Dorothy Hansen
Owner and garden designer
Dorothy draws every bed with a tape measure and a kitchen chair, sitting and standing, before anything is built.
Accessible, low-care gardens in Minneapolis
Gardening, kept within reach
We build raised beds at the height of your hands, lay paths a walker or wheelchair rolls over, and plant what asks little in return, for homeowners in Minneapolis and the suburbs around it.
Two ways in
Which door is yours?
For families
Helping a parent from a distance
We wrote a whole page for the son or daughter who is making the call: who we talk to, what you get in writing, how photos reach you and how the bill works.
Your parent is the client and signs the estimate
You join the call or the text thread if they say so
A photo text when each job is finished
A bill that can come to you
Raised beds at wheelchair height
A bed sized to you, not to a kit
Most raised beds are sold at one height. We start from how you work, sitting or standing, with a cane or a walker, and we check the numbers with you in your own yard before anything is built. These are our starting points.
| A standard kit bed | Built to your reach | |
|---|---|---|
| Height | A standard kit bed8 to 12 inches off the ground | Built to your reach24 to 30 inches for a seated gardener; 30 to 36 for standing with a cane or walker |
| Reach | A standard kit bedOften 4 feet across, too far to reach from the edge | Built to your reachNo deeper than 24 inches when you work from one side, so the far edge is a forearm away |
| Knee room | A standard kit bedA solid box with no way to pull in | Built to your reachA table-style bed with about 27 inches clear underneath, so a chair rolls in close |
| Edge | A standard kit bedA thin board you can't lean on | Built to your reachA wide cap you can rest your arms on, or sit on |
| Path | A standard kit bedGrass, mulch or loose gravel | Built to your reachAt least 36 inches wide, firm and level, and 60 where a chair has to turn |
| Water | A standard kit bedA hose dragged across the path | Built to your reachA drip line on a timer and a spigot at hand height |
What we do
Beds, paths, planting and a calendar
Six jobs, one crew. Each is built so the work left for you is the part you enjoy.
Raised beds built to your reach
Cedar or composite beds at seated, standing or table height, filled with soil and set on a firm base.
How we size a bedFirm, wide paths and resting spots
Compacted stone, pavers or a poured pad at least 36 inches wide, with a bench where you will want to stop.
See the servicesLow-care planting
Perennials, grasses and shrubs that come back through Minnesota winters and need little more than a spring cut-back.
See the servicesWatering you can reach
Drip lines to every bed, on a timer, with a spigot at hand height. We open the system in spring and drain it in fall.
See the servicesLess lawn to mow
We turn the lawn you no longer want to mow into ground cover, low beds or a path, so the yard is smaller and calmer.
See the servicesSeasonal visits
A spring cut-back, a midsummer tidy and a fall clean-up on a calendar the whole family can read.
See the year
Six of us
The three who come to your garden
Dorothy, Ubah and Anh lead the work. Three crew members build and plant with them, and one of the three is always on a first visit.
Ubah Ahmed
Lead gardener
Ubah leads the build crew and the spring planting days, and runs a hand along every edge before she calls a bed done.
Anh Phan
Client coordinator
Anh answers the phone, keeps the calendar and is the one to call if you are the son or daughter.
What clients say
From the gardener, and from the family
“I stopped gardening when I couldn't kneel anymore. Ubah set the beds at the height of my walker handles, and I was back out with my tomatoes by June.”
Donna W.Homeowner, Kingfield
“I live in Atlanta. Anh sent me the written estimate and a photo when each job was done, and my mother still made every decision herself.”
Jasmine R.Daughter of a client
“They asked me to sit in my own chair and show them where my reach ends. Then they built to that line. Nobody had ever asked.”
Reynaldo M.Homeowner, Longfellow
“My father has a bad hip and doesn't like to accept help. The crew was patient, the bed edge is wide enough to sit on, and the bill came to me because he asked.”
Jonas P.Son of a client
Sample reviews.
Our towns
Minneapolis, and the suburbs around it
Look for your town. If it isn't listed, call us and ask; the answer is a straight yes or no.
Hennepin County
- Minneapolis
- Edina
- St. Louis Park
- Richfield
- Golden Valley
- Robbinsdale
- Hopkins
- Bloomington
- Crystal
- New Hope
Ramsey County
- St. Paul
- Roseville
- Falcon Heights
- Lauderdale
Anoka County
- Columbia Heights
- Fridley
We don't take jobs beyond the I-494 and I-694 ring, or commercial properties. If you're just outside it, call and we'll tell you plainly whether we can come.
ZIP codes: 55401, 55403, 55404, 55405, 55406, 55407, 55408, 55409, 55410, 55411, 55412, 55413, 55414, 55416, 55417, 55418, 55419, 55421, 55422, 55423, 55424, 55426, 55427, 55428, 55429, 55430, 55431, 55432, 55435, 55436, 55343, 55104, 55105, 55108, 55113
Questions
Asked at the kitchen table
What does a garden like this cost?
It depends on how many beds, how big, how hard the spot is to reach and what they are made of. We don't post a price list, because no two reaches are the same. The written estimate comes after the first visit, and it lists every bed, path and planting with its measurements, so you can read it with your family before you decide.
What happens at the first visit?
It runs about an hour. We sit and stand where you garden, measure the spot, take photos and ask what is hard right now. A son or daughter can join by phone. You get a written estimate afterward, by email or by mail.
How do I pay, and can the bill go to my son or daughter?
A deposit holds the work days, a second payment comes when the beds are built, and the balance is due after we walk the garden with you. If you want the bill sent to a family member, tell us and we send it there. We take checks and cards.
Will the beds meet accessibility standards?
We start from the reach and path-width numbers in common accessibility guidelines, then adjust them to you. We don't sign off a garden as meeting a standard. If a program or a funder needs a signed-off design, tell us on the first call.
Are you registered and insured?
Our business registration and our liability insurance are listed at the bottom of every page. Ask for the insurance certificate before the first visit and we will send it to you, or to a family member you name.
Plan a first visit
Tell us about the garden you'd like
Send a few lines and Anh will call or text you to find a day. Your mother or father can send this too, or you can send it for them.
Phone(612) 555-0100
Text(612) 555-0100
Hours
- Monday – FridayToday
- 8 a.m. – 4 p.m.
- SaturdayToday
- 9 a.m. – noon
- SundayToday
- Closed