Six Retirement Community Garden Tips
Keeping up a retirement community garden is no easy task. As we age, the body gives out first before the spirit, and it becomes harder to do something we have enjoyed all our lives–gardening. However, the sure signs of a true gardener even if they do little more than buying a pot of marigolds from the corner hardware, shows up at the first sign of spring on a warm sunny day. The sun umbrellas pop out along with the bright spring flowers, the garden ornaments are set out that were stored all winter, and the first signs of activity are seen in the freshly dug soil. The structure of the garden begins to take place. Here are six tips to use as you prepare for another season of enjoying the garden:
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Sun Umbrellas–purchase a sun umbrella — this helps to shade fair skins from getting a sunburn. All the talk of global warming should be taken seriously and especially by the elderly who will experience more skin cancers as our skins have been sun exposed for longer periods of time.
Sun umbrellas also provide privacy on small patios and perk up your color scheme. You don’t have to buy a table and chair set. A stand-alone umbrella next to your favorite patio chair works just as well.
Choose a color that fits in with the mood you wish to create. A bright yellow one for a sunny, warm mood. Pastel colors for a serene look. Match the flower colors to your umbrella colors for harmony.
- Weeds–Whether it is an ornamental garden or a vegetable garden, weeds must be gotten before they get out of hand. Weeds that aren’t gotten before you plant, will continue to seed all summer long and make gardening harder and almost impossible for our aging bodies. Purchase a gallon of inexpensive vinegar and pour it over every single weed. No need to use toxic sprays. But get those weeds.
- Garden Seeds–You can get many plants out of one package of seeds. For instance one lettuce package can provide 500 heads. When thinning the tiny plants, don’t throw them out. Have a row ready to move the thinned plants into.
- Vegetable Garden Structure–Put large plants like zucchini or eggplant in the corners of your garden and leave the middle for your rows. Have a section for tomatoes separate from the rows of small plants. Use the tall and heavy steel cages to hold tomatoes and for spacing. Keep your rows straight by using string connected to a post at each end of the row.
- Ornamental Gardens–Use perennials so that you have something coming up in the garden most of the year without much work. Peonies, lavender, roses, bulbs work well here. If you have a garden design, you can plunk a random plant in if you like and it won’t look out of place. A good formal design is a centerpiece perhaps of an ornament, birdbath or favorite plant and paths of wood chips or gravel radiating out from it. Fill the beds mostly with perennials.
- Explore the world of herbs–With new nutritional information, we are learning that herbs have some amazing nutritional values. For instance, some studies show cilantro helps to rid the body of toxins. Herbs also repel insects from the garden and add unique flavors to your recipes.
I hope these tips will make your retirement community garden easier and more fun. To see photos of gardens, please visit my website and view the section on retirement gardens.
