Ten years ago I sat in a doctor’s office examining my hands. On the outside there was no trace of the frequent and random swelling that seized my joints and turned my knuckles into swollen, painful knots. But inside a time-bomb ticked. I never knew when the inflammation would flare, making simple things like turning on taps and pulling weeds difficult or impossible.
“It’s Rheumatoid Arthritis. I’m sorry,” said the kind but business-like doctor who went on to tell me how the condition could affect my life. Thankfully we’d caught it early, and knocking out the disease was more possible than ever given the treatments available. She talked about the importance of maintaining physical activity and managing the pain using day-to-day adaptations that might make things easier when (not if) I had my next flare.
I went home and looked at the rows of trellises and plant stalks sitting dormant in my garden. Suddenly taking care of everything seemed harder than ever.
After talking to some local experts and asking online gardening groups, I put together a list of helpful tools and advice that could help me get through the next gardening season. After a decade of success, I recently updated this list. Here’s what I learned.
1. Elevate your workspace
The number one recommendation from any gardener who deals with pain on a regular basis is to use raised garden beds. Lifting your workspace 18 inches to waist height from the ground will save your back and minimize much of the stretching involved in tending your patch. It will bring soil within reach for easy planting, weeding, and harvesting. It will also make checking your plantings quick and easy.
Be sure to make the bed only as wide as you can reach (three or four feet) to further minimize strain. Avoid placing beds up against walls (where you can only reach them from one side) or adjust their width accordingly. Add a sitting ledge if possible.
Some gardeners like U-shaped raised beds or a circle terrace bed set because you can tend three sides without moving. Others prefer complete kits with built-in deer protection.
You can also use a raised potting bench for seeding and transplanting, or a waist-high planter for small but manageable plantings of lettuces and herbs.
Making use of trellises and obelisks is another way to add height. Hire someone to build you an arch in the squash bed and consider different ways to trellis your tomatoes for maximum height. The goal is to use anything that will keep you from repetitive bending and reaching.
Planting tables help ease the strain that comes from bending and reaching.
2. Score a really good hoe
It’s difficult to state how much effort a really good hoe can save you. Frequent passes with a hoe can prevent weeds from sprouting and taking hold, saving you time and energy down the road. To find the right one, experiment with different models and sizes. A long handle sized for your height will prevent stooping and leaning. Adding a telescoping extension can also help you make the most of this tool. Here are the most common hoe styles available.
Stirrup Hoe: So named because it resembles the stirrup on a saddle, this type of hoe is great for running just under the surface of the soil to dislodge shallow weeds or to cut off deeper ones. You can also use it to clear tall grasses and weeds, similar to a brush hook. Use a stirrup hoe by pulling or pushing back and forth.
Dutch Hoe: This type of hoe is usually pushed instead of pulled. It has a flat or angled blade that sits on the end of a U-shape of metal. Sharpen the blade and use it for cutting off weeds beneath the soil or let it get dull and it can dislodge weeds, roots and all.
Collinear Hoe: Probably the best in preventative weeding, a collinear hoe allows you to cut off and dislodge weeds as they emerge using a sharp, narrow blade. The blade is attached so that it lays parallel to the soil. As you weed, the blade disappears beneath the soil surface and generally doesn’t throw soil on the surrounding plants. A narrow collinear hoe permits you to skirt around tender seedlings and mature plants without damage. Keep this hoe sharp so it works its best.
3. Use lightweight, multi-purpose hand tools
While long handled tools prevent bending and stooping, hand tools work best if you like to garden while sitting. They can help reduce the effort needed to pull out weeds, and make removing the toughest of visitors, such as dandelions, easier. I’ve always preferred multi-use hand tools, so I’m not carrying around several at a time.
Try a universal garden tool like the Cobrahead Precision Weeder.
4. Consider no-till gardening
While most people like the sound of ‘no-till’ (that’s less work, right?), it does require planning and consistency to work well. And unfortunately, ‘no-till’ doesn’t mean ‘no-work’. But if turning soil and constant weeding is the bane of your existence, no-till might be the gardening method for you.
The easiest way to avoid tilling your soil is to mulch generously. Mulch around seedlings when you first plant them. Mulch dormant or exposed soil when nothing (except weeds) are sprouting. Build up your layers of mulch and keep them thick, pulling them back to plant as needed. Over time, the mulch will decompose and add to your garden soil the way nature intended.
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5. Avoid squeeze-style watering devices.
Squeezing is often one of the most difficult movements to make when you have inflammation in the hands. Unfortunately, the ‘squeeze-grip’ model is the most common watering nozzle available at most garden centers.
Instead, consider a one-touch watering tool with thumb control valve. This model enables you to control the spray with a single touch. It also comes in a watering wand style that helps eliminate reaching and bending.
If you have a larger garden with lengthy rows, consider soaker hoses or have someone install drip or in-ground irrigation that you can set using an automatic water timer. That way you don’t have to be present to turn it on every day. Once set up, the system will do your watering for you.
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6. Set a timer and change position.
While you might think your body will tell you when you’ve had enough, that’s not always the case. It’s easy to lose track in the garden and do too much. Some gardeners find that using a timer set for 30 minutes ensures they take mandatory rest breaks.
Get up, stretch, have a glass of water, and wander around the yard, noting anything that needs doing. Or rest in a hammock or inside on the couch while sipping a cup of tea. After another 30 minutes, check in with yourself. Is it time to go out again? Or does your body need a longer break?
If you feel fine when the timer goes off, take the opportunity to stretch and stand straight for a time before resetting the timer for another 30 minutes. Changing position, or alternating between standing and sitting can help prevent one part of your body from taking the brunt of the day’s efforts.
7. Use a compost tumbler.
Compost piles are an essential part of any garden, but turning that pile every few weeks can be too much for many people. To reduce effort and still get the nutrients you want from composting, consider using a compost tumbler. Tumblers reduce the labor involved in making compost by hand because they’re designed to roll or ‘tumble’ using a mechanism that flips composting material. They still need to be cranked, however, so choose a smaller model and one with a handle that does most of the work for you.
8. Consider a countertop composter.
If you find turning a compost tumbler too difficult, an electric-assist model can take the work out of the process. These compact food waste digesters grind and dry your food waste, mixing it together and eliminating trips to the composter. The resulting material is clean, dry, and odor free thanks to carbon filters that absorb the smell. It’s perfect for house plants and garden beds—with all the nutrients of organic fertilizer.
A countertop food digester takes the work out of managing food waste.
9. Employ a stool or wheel seat
Prolonged weeding or planting often means a sore back and neck. One of my favorite garden tools is an old wooden chair with the legs cut off beneath the cross supports. This makes a great perch for weeding raised beds or picking berries. You can also buy a wheeled garden chair or a convertible kneeling stool designed for this purpose.
10. Kneel on something soft.
If you prefer to kneel, get yourself a spongy kneeling pad that’s portable and light. A dollar-store paddle board (meant for swimming) provides a low-cost kneeling cushion. Strap-on knee pads are another great idea, because you don’t have to carry them around with you. They come on their own accord, making them hard to misplace.
You can also wear gardener’s chaps to protect knees and ankles (should you have to weed-whack). These have a padded area from mid-calf to mid-thigh that provides cushioning when it’s time to kneel.
11. Use a wagon
In a large yard or garden, there’s always something that needs moving. Bags of mulch or seed starter mix, fertilizer, loads of manure…and sometimes pulling is easier on the back and arms than pushing. If you can, splurge on the wagon with a ‘dump’ option to save yourself the exertion of lifting a wheelbarrow.
12. Grow resilient crops
If pain often limits how often you can get into the garden, consider crops that can take a beating from wind, weeds, and weather when you’re down for the count. Grow things that will survive without coddling and frequent tending. This includes grapes, berries, rhubarb, sunchokes, kale, fuki, horseradish (in pots, because it spreads), and dwarf fruit trees.
13. Make it social
Sharing your garden space with others can increase your enjoyment and lessen the workload. If your garden is too big for your needs or your abilities, consider inviting a friend to garden with you. Talking while you garden is a balm for the soul. You might also consider joining a community garden where people work together to raise a harvest.
14. Get some help
For those jobs that are too big for you to manage, consider hiring a local teen or neighbor. Double digging a new bed, installing raised beds or irrigation, and even routine weeding are all excellent jobs to outsource.
15. Take a bath
After your work is done, soak your weary bones in a bath with epsom salts. Epsom salts contain magnesium, which has been shown to block receptors in the brain when you’re hurt. Some studies show that magnesium can also help fight inflammation. Though the verdict is still out on whether or not Epsom salts are a panacea for aches and pains, soaking in a hot bath is good for soothing stiff muscles and calming the mind after a hard day’s work.
Don’t Give Up
Living with chronic pain is never easy. Everyone has their good days and those that present challenges. But gardening is food for the soul as well as the body: it has benefits beyond keeping you active and providing a harvest.
Thanks to alternative medicine and lifestyle changes, I had already been pain free for a few weeks by the time I met with the doctor who delivered my diagnosis. Lucky for me, that has continued for most of the past decade. I still use many of the adaptations listed above to make my life easier. And I still frequent the garden.
