Earlier this year, we decided to make use of a strip of garden at the bottom of our back garden and grow some vegetables in a wheelchair accessible vegetable plot using raised beds.

So I could help, we decided to get our local handyman to build some vegetable boxes, at a height I could access in my wheelchair. The result is four 2.5mx1mx.6m boxes, constructed out of wooden decking, and lined with heavy duty PVC to protect the wood.

There is a 1m gap between the boxes, wide enough for my wheelchair, with flat purple slate to roll on, and apple trees planted against the fence.

Below are some photo's of our little wheelchair accessible vegetable patch.

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First box: Beetroot, Lettuce, Carrots. Second box: Kale, Sprouts, Purple Sprouting. Third box: Sprouts: Kale, Carrots, Rhubarb.

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Far box: Raspberries, Blackberries, Strawberries, Blackcurrents Chillies.

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I just thought it'd be of interest in case anyone else was thinking of doing such a project to make a garden accessible to wheelchair users.

Simon

Associated terms : Adaptive Gardens : Enabled Gardens : Accessible Gardens : Wheelchair Accessible Gardening and Gardens with Raised Beds

Very nice, Simon.

(There ya go, Clara! Just what you were looking for a while back.)

You read my mind!! *Goes off to find a handy man*

Simon, what a huge backyard you have, lots of space for everyone. Your container/planter boxes look great lots of space to grow your favorite veg and the perfect height to tend to your organic rewards...

I've got a small strip of ground by a side fence in our backyard, it gets decent sun, your design sounds perfect, I'll send you a message after I get back rollin, never really thought of putting raised containers there...thanks.

Most of our backyard is concrete, pool an spa, I do a bit of year round vegetable gardening, mostly in large clay pots and smaller planter boxes. I'll post some pictures once I'm back rolling. Gardening not only provides a bounty of herb, fruit n veg, but also has a calming affect as you go about feeding, weeding and watering...while the birds, bees and butterflies flutter about.

Nice job Boss,

Jerry

Thanks for the interest, I just found a couple of photo's which give an idea of how the boxes were put together, so here you go!

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Simon

What a great idea!!! so pretty too.

Thanks.
Now all I need to do is find someone whose good with a hammer!

Hi Simon

That looks really great and pretty strong.

We have been considering something similar....so have a couple of questions.

I really like the coloured finish did you use Cuprinol shades?....and.....what did you fill them with, we thought you probably had top soil delivered and then added some organic matter!!

You seem to have had a bumper harvest. We have a veg patch but our soil is very thin and stoney. I lost all my broccoli and greens to caterpillars. Butternut squash gave up, ditto beetroot.

However, runner beans were lovely and had enough tomatoes to make loads of soup and fill the freezer.

I love the idea of planting the fruit trees against the fence.

Now all you need is a few chickens.....!

L

Hi,

We filled the boxes with Blended Loam Topsoil from: http://www.build-center.co.uk

You buy it in 1 cubic metre bags for £86.00 per bag, but we know someone with horses, so he gave us a free truck load of horse manuer to mix in and bulk it out with.

Yes, we used Cuprinol Shades, it took a few coats to give a good solid colour. The decking was already treated, so it should last a while now, especially as we lined the boxes with heavy duty build grade PVC, so the soil isn't in contact with the wood.

The bottom of the boxes are open, to allow free drainage into the garden, rather than lining them.

Regards

Simon.

Figure 8 plants per box.
4 boxes, is 32 plants.
Most all should be female if we use feminized seeds.
With proper care and fertilization we're looking at maybe 1/2 to 1 pound per plant.

I'd go with an Indica, perhaps Afgani hash plant or some purple skunk.
Either one grow pretty quick. 'Bout 4 to 5 months to full maturity.
If it's good enough we can get around 3,500.00 to 4 grand a pound.

You do the math sir, a few really fresh salads or a great big down payment on a beautiful new home.
The choice is yours.

Just trying to be of help,

E-dog

Ha ha ha, E~Dog, two words mate: weather British.

How big's your garage Simon?

The raised boxes do look great! One question I have though Simon and others with c5/c6 etc problems do you have arm/hand issues?
I dont think I could manage raised boxes because of my arms, my arms suffer from spasticity and my right arm also nerve issues and of course weakness issues. Do you have self propel wheelchairs then or are able to manage with any arm issues?

Thanks

So guys whats the answer? is it that those of you with arm issues dont do much gardening etc or how do you manage?

Give them a chance to answer - maybe even a few days. Not everyone comes on the forum everyday (especially over weekends).

Simon - any chance of your chap coming over here for a repeat performance of DIY?!! My normal chap (who cleared the garden for me in the first place) has gone AWOL and I'm bored of waiting for mummy to get round to doing it! If you hear sounds of sawing drilling and screaming.... well you'll know my attempt hasn't gone all that well!

Great minds and all that, my hubby built me some raised bed which look almost the same, with decking boards that we had left over from our decking. I'm so pleased with them

I'm trying to persuade Her that a couple in our garden would be beneficial (not least for cleaning up after three dogs!), but am meeting stubborn resistance for some unfathomable reason. Other than that She is a woman, of course! Oh .... and She comes from Yorkshire!

I have limited hand function, but I can "wedge" tools into my glove, so can weed etc.

I do need help for the bigger stuff, but because the boxes are at my height, I can monitor the vegetables and fruit, and let Karen know if something needs attention. This gives me involvement, and free's up time for Karen, who can get on with more important tasks such as opening the wine!

Yes, I use a manual wheelchair, and lean over to the side.

Regards

Simon

Thank you darling for your reply! Its nice to know how others manage. Really appreciate your comments all of you.

Thanks again.

I'm handy Clara, I only live down the A46 from you, so that's really handy.

I cant make make nice boxes like that, but my mother always told me "I'm good for nothing"!...

This is how I garden Scatty, and I have very limited hand control. Its just a carbon fibre fishing pole with a Wolf quick release garden tool on the end. I have a few different ends, which allows me to do a bit of weeding; its nice to have some independence even if it takes me a long time.

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Yes thats looks interesting!Its light so thats good can see it may be an answer. its just my arms get rough so easily. For instance just lifting my arms to put flowers in a vase knocks them out which in turn affects my legs etc. I hate that, my arms just pain and get weaker I SUPPOSE ITS THE COMBINED SPASTICITY and the weakness. Its bizarre how little things like the flower thing affects them. On top of that I have right arm hand numbess and root nerve issues which is also set off by certain angles and activities!! Gosh things arent easy hence I was really interested to find out how people managed becaue I use to love gardening, use to have a big garden, not any more of course! I had some pots but couldnt manage the bending and watering so let them die off, I have a very small patch of grass but cant mower it! The combined arm and leg issue is a real pain in the neck [literally] Thanks for your input I really appreciate it. I know I have a way to go to find ways of doing some things etc.

Do you keen gardeners know about fredshed.co.uk?

He is a SI gardening enthusiast who also recommends good tools! (and sells some, I think)

Personally, I prefer cooking the produce and doing the theory part of gardening! Too few hours in a day!!

See you're still practising for the para pole vault for 2012, Scribs. How high you getting? On second thoughts, best keep that to yourself. Don't want to tip off the opposition.

Hi,

We've had a couple of lower wheelchair accessible raised beds built so we can grow taller vegetables such as Sweetcorn etc, so I thought I'd post a photo in case it's of interest to anyone.

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Regards

Simon

Associated Terms: Wheelchair Accessible Garden Design : Accessible Garden Design : Designing an Accessible Garden

Cool..
Would never have thought of a lower raised bed.

I technically have two raised beds in the garden.... Or at least I have the wood for the frames in the back.
The mud to fill it on the driveway.
The paint sat safely in the shed.
And a pack of seeds.... actually I've no idea where they are.

The garden boxes are both helpful and attractive when filled with vegetables. A similar idea involves using smaller container boxes placed on top of a table. We have used smaller container garden boxes on a table equipped with casters. The casters permit the table to be easily moved.