The Lifelong Gardener

The Lifelong Gardener: Garden with Ease and Joy at Any Age is a new tutorial and resource gardening guide by adaptive gardening lifestyle expert Toni Gattone. Due out 20th Aug 2019 from Timber Press, it's 216 pages and will be available in hardcover and ebook formats.

The term adaptive gardening has been on an upward trend lately. There is undisputed proof of the therapeutic benefits of physical exercise and motion as well as the benefits of gardening both mental and physical. For people who experience limited mobility from aging, chronic illness, injury, etc, gardening can be daunting or impossible. This manual explores methods of compensating for those issues by gardening smarter, using adaptive devices, ergonomic tools, raised beds, and other methods of doing the work we wish to do within the constraints we have.

The author's introduction gives a good overview of how she came to write the book and how she herself got interested in and motivated to adapt her gardening to her chronic back problems. Her writing style is encouraging, humorous, and very positive and quite a lot of fun to read.

The book is split into 3 main sections. The first third covers the realities of our limited physical bodies. There are a number of tips for compensating, working better and smarter, not harder, stewarding our strength and using it well, resting after exertion, accepting help, and more. These general tips are followed by several profiles of gardeners putting the concepts to use in their own adaptive gardens. There's a lot of sensible and encouraging philosophy here. It's not just empty 'Pollyanna' you can do it, either. There are concrete and sensible ideas for implementation included such as placing resting areas and balance handholds throughout the garden for resting and stability.

The second section of the book is a working plan to get from the possibly unsafe or unmanageable garden the reader has to the safe, sustainable, satisfying the reader needs. There's a wealth of information and practical suggestions for making a realistic plan through to executing it.

The third section provides techniques and tools lists for implementing the plan to make a sustainable, accessible, useful, and pleasing garden for the reader. There are a lot of sidebars and tips throughout the book which are really useful and smart for all gardeners, not just ones with mobility issues.

The book also includes sections for reader supplied ideas, notes, plans, and other specific info. There's a solid links and resources section (slanted toward the reader in North America, but useful for gardeners in other areas as well). The index is cross referenced.

The photography is lush and abundant. The photos are clear and illustrative. I loved that there is nothing whiny or apologetic about this book in the slightest. It's very much a 'roll up your sleeves and get gardening' book.

Wonderful and uplifting.

Five stars.

This book is for anyone that suffers from pain or needs adaptive gardening techniques. I chose this book, because I suffer from chronic pain. I hadn't been gardening for a couple of years. I recently started container and raised gardening. The author gives many suggestions on how to adapt your body, techniques, and tools to enable people to continue gardening. She profiles a different person for different topics and how they have had to adapt and why. There are suggestions for different types of materials for walkways. She also recommends drawing a plan of your garden. I wish this book was available 2 years ago when I really needed it. I highly recommend this book if you are considering stopping gardening or if you want to start gardening after retirement.

This is a great book for gardeners of all abilities. Its fantastically inclusive and sensitive to people from all walks of life.

Thanks to #NetGalley, I had an advanced PDF to read and review.

*All opinions are my own and I was not required to post a positive review. *

Oh my goodness! I’m not sure what took me so long to read this book but I am so glad that I finally did! I don’t know what I was expecting. And in retrospect, I think the name and cover could do a better job of enticing readers if it was a little more hard-hitting about the content.

This book is designed to help you enjoy the act of gardening as you age. I’m in my early 50’s and I am already thinking about the future. This book is a road map for the aging gardener. It provides advice for daily life - eat well, stretch, keep your cell phone with you. It provides reminders about how to use tools and how to move heavy and/or awkward items. The sections on evaluating your space are especially helpful. Something as simple as removing a stepping stone path because it is a trip hazard is brilliant. The section on tools is invaluable. I love that she provides specific examples of products she likes. It read like an authentic friend providing advice, not like an infomercial.

This book is a great resource if you want to help an older gardener stay active and maintain his/her love of gardening. It’s also perfect for the middle-aged gardener who needs to plan for the future - because limitations are coming soon than you think. I will be using it for both instances, and expect to write about my experiences at www.Patch405.com.

I was offered an advance digital copy of this book by NetGalley in exchange for an honest review. All thoughts and opinions expressed here are my own

This book is for everyone who has had to limit their gardening activities but would love to be able to stay active in a hobby they love. I'm in my early 60s and have already adapted many of my gardening activities to match my abilities. Toni Gattone shows us how to be active gardeners while not stressing our bodies too much.

I was particularly intrigued by the idea of this book, adaptive gardening for seniors, because I'm having to adapt my own gardening as I age. When I started reading this book, I began to realize that it was so much more than just ways to adapt gardening methods. It's also about the mindset of aging. And, I love Toni Gattone's mindset, as well as her suggestions for how to face aging. Inspirational quotations are scattered throughout the book, along with beautiful photos that remind us why we garden. I also liked the little "Keep in Mind" boxes that provide quick suggestions. Senior "Gardener Profiles" are also scattered through the book, and these give additional ideas for adapting one's gardening habits.

The book is organized with an introduction (providing great perspectives on the aging gardener) followed by a section called "You and Your Body" that focuses on both mental and physical tips on gardening as you age. This includes a set of exercises to keep one limber and minimize stress injuries. The next section is all about designing/adapting your garden to your changing needs, followed by a section on tools. I learned about several tools that I definitely believe will help ease my gardening work.

Overall, a great tool--both inspirational and informative. Well worth the price. I'm going to buy one for myself!

What a gorgeous book. The photography is beautiful. This is such a subject near and dear to my heart. I have a huge flower garden. I have had to develop adaptive gardening skills due to inability to kneel on either knee as well as significant chronic back/hip pain. This book would be great for anyone wanting to continue to garden with changing physical health. The author does an excellent job of breaking down prep needed to start adaptive gardening. I have some similar tools as she uses. I really love my Garden Claw which has allowed me to continue to plant and weed my garden. I will be investing in a tall weeder as well as a folding cart. My garden is now full of perennials which the author suggests to avoid having to plant yearly. I’m lucky enough to have help in my garden but there are great recommendations for how to get help if it is needed. There is a really nice worksheet at the end of the book I will use to help me plan for next year. Thank you for allowing to review an advanced copy.

Lifelong Gardener is for anyone who wishes to garden as they age or acquire problems with their joints or chronic illnesses. The author suggest tools and modifications to make gardening still be enjoyable as the gardener ages. She offers suggestions to deal with the heat, back pain, knee pain etc. Some of the tools will be beyond a low income person's budget, unfortunately. I do recommend this book for whoever wishes to garden longer.