Gardens for the visually impaired

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7 • POSTED ON August 03, 2005
Gardens for the visually impaired
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But what if a person is not – or no longer – able to visually experience a garden? For those of you with visually challenged family members, neighbours or friends, I would like to touch on the topic of gardening with those people in mind this week.

Our gardening column is published every Tuesday on OttawaStart. Read previous columns here.

A lot of what I normally write about in this column has to do with visually experiencing a garden: colour combinations, plant descriptions, unusual designs and what not. But what if a person is not – or no longer – able to visually experience a garden? For those of you with visually challenged family members, neighbours or friends, I would like to touch on the topic of gardening with those people in mind this week.

Obviously, there are two categories of visually impaired people; those who were once able to see but suffered loss or severe deterioration of vision at some point in their lives, and those who were born unable to see. Some may have been keen gardeners; some may never have taken an interest in gardening whatsoever. In essence, it does not really matter whether they did or not; because of their difference, even the most experienced gardeners tend to feel like beginners.

It is important for any person to be as self-reliant as possible; help may always be welcomed by those with sight impairment, but will not be available all the time, so the more that person can do him or herself, the better. It goes without saying that - apart from the practical aspect - the satisfaction he or she will get from accomplishing something without anyone’s assistance, is huge.

Where to start? Well, a few months ago, while describing the basics of garden design, I mentioned that the use of colour is not the only valuable tool a designer uses to create a balanced, beautiful garden. Flowers are only visible for a couple of weeks and the rest of the time you are dealing with bark, stems and leaves, so they deserve our attention as much as flowers do - especially if the gardener is unable to actually see the flowers. There is no need to exclude nice colour combinations - many blind gardeners have sighted family members, partners, etc. - but to serve our purpose the emphasis should lie on texture and scent.

In order to make it easy for the visually challenged gardener to access the garden it is advisable to avoid curved paths. Curves could lead to disorientation, so in this particular situation, it is better to use straight paths. That does not have to mean you can only include one straight path from point A to point B in your design; there is nothing wrong with changing the direction of your path, as long as you mark the changes. These “landmarks” can be certain garden features (sculpture, shrub, stone) or you can change the structure of the path itself (switch from paving to gravel, from gravel to grass, from grass to slabs etc.). For obvious reasons, it is better to avoid steps altogether; however, if it is impossible to do this, make sure to include hand rails.

While laying out paths, also keep in mind that the flower (or vegetable) beds cannot be too wide. One metre (three feet) is the maximum width for putting all plants in the bed within reach; keeping in mind that our gardener has to work by touch – unless of course our gardener is 6’6” (like Yours Truly); us “tall-ies” have wingspans that many an albatross might envy. If there is no way around wider beds (and if your gardener is not a “tall-ie”) you could lay down stepping stones in the bed to provide easy access to the back of the border. In order to enable the gardener to better distinguish front from back in the border, use different textured stones or make your stepping stone path wider towards the back. The same goes for island beds in the centre of the garden: ideally, the gardener should be able to reach the middle of the bed from all sides, but if that cannot be done, switch to “plan B” – stepping stones.

By now, I can almost hear you think “I wonder if it necessary to raise the beds”. Good question! Technically, the answer is “no” – just because someone can’t see doesn’t mean they can’t kneel down – but it depends a bit on things like age etc. In general, raised beds are somewhat easier to work with but whatever you decide upon, it is always a good idea to include some sort of edging around the borders and not plant too closely to the path(s). Also very helpful is landscape fabric (AKA weed barrier); applied when the borders are dug, it will assist our gardener by limiting weed growth. Most visually challenged gardeners own guide dogs, and using weed killers where there are dogs is not a great idea. Finally, using labels for “legitimate” seedlings will make it easier for the gardener to distinguish future crops or perennials from “uninvited” plants.

Speaking of plants, here is a modest selection of suitable plants for our gardener. There are many more fine plants available to suit our purpose and if you are interested in this particular topic, please feel free to send me your email address and I will send you a full list, as well as more tips on how to assist visually – or otherwise – impaired gardeners.

Sight may be absent, but taste, smell and touch are all available senses (and often better developed than is the case with sighted people) and that is what these plants are all about. Hearing should have been included in the list, but we can solve that with accessories such as wind chimes, bird baths and fountains, although - on a more personal note – I find there is nothing more soothing than the sound of tall ornamental grasses moving in the wind. Then again, I AM a fiend for ornamental grasses. As it so happens, I am also extremely partial to the sound of rain falling on the roof while waking up on a Sunday morning (knowing I don’t have to go anywhere), so don’t take everything I say too seriously, especially not where ornamental grasses are involved.

Any type of herb will suit our purpose: lavender, rosemary, oregano, coriander, parsley, chives, sage and mint not only smell good, they also taste good. A word of warning, though - be careful with mint. Make sure to confine it to a pot or it will take over your entire flower bed – and eventually your garden (as well as those of your neighbours on either side).

Fragrant shrubs such as lilacs (Syringa), roses (Rosa), mock oranges (Philadelphus) and (European) snowball bush (Viburnum opulus) are not only perfectly hardy in our area, they are also readily available and (relatively) inexpensive. As for bulbs, it is hard to beat good old hardy Hyacinth when it comes to fragrance and for (non-hardy) summer bulbs Freesia and Dahlia seem obvious choices. A list of fragrant perennials, biennials and annuals could fill an entire column and my best advice to you would be to take your visually impaired partner, relative or friend to a garden center in spring and let him or her decide on what is appealing and what isn’t.

Touching plants is very important. It will not only tell the gardener which plant they are dealing with, but it is also very satisfying to actually feel what grows in your garden. Any leaf is good, be it a tough, a glossy, a blade or a feathery one. In my humble opinion, however, one of the best is the perennial (Woolly) Lamb’s Ears (Stachys byzantina). The miniscule hairs on the leaves of this plant make touching it a wonderful experience, almost like touching…er...Lamb’s ears?

Well, that’s all for this week. I don’t know what next week’s column will bring, as my better half muttered something about writing a column of her own. Perhaps I should explain that – unlike me – she was born in Canada. Not only that, she also majored in English. This is – of course - why she is my designated proof-reader for these columns. Although my English is not too shabby, I sometimes have this horrible tendency to (what I call) “brighten up” (she calls it “molest”) our language with remnants of Dutch grammar. She is the one who ensures you can actually understand what I am trying to say. I hope you can sympathize with the precarious situation in which I find myself; after all her proof-reading I cannot refuse her the joy of a column of her own, but I have to admit I am mildly alarmed by this sudden initiative. Will she actually write about gardening or rather about what it is like to be married to a gardener? Will there be any mention of the state of our own garden? Will Dr. Phil suddenly make an appearance?
Regardless of what will happen next week; happy gardening and try to stay cool!

René Trim

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About René
René Trim was educated and trained in The Netherlands, before moving to Canada in 2000. After studying the differences in climate and season faced by Ontario gardeners he established Trim Garden Design and Rescue in May 2002. A gardener since the 1980’s, he has a wealth of knowledge and experience, a vast library of reference materials from which to draw answers to various garden situations as well as an enthusiastic and professional staff.