Walkway for flower bed weeding

Alpharetta, GA

I am new to gardening and to this site. I did try to search on this topic before starting a new thread but it was hard to sort through so much information to find anything relevant to this particular question.

I have a flower bed in front of my house that is deep- meaning in order to weed it, I have to walk into the flower bed and sometimes sit in the middle of it. I can't reach it all from the external perimeter. I find lots of articles and ideas on garden walkways and such but I'm looking for ideas on how to put in some simple walking paths inside a flower bed for the purpose of me navigating around within it to weed and care for it.

Has anyone done something like this or have any suggestions? I hate to trample all over plants that may not have come up yet and so on...

Also- I have a hard time with my knees so I often have to sit down and stretch my legs out to weed or whatever. I thought of those rolling carts that mechanics use to get under cars to do their work. Has anyone done something similar but not on wheels- just some sort of platform that could be extended over areas of a garden to either lay down or sit on to reach into the garden and work that way? I think it would be a great idea. I'm always laying down towels to lay down in order to stretch enough, etc.

Anyway- those are my challenges, any ideas?

Thanks in advance...

Thumbnail by jssmeltzer Thumbnail by jssmeltzer Thumbnail by jssmeltzer
Enterprise, AL(Zone 8b)

"I hate to trample all over plants that have not come up yet". If you put any type of path in, how are you going to avoid putting the path over those same plants? Are these planted by you, or just volunteers that pop up? Without knowing where the plants are, I see no solution. How are you going to be able to sit or stretch-out without smashing those plants that have not come up yet? It appears the first thing you must do is identify where those plants are and label the locations. Will there even be room for a path or some place to stretch out? So you will have to look at the bed and make a decision on where the paths should be and where the plants should be.
To me the solution once you make those decisions would be to just use thick mulch. It would help keep the weeds down, cover the dip hose, let you walk in the bed without too much damage of compaction, and prevent stray plants form popping up (to some degree).
I use oak leaves, grass clippings etc, then you can make it look uniform with pinestraw or bark mulch on top. I suppose you could use stepping-stones put in strategic spots that would also allow you to stretch out or sit.

Alpharetta, GA

Thanks for your reply... I must not have my notifications set up right cause I didn't see your reply right away or I would have thanked you sooner.

I have thought of that... once I decide on where the paths should be to give me the most reach, I would either dig up any plants in the pathway or just assume they will die off... I've only been in this house 2 years and am not completely sure about what all is in the garden since different things are coming up this year as opposed to last year. I have planted many more on my own so I do know where I think the best spots are.

I'm very new to gardening as a whole so maybe I went about this completely wrong and should have started out with the pathways?

Thanks for responding to me, I appreciate the suggestion.

Burnt Chimney, VA(Zone 7a)

JJ, do you have anyone who might help you relocate some of your plants? My tiny little mother-in-law used stepping stones throughout her gardens when she was still able to get outside. Perhaps you and an assistant would be able to move some of the plants to another location, and place some nice square or rectangular stepping stones throughout your existing beds? My husband and I went to one of the Mulch 'n' More places locally and picked up some nice flat concrete stones, both square and rectangular, for Doris' gardens. She was able to toddle between her plants, and garden to her heart's content. Also, my husband picked up a neat little stool for her from Lowe's. Turn it one way, it is a low kneeling bench, perhaps 2-3" high. Upend it, and it becomes a low stool to rest on. Very nice! I'm not the skinniest thing on the planet anymore, and my knees have a rough time of it outside nowadays, so I've purchased a couple of sets of nice, comfy knee pads. While both connect with Velcro, one is a sturdy rubbery material, with the other a more pliable foamy material, covered with a strong (and pretty!) cotton fiber.
You have some truly beautiful flowers in your yard. Maybe you could make a longish, narrow curvy garden off in the yard, as an eye-catching alternate bed? Or perhaps a raised flower bed?

Alpharetta, GA

Quote from sparklinBarb :
JJ, do you have anyone who might help you relocate some of your plants? My tiny little mother-in-law used stepping stones throughout her gardens when she was still able to get outside. Perhaps you and an assistant would be able to move some of the plants to another location, and place some nice square or rectangular stepping stones throughout your existing beds? My husband and I went to one of the Mulch 'n' More places locally and picked up some nice flat concrete stones, both square and rectangular, for Doris' gardens. She was able to toddle between her plants, and garden to her heart's content. Also, my husband picked up a neat little stool for her from Lowe's. Turn it one way, it is a low kneeling bench, perhaps 2-3" high. Upend it, and it becomes a low stool to rest on. Very nice! I'm not the skinniest thing on the planet anymore, and my knees have a rough time of it outside nowadays, so I've purchased a couple of sets of nice, comfy knee pads. While both connect with Velcro, one is a sturdy rubbery material, with the other a more pliable foamy material, covered with a strong (and pretty!) cotton fiber.
You have some truly beautiful flowers in your yard. Maybe you could make a longish, narrow curvy garden off in the yard, as an eye-catching alternate bed? Or perhaps a raised flower bed?


Thanks Sparklin Barb... and yes, I've waited to see at least what spring blooms are coming up and where and am moving plants when I need to in order to put in these rubberized stepping stones- they look real but are softer than stone and should work well, I think. I'm planning to put in a few paths where I need to reach and can't from outside the beds...

I'm curious about what you mean in terms of making a curvy garden off in the yard.... you wouldn't happen to have any pictures of what you mean? It sounds interesting...

Burnt Chimney, VA(Zone 7a)

Since I've no gardens myself yet at this house, I perused Bing's picture gallery to find pictures close to what I was thinking of. I've no great gift, anymore, of painting pictures with words, so these three are relatively close to the idea. My idea was narrower, possibly, to allow you to reach in successfully from both sides. Would that help?
I love the stones you got! Oh, my, rubber? Too cool! You're a smart lady, you are!

Thumbnail by sparklinBarb Thumbnail by sparklinBarb Thumbnail by sparklinBarb
Alpharetta, GA

Quote from sparklinBarb :
Since I've no gardens myself yet at this house, I perused Bing's picture gallery to find pictures close to what I was thinking of. I've no great gift, anymore, of painting pictures with words, so these three are relatively close to the idea. My idea was narrower, possibly, to allow you to reach in successfully from both sides. Would that help?
I love the stones you got! Oh, my, rubber? Too cool! You're a smart lady, you are!


Thank you... and yes, these pictures help me visualize what you mean. I like that idea. I could essentially trim off a portion of one of the sides of the garden that is there now so I could use all four sides essentially to access the flowers and plants... good idea...

I will probably have to work on moving the plants a little at a time this year so that there is a clear area to either convert to a pathway with the rubber stones or to sod and turn into grass- though the former would be easier to maintain.

Thanks so much for sharing your ideas with me....

Burnt Chimney, VA(Zone 7a)

I hope all goes very well for you, and that you enjoy every minute of it! God bless you, js!

Milton, MA(Zone 6a)

Wow, I never saw this thread! Welcome to the Accessible Gardening Forum, and please feel free to introduce yourselves on the DG name/real name thread, if you like.
http://davesgarden.com/community/forums/t/1103477/

I hate to be the wet blanket, but please consider that your needs may change. I use a wheelchair, and mulch and all those lovely materials that Seedfork mentioned are IMPOSSIBLE with a wheelchair. Even gravel is very very difficult to traverse. It is most challenging of all, I think, to anticipate that your needs may change substantially in a few years.

I have Multiple Sclerosis, and it IS progressive. :( I vote for stepping stones that you can undo at some point in the future. I also do a great deal of container gardening, so plants are up where I can reach them. There was a steep slant to my yard; we put in a retaining wall, which I can also reach, and installed plants behind it so they tumble over it.

Post a Reply to this Thread

Please or sign up to post.
BACK TO TOP