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Posted by Mike Phipps on March 31, 2022
One of the most overlooked aspects in gardening is accessibility.
The Easi-Grip garden tools help to bring this hugely popular pastime to many who otherwise might not be able to participate, due to the lack of suitable equipment, and only being able to find conventional style garden tools.
Gardeners with a weak grip can use the ergonomic Easi-Grip gardening tools. The clever, specially angled handles encourages your hand to be held in a natural position and helps to reduce fatigue, while the non-slip grip makes them easy to hold.
The Easi-Grip mobility aids will help you get all your gardening work done comfortably and efficiently, as the manufacturers are proud to say – these garden tools give you more work for less effort!
The mobility aids are ideal if you have a weakened grip, or if you lack good hand control, as you don't need such a firm grip when handling these aids.
The Easi-Grip range is also beneficial for anyone with any form of visual impairment.
Gardening can be hard work for your hands. The Easi-Grip garden tools offer a practical solution.
With these mobility aids, your hands and wrists are kept at a natural angle, helping you to get more done without the pain of blisters and strains that you can get with traditional gardening tools.
With the Easi-Grips, you also don’t need such a firm grip, and the aids are designed not to twist so much when used in wet, or damp conditions.
The Easi-Grips are made from hi-quality stainless steel that will glide smoothly through soil, time after time after time, even when in wet, or damp conditions.
The stainless steel will also stop the garden tool from becoming too heavy with any adhered soil – a double tap will remove soil from the tool, which all adds up to making gardening more comfortable and easier! Plus, the bright colours of the Easi-Grips mean there's no chance they'll go unnoticed, even if hidden away somewhere deep within bushes, weeds and dark sheds.
If you need a little extra strength when using the Easi-Grips, you can purchase an Arm Support Cuff, which you simply slot into one of the Easi-Grip tools, allowing you to garden with the added strength and support of your forearm.
The Arm Support Cuff also stops tools from falling to the ground if you happen to lose your grip. For people with Dementia, the Arm Support Cuff is a useful reminder of the job at hand.
These gardening aids may look a bit odd when you compare them to conventional style garden tools, but we know you will love working with them once you start using them and you see how your gardening tasks are made so much easier.
The Easi-Grip range consists of an (1) Cultivator (2) Fork (3) Trowel and (4) Weeder.
There’s also a selection of garden tools with longer reach handles – (1) Cultivator (2) Fork (3) Hoe and (4) Trowel.
The longer handle means that you can still garden if you’re in a wheelchair, or from a seated position, or you have problems bending over.
Kneeling will put strain on your joints, so use a padded kneeler when working at ground level.
There are a number of kneelers that have handles that will give you something to push against and help you get up.
When working in the garden, take frequent breaks and rest your hands. It might also help if you change jobs regularly, so the same hand action isn’t constantly being used. If you start to feel tired, then take a break – try not to overdo things.
You can make your garden more sustainable by using raised beds and containers. These will bring the soil off of the ground, making weeding and planting easier.
When planning your garden, think about how you will access it. Make sure that the borders are no wider than 60 cm (2 foot) if you can only access one side of the border. If you have access to the bed from all sides, then make the bed no bigger than 120 cm (4 foot).
A good way of checking if the Easi-Grips will work for you is by purchasing the Easi-Grip Add-on Handle.
With this clever mobility aid, you have all the benefits of the Easi-Grip® handles without replacing all your garden tools.
The Easi-Grip® Add On Handle can be attached to any hand tool, making it instantly more comfortable and easier to use.
Using this disability aid also means that you can also benefit from using the Arm Support Cuff which will easily slot into the back of this Add-On Handle.
The Add-On Handles aren't only for use in the garden, they have been used on golf trolleys, oars, hammers and lots of other implements.
Here at Ability Superstore, we love the entire Easi-Grip range. To illustrate how handy these mobility aids can be, we thought we would share with you a couple of real life stories from two women who have benefitted from the Easi-Grips…
Veronica has Multiple Sclerosis. She loves gardening, but was becoming discouraged, as it was really tiring when she tried to dig up soil, transplant plants, or do some weeding, along with many other atypical gardening tasks.
Everytime Veronica started working in her garden, her energy would drain really quickly, as the conventional garden tools she had were too heavy and difficult to move around.
Veronica struggled to find ways of making her garden more accessible so she could enjoy it. She considered ‘adaptive gardening’, but all the options available, like raised beds, would be too costly to install and simply not practical from Veronica’s point of view.
After many hours of internet surfing, Veronica came across the Easi-Grip range – perfect implements for taking the stress and strain from her hands and wrists.
Veronica was thrilled with the gardening aids – they helped her regain her love of gardening – the results were amazing! Veronica found that she could garden for hours and not suffer from any muscle tiredness, or general tiredness.
In her own words, she says, “The Easi-Grips has given me back my life! Thank you for this amazing gift of gardening – I have more energy and joy. After all these years, I don’t have to worry about getting tired, or weak, it just isn't an issue anymore, as I don’t have any pain when working in the garden."
Gardening is an activity that Morgan Hands loves, but it was becoming increasingly more difficult for her to spend much time gardening due to the tiredness and pain that swept over her whenever she started working.
Morgan has Fibromyalgia which is a form of arthritis that causes muscle and joint pain – Morgan thought her days of gardening were over.
Morgan was determined not to let her condition get the better of her and tended to overdo things, even if her body was telling her to stop, which often led to intense pain over the days afterwards.
As with Veronica, after endless searching on the internet, Morgan finally came across the Easi-Grip garden tools – finally, implements that would allow her to continue with the hobby she loved and tools where she wouldn't need such a firm grip.
Morgan purchased the complete range – Cultivator, Fork, Trowel and Weeder. She also purchased the Easi-Grip Add-on Handle which allowed to convert her favourite garden tool to an ergonomic angle, so she could continue to use it without any discomfort.
The results were incredible! Morgan said, “I can garden for much longer because the strain on my whole body is vastly reduced. I finish with a great sense of achievement. I still feel it the next day, of course, but certainly not to the extremes that had almost stopped me gardening altogether.”
So you can see what a difference the Easi-grip range might have on your life!
So, if you're interested in the Cultivator, click here! For the Fork, click here! For the Trowel, click here and for the Weeder, click here!
If you think the Long Reach versions would be better for you, then click here for the Cultivator, here for the Fork, here for the Hoe and here for the Trowel.
If you need a little extra support when using the Easi-Grip range, then click here for the Arm Support Cuff.
Don't forget that we are always here to help and advise on any mobility and disability aid that would help you live your life to the full. Our team are available Monday to Friday (excluding bank holidays) 8.30am to 5pm. Or you can email us at heretohelp@abilitysuperstore.com
Of course, if you are local to us, you could also pop into our local store in East Lancashire.
You can find at us The Mill, Gertrude Street, Nelson, BB9 8RS. Our retail store is open Monday to Friday (excluding bank holidays) 10am to 4pm.