Raised Bed Wheelchair Gardening

This is the first in a collection of articles in which I will present ideas I have implemented that improved my quality of life. It is my sincere hope that you can utilize some of these ideas to simplify and enrich your life. Since I’m in a wheelchair, many of these ideas are ideally suited to individuals with mobility impairments. However, most of these ideas will make life easier for individuals with or without a disability.

 

The first three articles of the collection will be ideas I utilized in my vegetable garden. I’ll be the first to admit that I’m no master gardener, but I have implemented a few ideas in my garden that have greatly increased my enjoyment of gardening. I didn’t start gardening seriously until we moved into my last house about 10 years ago. During construction of the house I had the builder add a raised-bed garden at the same time. I have been learning a little bit more about gardening each year. The garden has provided me with a lot of enjoyment. It’s fulfilling to see the plants grow and bear fruit. And there’s nothing like the flavor of fresh vegetables – especially tomatoes. 

 

This article will focus on raised-bed gardening, where the soil level in the bed is higher than ground level. This might be as simple as piling up the soil into rows, but often containers are used to create a higher raised bed.

 

In my case the walls of the raised bed are 2’ high. The shape of my raised bed is a modified squared-off “U” with one side and the bottom being 6’ wide and the remaining side 3’ wide (See Garden). The space in the middle of the “U” is 4’ wide. There are approximately 180 square feet of planting area in the bed. There is a concrete walk surrounding and in the center of the “U”.

 

The following two pictures are of my garden that is located in the rear corner of my lot.

 

 

If I were to do it again I would not use the “U” shape since it is difficult for me the reach plants located near the inside corners of the base of the “U”. I would recommend making the beds a simple rectangle about 3-5 feet wide and as long as you want. That way you can easily access all the plants in the bed.

 

There are quite a few advantages to raised-bed gardening. The most imported one to me was it made it easy to maintain the garden from my wheelchair. The sidewalk around the bed meant I never had to take my chair into dirt or mud and the height of the bed made it easy for me to work with the plants without bending down. The following picture shows me in the garden displaying some of my "rewards".

 

Studies have shown that raised beds provide more production per square foot, many times double the conventional yield. They also result in improved soil conditions and ease of pest control. Raised beds can also be watered more effectively as well. Here are some addition resources where you can learn more about raised-bed gardening.

 

 

 

 

I was fortunate to have my raised beds constructed at the same time my house was built. The concrete contractors poured the concrete footers and walks first. Then the foundation contractors assembled the forms and poured the container walls similar to a foundation. The walls are 6” thick and 2’ high. The outside walls were finished off with a thin coat of cement. Finally, the container was filled with some good top soil. It’s not the best looking raised bed in the world but it works great and will probably last forever!

 

Raised beds can be constructed of a variety of materials. Avoid the use of creosote or pentachlorophenol-treated lumber for bed frames since these can leach out and injure plants. Use pressure-treated lumber, redwood, cedar, plastic, cement block or brick. Here are a couple sources of materials for constructing raised beds.

 

 

 

 

To give you an idea of what you can get in a raised-bed garden of 180 square feet, this year I planted 4 squash, 8 peppers, 10 tomatoes, 4 rows of pole beans and 4 herbs. This is more than my wife and I can consume so we do some freezing and give the rest away. I have a 6’-high trellis made of PVC pipe and mesh for the beans. This allows me to maximize the quantity of beans harvested while minimizing the amount of garden space used. With this arrangement I do need some assistance picking the beans higher on the trellis. If you have the room, bush beans would be easier to pick. I also need some help picking some tomatoes on the larger plants. But for the most part I can maintain the garden myself.

 

In the next installment of this series on gardening I will provide information on my drip irrigation system which simplifies the gardener’s life in numerous ways, but more importantly, the plants love it!

 

 

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