5 Great Garden Seats for Easier Gardening

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Gardening is great for both body and mind. Retired seniors oftentimes find gardening a particularly enjoyable activity as it gets them outside for a good portion of the day providing fresh air and activity. Watching plants grow and flowers blossom over the season can be a beautiful and rewarding experience for many.

However, there’s oftentimes a challenge: the physical limitations we face as we age.

One product can help the aging gardener, however – garden seats.

Whether you or a loved one are seeking a cozy spot for contemplation or a practical solution for comfortable gardening, these specially curated garden seats are designed to enhance the outdoor experience for seniors, providing not just seating but a haven of comfort and well-being.

The Importance of Physical Activity

Physical activity is vital to good health. If most of the day is spent sitting in a chair watching a screen, the body is going to crave movement. You may have heard the phrase ‘motion is lotion’, and it’s true, as physical activity pumps the joints full of the nutrients that they need to stay healthy.

Unfortunately, most Americans don’t get enough of the physical activity that they need. This is truly a shame, particularly for older Americans, as research has shown that regular physical activity is estimated to:

• Decrease a man’s risk of stroke by 66% and a woman’s risk of stroke by 50%
• Decrease one’s risk of dementia by 50%
• Reduce one’s risk of suffering a heart attack by 50%
• Keep one’s bones from developing osteopenia
• Helps prevent muscle loss

These are only some of the benefits of regular physical activity. Proper levels of physical activity are a must if one wants to age well.

One of the best ways to add more gentle physical activity to one’s daily lifestyle is to plant a garden.

Gardening is Great

Did you know that it’s estimated that three hours of gardening equates to around an hour of intense gym time? If you hate going to the gym, that’s a fun workaround. Gardening can be a relaxing means of burning calories too! Who doesn’t enjoy watching the progress they make as they weed their garden? Especially when the very act of weeding burns approximately 300 calories/hour!

The truth is gardening is good for us.

Spending a little bit of time every day tending to plants and vegetables has even been pointed out to be a possible cause of the French paradox as well, where despite eating calorie-dense foods and drinking buckets of wine, the French are still thin. 30% of the citizens of France own a garden they regularly tend to.

But…

Let’s get back to the potential problem: though gardening is great for us, many Americans have joint limitations that prohibit them (at least they think) from participating in this relaxing activity.

Just take a look at knee pain.

It’s estimated that 100 million Americans are living with knee pain. A full 33% of Americans report dealing with knee pain at some point in their lives, about 20% of women experience it, and somewhere between 15-20% of men struggle with it.

All of this combined makes it so that knee pain is the second most common cause of chronic pain in the United States.

Gardening can be strenuous work, and any type of joint condition doesn’t help make things any easier. A great deal of stooping, squatting, and getting down on all fours is often required to complete gardening tasks, but for the individual with severe, chronic knee pain, many of these movement patterns are simply out of the question.

3 Ways Garden Seats Help

This is where garden seats can come in handy. Nothing more than a heavy-duty yet small seat low to the ground with wheels attached, the garden seat helps ensure that even those struggling with joint limitations or chronic pain can work in the garden with minimal pain or discomfort.

A garden seat does this in three ways.

1 – A garden seat keeps you from having to get on your knees. 

If there isn’t a lot of cushioning behind one’s kneecap to begin with, putting pressure against one’s knee can be very uncomfortable. It’s technically just pushing a disc-shaped bone (the kneecap) into the exposed bone of the knee joint.

The more one can avoid doing that, the better. If one is planting a row of carrot seeds, though, it’s virtually impossible to do so without getting close to the ground. A garden seat allows one to do this while keeping pressure off the knees, and on the butt instead.

2 – Garden seats help diminish pain as they reduce the need to get down and up while tending plants. 

This movement can be very painful to perform through a full range of motion for somebody with joint limitations/chronic pain.

Garden seats help by making it so the range of motion needed to get to a standing position is diminished. Picture the difference between trying to get out of a low sofa versus getting off a bar stool. If one struggles with chronic knee pain, getting off the barstool is going to be a much less painful experience.

Why?

A garden seat narrows the range of motion and weight bearing a senior has to endure while gardening.

3 – Garden seats can help somebody with joint limitations by making weight-bearing movements easier. 

Sarcopenia (severe muscle loss) is very common as one ages, and it can make it difficult to perform daily tasks of life (e.g., getting up off the ground).

Tales of older people falling in the garden and needing assistance getting up are not uncommon. This is because severe muscle weakness has made it impossible for the person to get their body up off the ground. This is the same reason so many older people must use the arms of a chair to push themselves up to a standing position.

This is where a garden seat can help. It gives the user something to push off from so that one doesn’t have to rely solely on their strength (which may not be sufficient) to get up.

5 Garden Seats to Consider

I’ve been gardening for years, longer than I’ve been working with seniors. I examined the garden seats readily available on Amazon, and here are what we believe to be 5 of the best available.

1) TomCare Garden Kneeler Seat

Likely one of the most versatile designs for a garden seat out there is this one from TomCare. Coming in at around $50, this seat is very affordable, and it doubles as a kneeboard as well.

All you have to do is flip the seat over for whatever form of support is more convenient to you at the time. The chair is made of a nice, cushiony foam, and the legs double as arm supports as well. By grabbing the arm supports, one can easily hoist themselves up to a standing position.

The maximum weight capacity for this gardening work seat is 330 pounds, so it will handle most adults, and it comes with two convenient tool bag pouches as well, so that all of your gear is in one convenient access location.

When you’re done with the seat, just fold it up, and it can easily be stowed away in the garage for easy storage.

2) Sunnydaze Rolling Garden Cart

If you’re looking for a design that’s built like a tank, this is what you’re looking for. This is a more expensive design, coming in at $159, but the four wheels and heavy-duty design help to ensure that you’re able to easily move about your garden planting and weeding with minimal joint discomfort.

A conveniently placed basket is attached to the back of the garden cart to easily stow gardening tools as you move throughout the garden as well. You get a one-year warranty when you purchase this item, and it can hold up to 330 pounds as well.

If you’re looking for a heavy-duty style garden seat that will also let you pull your tools with you throughout the yard, this makes for an excellent choice.

3) The Garden Cart Utility Wagon by the Pure Garden Store

If you and your spouse enjoy spending the evenings in the garden together as you watch the sun go down, this can make for a convenient means of bringing your drinks with you.

Priced very reasonably at around $40, this garden cart is essentially a wheeled cooler. It isn’t insulated to keep drinks cold for long, but if you’re just heading out to the garden, this will be more than adequate. Of course, it can be used to simply hold gardening supplies such as a kneeling pad or a garden tool bag as well.

The lid to the cart functions as a seat or garden bench as well and is capable of holding up to 220 pounds. If you’re looking for a versatile, lightweight cart with plenty of stowing capacity that is also heavy duty, the Pure Garden brand garden cart makes for an excellent selection.

4) Pure Garden Rolling Cart with Wheels

While this garden seat does look as if it belongs in a Willy Wonka movie, it serves its purpose very well. Its cost is $25, so it’s still very affordable, and the large wheels will help you to roll along mulched surfaces with ease.

This is about as low frills of a design as one can find. There’s a chair, four wheels, and a small space under the seat where one can hold a few items. The chair is rated up to 200 pounds, so this isn’t going to be a suitable choice for heavier users, but it is still a garden bench worth knowing about.

5) Deluxe Garden Rocker Rolling Work Seat

You’ve seen the Willy Wonka garden seat, now get ready for the Star Trek garden seat. That’s exactly where this garden seat looks like it belongs. Each of the four wheels is conical-shaped, meaning you can not only roll along the grass and garden with this, but it is possible to lean while you’re using this chair as well.

It’s a pricier garden seat at $80, but for those looking for a design with minimal fuss and a whole lot of function, this can serve as a very functional, portable design.

3 Other Options

If you don’t feel like purchasing a garden seat, there are a few “DIY” options that can be utilized as well to help one move about in the garden with ease.

1) A Walking Stick

While not a chair, if we’re looking at devices that can help one to get up from a crouching position that is readily available, it’s hard to beat a solid walking stick. A simple walking cane can also help decrease the amount of weight that is put on the legs as one is getting down onto and up from the ground.

2) A Modern Outdoor Bench

If you’re looking for a permanent design to keep at the end of your garden rows, why not check out this sleek and modern outdoor bench that will not only look great at the end of your bean patch but will help you to get up into a standing position if you find yourself stuck on the ground nearby. You can get the plans for building this bench here.

Additionally, you could store a kneeling pad underneath this bench to have handy when you’re gardening. We love this extra thick gorilla grip kneeling pad available on Amazon.

3) An Old Wooden Chair

Why not just pick up an old wooden chair and keep it in the garden as a movement aid? One can easily find one of these at any yard sale or (often) sitting in the garage or shed.

Or, a folding chair is relatively light, provides a place to rest up off the ground, and can be used to help one get back up to a standing position if kept nearby.

Summary

A garden bench is a nice addition to any garden, particularly for those who have found it’s a bit more difficult to weed their lettuce patch than it used to be. If this is where one finds themselves, make sure to check out some of the options listed above, all perfect for outdoor use.

Additionally, a gardening stool can be a great gardening gift for a loved one who is no longer able to enjoy their passion due to discomfort. Adding in some other garden tools such as a water-resistant kneeling pad, a plant, a storage bag for various gardening tools such as pruning shears, etc, makes a well-rounded and thoughtful gift the gardening enthusiast is sure to appreciate.

Is there another garden bench, work seat, lightweight stool, kneeling pad, or portable seat that you’ve found to help decrease joint pain and overall discomfort while gardening? Have you tried any of the above methods to any degree of success?

Let us know in the comments below.

About the Authors

Zac Martin

Zac Martin is an exercise physiologist who has spent years helping older clients work through various physical and health conditions. He is familiar with the physical issues older adults face as they age and enjoys working on and writing about strength training, successful recovery techniques, and healthy aging.

Leona Small

Leona Small is a freelance writer and former caregiver. She has experience working with people with Alzheimer’s Disease and related dementias and has spent years working alongside both patients and caregivers in Hospice. Additionally, she’s worked as a Professional Organizer helping people and families to purge, organize, manage, and prepare for various life transitions such as moving, downsizing, and the passing of loved ones. Her passions include writing about healthy aging, innovative resources to help older adults and caregivers, and traveling.