Sunday 20 May 2018

Gardening from a wheelchair

A few years ago my carer emigrated to Australia. Before she went she gave me her tomato plants. This is where my love of gardening and growing vegetables began.

Gardening is hard enough for the able-bodied person but when you're in a wheelchair you can come up against quite a few obstacles.

This is why I thought I’d write a post about the things I've found helpful. Lots of photos included, sorry.

In an ideal world I would have an allotment, but I don't think it's practical with a wheelchair, so I  brought the allotment to my garden.

First I bought a grow table from my local gardening centre. It's made by a company called Ehlo. This allows me to have easy access to whatever I'm growing in there.


   




I also brought two big wooden planters from a company called zest4leisure. I really love these as they are so sturdy. I tend to grow carrots and potatoes in these because they are so deep.



   




Let me introduce you to my potting shed too deep for me aren't into so I bought this little lean-to shed. I've used shoe racks as shelves as it means I can move them where I like. Please excuse the mess. I'm currently sorting it out.




   
  
If your into growing your own veg then you might want a greenhouse. I saw a beautiful wooden one that i really would of liked but it was huge and i wouldn't of been able to reach the shelves at the top. So i decided on this one.I also wanted glass doors but its not practical when i would probably run into it with my wheelchair and smash it. This one suits me just fine. It wasnt to expensive and is quite sturdy.Its also the perfect height for me.


   


Oh i cant forgot to tell you about pots. Yes i have loads. You can grow all your veg in them if you have a small garden and can be moved anywhere you like. Just remember to buy ones with holes in the bottom or drill them in.I found that out the hard way when my plants drowned. 



                   

My gardener told me about this little gadget. It attaches to the wall from a bracket and its a pully system. It means if you have a hanging basket you can pull it down to water it at your level and then it springs back up.



And lastly and most importantly, an accessible garden. Obvious i know. Not long ago my garden was all grass.Wheelchairs and wet grass do not mix, so i was coming into the house with muddy wheels. I was also not using the garden as i wanted to.So I decided enough was enough and decided to start paving it. I can now get along to my plants at the bottom and all the way around. Its not finished yet as im going to pave abit more of it.


I hope you've enjoyed reading this post and have maybe got some inspiration x

1 comment:

  1. Never apologise for sharing piccys, I love them thats why I really like Insta. I don't really do gardening, I love the flowers/birds etc but not getting filthy xxx

    Lainy http://www.alwaysreading.net

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