Squatting for longer than a minute is impossible, so I kneel instead, but I know lots of people have arthritic knees, so I don't know how they cope with that.

Otherwise, anything involving reaching up high (say with loppers) and looking up at the same time. it's the tipping the head back to look up that's a real problem (arthritic neck), makes me dizzy. And I get round that by not doing it for longer than a minute, or get someone else to do it.

I have osteoarthritis in my lumber spine and neck, the only way I can weed is on my knees and even then not for long. Digging, hoeing and anything that requires a lot of physical effort are out. I am also no longer comfortable standing on a step ladder to prune tall shrubs but happily stand on one of our, very solid, wooden patio chairs.

It is all trial and error really if I do a lot of pruning then the next day my hands may seize up.

Knee bending is very bad for me. Instead of bending I tend to widen my legs like a giraffe does when drinking!

Dear oh dear MG, such a delight getting older, ain't it... I forgot to say the arthritis started in my spine, so I'm a bit mystified as to why its difficult to squat, but I'd guess there's a connection.
Anchorman, I've seen other folk adopting that pose when gardening, lol, I can never tell whether its their hips, knees or lower back that's the problem.

I have to remember before I start to plant a fork or spade or garden stool nearby to get up by (I can't kneel arthritic knees and crocky ankles, so weeding is strictly a sitting down job) otherwise I get far too close a view of the garden wildlife and for far too long!

Why do we only start to really like gardening, when our bodies are too old for it, eh?

Not always true, monjardin... I've been gardening since I was 29, and I can tell you categorically that then, nothing creaked, twanged, cracked or hurt, and I didn't groan every time I stood up again... but I do recall having to buy lawn edging shears by the time I was 45 to spare my aching back. Prior to that I'd squat with an ordinary pair of shears. But now, I'm the same as everyone else -it hurts.

Frequent coffee stops and by keep changing what I do and pacing myself.......mines fibromyalgia though...... :0(

Couldn't do anything without my kneeler, no particular problem, jus stiff back and old age!

Like they say Bamboo old age ain't for wimps! When we are unpotting the large pans of arisaemas I nee to make sure everything is in jut the right place so that I don't end up twisting too far and causing the muscles in my back to spasm. Earlier in the year it all got so painful I could barely walk across the sitting room then I bought a TENS unit and since then things have improved greatly; I don't need to use if often thankfully. Now walking isn't a problem but just standing for any length of time is.

Hi, they say life begins at 40, yes it does, it begins to go downhill, I was fine until I hit 40, then I had an accident at work and injured my back, arthritis set in, and has got steadily worse, getting it in my hands now, but as they say, no pain no gain, you have no choice but to carry on gardening, no-one is going to do it for you, Derek.

Ha ha, I bet you're sorry you asked this question, Clare! Put it this way, anyone who loves gardening will, while there's still breath in their body, carry on doing whatever they can for as long as they can, and that, in fact, is a very good thing. If you stop moving when you've got arthritis, or any of its myriad associated conditions, you very quickly stiffen up. There are plenty of 'aids' out there to help as far as possible - long handled tools so you don't have to bend, kneeling pads and stools with handles to lever yourself back up and so on.

And pain relif gel for afterwards. :0)))

Ooh yes, 10% ibuprofen gel, a bottle of Scotch (not in my case though), a hot bath, heat pads, painkillers (not that they work) and possibly another alternative item which cannot be mentioned here.... There are times when I think I might need surgery afterwards ;-)))

Hi, yes Bamboo, the scotch helps to ease my pains every night, {only for medicinal purposes you understand}, that and paracetomol, and I get a good nights sleep, Derek.

Although i have arthritis in my knees I manage to tend 35 customers' gardens a week with very little bending. i achieve this by hoeing all gardens weekly so weeds never get more than 2cm tall and simply disappear in the hoeing process. I use a long handled dutch hoe and 3 tined cultivator.

I struggle a bit in early spring and autumn when I need to bend to cut back perennials but I use the afore mentioned "giraffe" stoop to keep most of the pressure off my knees.

The main problem arises when I'm planting bedding plants . When I'm planting planters/hanging baskets I place them on an upturned dustbin which acts as a table and reduces lots of the bending but planting hundreds of bedding plants into a border puts a lot of strain on the old aching joints

(Creak!)