Thrive is a national charity that uses gardening to change lives. We want people with a disability or underlying health issue to start or continue gardening and we believe passionately in the power of gardening to change lives.
We first launched the
Carry on Gardening website to much acclaim in 2003 and the updated and revised version was launched in April 2009.
Carry on Gardening presents Thrive's experience and expertise in gardening with a disability, which has been gathered over 30 years of helping disabled people to start or continue gardening. Have a look through the website, but if you can't find the information you need on gardening with a disability, send us an
email, or call us on 0118 988 5688. We'll be pleased to hear from you and happy to help.
Here is some information about the different sections of this website:
In this section we give practical information to make garden jobs easier whatever your disability. There is a section for
all disabled gardeners, and then specific sections to help those who are gardening:
after a stroke and with heart disease;
sitting down and from a wheelchair;
with sight loss;
with a weak grip;
with one hand;
if you can't bend easily; to improve their
emotional wellbeing
These are the gardening jobs that we cover - getting ready, digging, weeding, mowing and lawn maintenance, pruning, trimming hedges, sweeping and raking, watering, sowing seeds, planting out, growing in containers, moving things in the garden and tips on garden design. For each gardening job we give Thrive's top tips for making the task easier, advice on taking care, any useful hints and tips, and details of the equipment and tools that will be particularly helpful.
We also have a
plant guide, which gives details of easy-care plants, and information leaflets about
raised beds
Equipment and tools to help you
This is a comprehensive selection of gardening equipment and tools which can make gardening easier and more enjoyable when you have a disability.
The equipment and tool products listed are grouped by the type of gardening job you might want to do. The headings in this section are the same as those used in
How can I carry on gardening? They are - getting ready, digging, weeding, mowing and lawn maintenance, pruning, trimming hedges, sweeping and raking, watering, sowing seeds, planting out, moving things in the garden and growing in containers.
All the equipment and tools mentioned are available from good garden centres, from garden shopping websites, hardware stores, and in a few cases direct from the manufacturer. If you have problems finding products to buy, follow the links to the manufacturer's websites and contact them to find your local stockist.
We also have a section giving
top tips for choosing new equipment and tools which will be useful if you are considering buying new gardening products.
The Equipment and tool finder, which is shown on most pages in this section, edits the full list of products on this website to give you a tailored list of products that might be particularly useful for you to use in the garden. To search for equipment and tools, you choose the gardening job that you want to do and then select the disability which best describes your needs.
News
Gives you the latest news from Thrive, information on gardening techniques, and details of new gardening equipment and tools.
Is where you can fill in the enquiry form to send us an email, find answers to some frequently asked questions, and read our accessibility statement. The Equipment and tool finder is also accessible in this section.
Tells you more about our charity, who we are, what we do and who we help.
Thanks go to all the contributors to this website:
Writers and advisors: Val George, Tim Spurgeon, Lucy Morrell, Cath Rickhuss, Harriet Evans, Vikki Bates, Susan Tabor
Gardeners: Ade, Annette, Chris, Ian, Marjorie and Angela
Photographs: Fred Waldon, Caroline Nieuwenhuys, Simon Barber
Tools database: Fred Walden
PDF design and illustrations: Alison Cummings (360 Creative)
Website design: matrixebusiness
© 2009. Copyright of the site and tools database is held by Thrive.
Any reproduction or republication for commercial use of any part of carryongardening.org.uk website is strictly prohibited.
You may use and print extracts from the website, provided that you fully acknowledge that this site is the source of the material. Beyond this, express permission must be obtained from Thrive on 0118 988 5688, by email, or by writing to Thrive, The Geoffrey Udall Centre, Beech Hill, Reading, Berkshire, RG7 2AT. Thrive is registered in England and Wales as the Society for Horticultural Therapy, Charity No: 277570, Company no: 1415700.
Thrive cannot be held liable in any way for the results of any action you take based on material on this website.