Adam William, a frontline worker from Wollongong shares his journey on gardening for mental health as he started vegetable gardening during his downtime. At first, when he started, he grew carrots and peas. However, now when the weather is warming up, Adam wants to grow spring vegetables.
“We’re in the middle of tearing out all of our late winter veggies so we’ll probably be putting in things like beans, carrots, and tomatoes,” Said Adam. He further added, “We’ll try our hand at some zucchini and sweet potatoes. And we’re actually trying to get our herb garden going.”
Adam and his wife are currently in quarantine as there was a positive Covid case at his daughter’s daycare center. Thus gardening has become one of their favorite pastimes.
Adam’s experience suggests that gardening is not just helpful in practicing mindfulness, but it also helps deliberately to manage one’s mental health.
This is not only what Adam thinks, but professionals also share a similar view. A horticulturist, Toni Salter, who is famously known as the veggie lady believes that gardening has helped with anxiety and depression in the time when it’s peaking. “Research shows people who engage in gardening activities report greater mental health,” she says.
She further adds on the importance of gardening, “It reduces negative emotions and helps to boost positive emotions, and also has a soothing impact on conditions like stress, anxiety, tension, and fatigue.”
To those who are looking for an escape from their daily hassles, Mrs. Salter believes that “gardens can provide a route”. She further adds, “As little as five minutes sitting in a garden, or even just looking at a garden through a window, can provide stress relief and decrease mental fatigue.”
As per the experience of Adam and a piece of insightful information on the effects of gardening given by the expert herself, we can surely conclude that gardening is the perfect balance to maintain mental health and practice mindfulness.
