Gardening is a great hobby for senior citizens to engage in for several reasons. Gardening helps seniors to remain physically active, provides them with fresh vegetables, and gives them a reason to spend time outside. Gardening is also an activity that can be done with others, so seniors can spend time with their children, grandchildren, and senior care providers while doing something they enjoy. However, gardening can present some challenges if your mom is living in a place with a smaller yard than she once had. If this is the case for your mom, raised bed gardening may be the answer to the challenges presented by small spaces.

Benefits of Raised Bed Gardening

When you’re dealing with a small space for gardening, a raised bed garden offers several advantages. In addition, there are several benefits that apply specifically to senior citizens. Some of the advantages are:

• Less bending: Since the beds are raised, they don’t require the gardener to bend as low. If the wall around the garden is wide enough, the gardener can sit or kneel on it, reducing bending even more.
• Less weeding: Because raised bed gardens are isolated from the remainder of the yard by their walls and are filled with soil from garden supply centers, they tend to grow fewer weeds. The soil is also looser than ground soil, so weeds are easier to pull.
• Better drainage: The looser soil of a raised bed allows rainwater to penetrate the topsoil instead of running off and taking the valuable topsoil with it.
• Room to grow: The roots of plants in raised bed gardens are able to spread more than plants in harder ground soil. The ability of the roots to spread allows the plant to gather more nutrients and water from the soil, which makes them grow larger and produce more vegetables.
• Location, location, location: Because you’re adding the soil to the garden, you can place it anywhere in the yard you want without worrying about the quality of the soil in that particular area. And, since you get to add the soil, you also get to choose the soil that is best for the plants you’ll be growing. You also get to choose the size of the garden, so you can plant a small garden and still leave mom with a bit of lawn.
• Plant earlier: The soil in a raised bed warms up sooner than ground soil, so you can plant earlier in the season, making gardening season a little longer.

Raised bed gardening does require a little more money to start since you have to build, have built, or buy the borders for the bed and purchase the soil to fill it. However, if your mom is living in a house with a small yard or if she has difficulty with traditional in-ground gardening, the benefits of a raised bed outweigh the costs. Once you’ve created the garden space, your mom will enjoy spending time working on her garden. Her senior care provider will also enjoy helping her to prepare meals made with the delicious fresh vegetables grown right in her own yard.

The staff at Home Care Matters is available to talk with you and your family about all of your needs. Home Care Matters is a home care agency providing quality and affordable senior care in Braselton, GA and the surrounding areas. Call (678) 828-2195 for more information.

Sources

http://www.hgtv.com/outdoors/gardens/garden-styles-and-types/should-i-plant-my-vegetable-garden-in-raised-beds

http://www.naturallivingideas.com/14-reasons-why-raised-beds-are-the-best-way-to-garden/

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Valerie Darling

Founder, Owner at Home Care Matters

Valerie was born in Miami, FL and after a few family moves, grew up locally in the Marietta, GA area.Valerie is the oldest of 4 (3 younger brothers).She is married and has one child.Valerie is the Founder, Owner and CEO of Home Care Matters.Valerie’s mom, Dee, is the inspiration and primary driver as the how and why the business was born.Valerie says, “My mom is never far from our thoughts.Mom was an integral part of developing and starting HCM before she passed away.Our goal is to stay true to her memory and continue to honor her with the love, values, and ethics she taught us.”

Valerie has the unique experience with home care as she has experienced it from both ends of the spectrum, as a caregiver and as needing care herself as a cancer survivor. Valerie says, “Taking care of someone you love is a physically, mentally and demanding labor of love.Taking care of my mom was the hardest thing I have ever done. It has given me an insight and perspective not many people understand unless you are doing it or have done it.I loved taking care of my mom.I love helping others take care of their love ones too.And now that I’ve been sick, it’s given me a whole new level of empathy and understanding for those who are sick and need help.”

Valerie’s schedule varies daily, but she loves visiting with our clients, families, caregivers, our network partners and being in the office.Says Valerie, “Every day is different, but I wake up excited about what we do, inspired by our team, clients and caregivers.I strive to be a resource to the community.I love my team and I love what we do every day. I like to think my mom would be proud.”

You can reach Valerie by email (Valerie@homecarematters.com) or in our office (770.965.4004).

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