Garden Smarter, Garden Longer: What Jack Kowiak Wants You to Know
Key takeaways from Jack Kowiak’s presentation on garden safety
May 2026
We think of gardening as the safe, healthy hobby recommended by health experts. And in many ways, it is. But it is also the hobby where we kneel on hard ground, yank at roots with our bare hands, work through the hottest part of the day, and skip the safety gear we would never skip at a job site.
According to our guest speaker, Jack Kowiak, the garden quietly collects its debt: 143,000 emergency room visits, more than 100 deaths, and an unknown number of visits to primary care doctors for gardening-related injuries each year. There are real risks to recreational gardening, and Jack advised us to take them seriously. Some of what he shared was surprising, and how much applies to you depends largely on how long you have been at it.
If you are newer to this, here is what matters most right now
The risks that hit younger and newer gardeners tend to be sudden: accidents of inattention or inexperience. Stepping on a rake left tines-up is a classic example, and yes, it really does cause serious facial injuries. Leaving a green garden hose stretched across the grass is another tripping hazard most people never think twice about. Jack recommended switching to a brightly colored hose for a simple fix.
Tetanus was another point that surprised the room. It does not come from rust itself, but from Clostridium tetani, a bacterium often found in soil and manure. Wear gloves, wash cuts promptly, and check your tetanus booster. Routine boosters are recommended every ten years, or sooner after a deeper dirty wound.
On hot days, do not wait until you are thirsty to drink. By the time thirst kicks in, you may already be mildly dehydrated. Water is the simplest choice, but after heavy sweating, milk is a strong rehydration option too. Because it contains electrolytes, carbohydrates, and proteins, studies have found that it helps the body retain fluid better than water alone after exertion. It also contains less sugar than many energy drinks.
For mosquitoes and ticks, EPA-registered repellents containing oil of lemon eucalyptus (OLE) or PMD are effective plant-derived alternatives to DEET and will not damage plastics or synthetic materials. Check the label: OLE or PMD must appear as the active ingredient. Plain lemon eucalyptus essential oil is a different product and will not work. For ticks specifically, rake your garden beds when temperatures are in the forties. Ticks are less active in cold weather, so that is a better window for clearing leaf litter and reducing habitat.
The middle years are when habits start to matter
This is the stage where nothing feels seriously wrong yet, but the body has started keeping track. Repetitive motions, awkward positions, and working through heat and fatigue all add up to the body’s long memory.
Jack’s advice for this group was mostly about slowing down in a structured way. Work in fifteen-minute stretches, then switch tasks or take a five-minute break. Use a dolly for heavy pots and bags instead of carrying them. Start paying attention to the tools you buy, and choose ergonomic ones whenever possible.
Hearing protection matters too. Many common pieces of garden equipment, including lawn mowers, leaf blowers, and some string trimmers, can reach noise levels high enough to damage hearing over time. If you have to raise your voice to talk to someone three feet away, the equipment is loud enough that hearing protection is a smart choice.
The longer you have been at this, the more these details count
The gardeners who are still active in their seventies and eighties are the ones who started paying attention to how they were using their bodies.
Jack spent a significant part of the presentation on hand and wrist mechanics, because that is where cumulative damage tends to show up first. Never use your hand as a tool: no digging with fingers, no pushing through hard soil bare-handed. Always use a trowel or a hori hori, which has a serrated edge for cutting roots and is worth every penny. When gripping any tool, your index finger and thumb should barely touch. If you are squeezing hard, the grip is too thin. Wrap the handle with pipe insulation or foam to build it up.
Wrists should stay neutral while you work, straight and not bent or angled. Ergonomic tools are designed to help with this by shifting the work to your shoulder rather than concentrating it in the wrist joint.
A garden kneeler with a built-in bench makes getting up and down safer by giving you something to push off from rather than hauling yourself up from the ground. Before any serious digging or planting, take a minute to warm up with marching in place and shoulder rolls. Jack insisted on this one.
The garden is still worth every minute
None of this is meant to make you nervous about garden work. It is the opposite. The gardeners who warm up, use the right tools, manage the heat, and respect the risks are the ones who will still be doing this decades from now.
