Easy Gardening
By Sharon Anne Waldrop
An expert gardener shares her favorite tools and tips.
Arthritis hasn’t stopped Heidi Sibert’s garden. Sibert was diagnosed with psoriatic arthritis 20 years ago and has remained active in the garden ever since. The 50-year-old Chicago-area resident’s passion for gardening is two-fold; she enjoys the hobby at home and works as a landscape architect for James Martin Associates Inc, in Vernon Hills, Ill.
Heidi serves as a board member at the Greater Chicago Chapter of the Arthritis Foundation. As part of her recent volunteer work for the Foundation, Heidi designed an “Enabling Garden” for the annual Chicagoland Flower and Garden Show. An enabling garden provides easy accessibility to soil and plants with the use of raised flowerbeds, hanging baskets, lightweight containers, or setting up your garden vertically. “Enabling gardening entails any way that you can make gardening easier for you,” says Sibert. “We used a large, cracked bird bath in one of our gardens.” It would no longer hold water but it was deep enough for planting. Someone in a wheelchair was able to pull up right underneath it. Here are a few of Sibert’s favorite gardening tools and tips.
Tools and Tips From Heidi’s Garden
Wear gloves: Heidi wears surgical latex gloves rather than traditional garden gloves. They’re less bulky, which allows her to easily grasp plants, feel the soil and get a better grip on tools. Need more padding? Try Bionic gardening gloves ($40), which received the Arthritis Foundation’s Ease-of-Use Commendation.
Use ergonomic tools: Look for tools at garden, hardware and chain stores that allow you to use your whole arm – not just your fingers and wrists – such as Fiskars PowerGear garden tools, which received the Arthritis Foundation’s Ease-of-Use Commendation. Keep pruners sharp and all equipment in top working shape for easier use.
Add easy mobility: Sibert sits on a 5-gallon bucket and keeps tools inside. The handle on the bucket makes the seat-storage combo easy to move around. She also likes the Ames Lawn Buddy ($38, www.amazon.com), which allows her to sit and scoot around the garden while keeping tools within reach. When upside down, the Step2 Garden Kneeler’s ($20) pads cushion knees. When you need to stand, the Step2’s legs provide leverage to help push yourself up. When you need to sit, simply turn it over to reveal the seat.
For more gardening tips, read Raise Gardening to a New Level and ABCs of Gardening
