’t have the room, consider one of the gardening sites for rent in Salem. Many parks throughout the community have smell, tended plots that you can rent for a nominal fee. For example, Palmer Cove has newly-renovated garden has more than 70 raised beds available for rent, including seven fully-accessible ADA beds. Boxes here rent for $40 for the season. In all, Salem has four different parks with garden plots available for rent.
Choose Low-Maintenance Plants
No matter where you garden, gardening should be fun, and not too much work to deter you from the fun and fruitful hobby. To help get more enjoyment out of it, selecting low-maintenance plants will help ensure that your garden stays vibrant and beautiful with minimal effort. Look for native plant species that are well-suited to the local climate and require less watering and maintenance. If you’re gardening at home, opt for perennial flowers, shrubs or trees that come back year after year, reducing the need for replanting. Hardy plants that can withstand various weather conditions will thrive in your garden with less attention, which makes it easier to take care of them, especially if you aren’t feeling up for going outside one day, or for making the trek across town to the community garden.
Add Plants to Delight the Senses
Gardening is a great way for seniors to engage their senses and add beauty to their lives. Adding fragrant flowers such as roses, lavender or jasmine can fill the air with auroras that can waft toward the home all summer long. Gazing at them, engages the sense of sight. You might want to add some solar lights to the garden, so you can even see your beauties at night. Consider planting herbs such as mint, basil or lemon balm, which release wonderful scents, when touched, as well as yield something wonderful to taste. You also can look for more tactile elements such as textured plant leaves, smooth stones or a cozy cushion to sit upon in the garden. To engage your sense of hearing, add a shepherd’s hook with some windchimes to the garden, or a birdbath to attract little chirpers all summer long.
Invite Wildlife
To attract more birds, as well as other wildlife, to your garden, or your backyard oasis, install a bird feeder. It will not only offer bird songs in your backyard, you also will get entertainment as you watch them flitter about. You can also plant butterfly friendly plants such as coneflowers , which are filled with nectar, Zinnia or Lavender. You also can place flat stones around the garden, because it provides a spot that butterflies love to land and take a rest in the sun, according to the Farmer’s Almanac. Be prepared, often with butterfly plants come bees.
We’re Here to Help
If you’re looking for help this summer, or any time of the year,, we at Right At Home Salem, can come into your home and offer a free assessment to determine your needs. If you need a caregiver to help you walk safely out to the garden, sit in the backyard for companionship as you look at your rose bushes, or someone to help you gather your fall bounty from your garden, our caregivers can help. To find out more about the care options we offer for clients and their families in the Salem and Marblehead areas, call us today at (978) 705-4734. We can help tailor our care plans to meet your specific needs. Whether you need care every day of the week, or just a mid-week break, we are here to help local families.
If you have a calling to help others, join us. Right at Home Salem-Marblehead is looking for the Right People to join our team. We have immediate openings for in-home caregivers, Certified Home Health Aide and Certified Nursing Assistants. visit us online to see our open positions.
