How to Make Yard Work Easy for Senior Citizens

When you bought your house, you spent many hours nurturing your family and career with barely any time to cut the grass. Now retired, you'd like to create the landscape of your dreams. It's not as easy as it used to be, but follow these tips, and yard work can be as much fun as you always hoped it would be.

Instructions

1. Warm up for the task at hand. As with any exercise, it's a good idea to devote a little time to warming up before you begin your yard work. Start by doing light stretches, and take a short stroll through the neighborhood to loosen up.

2. Choose the best time of day for your yard work. The best time to work outside is either early in the morning or late in the day. If you do your gardening and yard maintenance during these hours, you avoid the hottest part of the day.

3. Dress properly and carry essential items. When you plan to do your yard work, be sure to dress in lightweight clothing that's loose and light-colored. Dark colors absorb the sun and make you hot. In addition, fill a small bag with your gloves, a bottle of water, a magnifying glass and a cell phone or a whistle in case of an emergency.

4. Keep maintenance to a minimum. When planning your new landscape, choose plants, shrubs and trees that are heat tolerant to minimize the need for watering, and make sure to line beds with plastic and cover with mulch to fight weeds. Choose perennials over annuals if possible so that you don't have to replant each year.

5. Plant your flower beds and vegetable gardens close to home. If your yard work includes planting annual or perennial flower beds or vegetable gardens, plant them right outside your front or back door if possible. This minimizes the distance you have to walk with garden tools in hand.

6. Buy the right tools. There are a lot of ergonomically made garden tools that can lessen strain on hands and wrists and hose nozzles equipped with push buttons rather than squeeze triggers. Garden claws can replace shovels for mulch.

Tips & Warnings

• Always take your time when doing yard work. This means walking across the lawn at a slower pace and bending and lifting fewer things at one time. It may take a little bit longer, but that's one of the perks of being retired: owning your hours.

• Choose a day when you don't have anything else going on. Yard work is hard work, and to avoid overtiring yourself, you should plan it for a day when you have no other obligations.