Adaptive Gardening Resources
You can visit the No Barriers Garden at 1944 N. Winery Ave., Fresno. The phone number there is (209) 456-4151. For plans to build a raised bed, send your request along with a self-addressed, stamped envelope.
To speak with a master gardener about plants that would fare well in a raised bed, call the UC Cooperative Extension in your county and ask for the master gardener hotline.
The American Horticultural Therapy Assn., with headquarters in Maryland, has chapters nationwide. For information about the chapter nearest you, call (800) 634-1603.
Accessible gardening tools can be ordered from the Clapper Co., including light-weight, long-handled cultivating tools with angled handles. For a catalog, contact the Clapper Co., 1125 Washington St., Newton, MA 02165. Phone: (617) 244-7900.
Not Stooped Garden Tools sells, among other items, a long tool to dig up weeds from a standing position. Contact the company at P.O. Box 40185, Denver, CO 80204-0185. Phone: (303) 837-8490.
Gardener’s Supply Co. sells long-handled grass shears and a Hedge Hydrant, which allows you to move your hard-to-access hose faucet from underneath the shrubs to anywhere that’s convenient. Phone: (800) 955-3370.
Smith & Hawken carries several gardening tools with fat handles, which are easier for people with arthritis to grip. For a catalog, call (800) 981-9888.
Amazon.com lists these two books on accessible gardening:
“Accessible Gardening: Tips & Techniques for Seniors & the Disabled” by Joann Woy, paperback, (Stackpole Books, 1997).
“Accessible Gardening for People With Physical Disabilities: A Guide to Methods, Tools, & Plants” by Janeen R. Adil, paperback, (Woodbine House, 1994).
