General care and safety are the most important aspects of my garden life. In saying this, what is uppermost in my mind concerning safety isn’t always the same thing as what is uppermost in other people’s minds. Other people are thinking about what things would be like if they suddenly couldn’t see. I am thinking about what life is already like for me. So I think about safety from the standpoint of how I am already living and working with the flowers. Am I going to fall on these uneven step-stones? Not if I ma paying attention to my feet. Am I going to hit my head if I bend over near the raised bed? Not likely. I am the one who supervised the placement of the bed, and I am the one who put the object down.
So on to the care and safety matters that do take up my thinking. These have to do with how to do things that need to be done in different ways and how to handle situations that I really can’t monitor well.
General Care Tips
Most people wear gloves when gardening. I don’t. I need to be able to feel the texture of the soil and the condition of my plants. This means I have come across some nasty stuff. I wash my hands extremely thoroughly when I am done working, and I am very conscientious about not touching my face. Besides the nasty stuff, some of the things I grow are toxic if they contact my face. It’s just good practice to leave my face alone.
Sighted people are used to relying on their eyes for everything in life, and some will even say things to me like, “Since you can’t see, you might not know …” and go on to tell me something I do already know. In the garden, the sense of touch tells me many things. It tells me that my plants either have enough water or are thirsty. It tells me when my plants are recovering from illness. It tells me when they are dying and whether I might be able to save them, which parts to pick off and discard. It tells me that I’ve found the first tiny little thing growing on a plant that will become a bell pepper. It tells me that my sunflower plant has diseased leaves and I need to look up a natural treatment. It tells me that my treatment worked.
The sense of smell is also important in the garden–not only because it is enjoyable. Most of the things I’ve planted this year attract bees. In the morning, I go out early and try to water the plants before the bees come and eat. However, the bees get very hungry and excited. I have learned that the flowers will release their scent when they have enough water, and sometimes the bees come zooming in when the scent is released. I have had to learn to withdraw gently so I don’t disturb the bees. There is no risk to me while they are having their breakfast. After all, I am the one who fed them!
Fire Safety in the Garden
After reading some posts recently about flower pots and combustion, I confronted my fear of fire (which is very serious) did some research about fire safety in the garden. I learned several things that are noteworthy for gardeners who are blind.
Spacing: Fire safety sites suggest putting your garden at least five feet from your house. Most of these sites are in wildfire zones and after reading I decided not to move my plants. The reasons why have to do with other safety procedures that I am following.
Yard upkeep and plant care: My yard is kept well and I am very particular about keeping my plants watered and maintaining their health. These are the two most important things to do to be fire-safe. Of course, not smoking, or handling your cigarettes responsibly, goes without saying. One cause of plant fires is that dead plant matter heats and ignites, so clear all those dead leaves and flowers that are weighing down flowers.
Another cause of problems is wood-based mulch. Safety sites suggest other types of mulch and compost.
One site noted that potting soil contains a lot of sticks and other matter that can be flammable. Recently I had an unopened bag of soil outside during the day because I planned to use it to fill my raised bed. When I opened it, I noticed that the bag had attracted the sun and the soil had become extremely hot. My personal advice is not to leave bags of soil outside. Instead, move them out at the time when you plan to work.
Last, sites suggest planting fire resistant plants. I was happy to learn that many of the plants already in the ground here are fire resistant. It happens that I have also chosen fire resistant plants for my pots and beds. They won’t keep a truly awful situation away from us. But I feel better knowing I did not choose flammable ones.
Recommended Resources
Things that have been helpful to me include the following:
Hardiness Zones 101 explains what hardiness zones are and gives a general description of zones by geographic area. It is possible to search USDA for your zone by zip code, but the result is shown on a map. I have not found anything available by text.
Allergy-Free Gardening: I read the original book and now there is a web site and more books. Here are 10 tips for gardening with allergies. Finally, here is advice for asthma-friendly gardening.
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