5 mental health benefits of gardening 🌿
Gardening can transform lives - and the real magic is that anyone, anywhere can enjoy its healing power.
But did you know, there’s also scientific proof of gardening for mental health?
May is mental health awareness month and all month long I'm sharing simple tips to improve our wellbeing. I’m sharing one of my favourite ways to find peace, stillness and joy - gardening.
In this post, I highlight how gardening helps mental health with these 5 benefits:
Decreases symptoms of depression
Lowers levels of stress and anxiety
Higher self esteem
Essential vitamin D
A sense of purpose
During lockdown, here in the UK, many people took to using gardening as a way to boost their mood. Whether cultivating herbs on the balcony or harvesting a garden full of fragrant flowers, caring for horticultural delights has many positive benefits.
Looking at the facts
Mental health has affected many of us: research from mental health charity Mind reveals 2 in 3 adults say their mental health has worsened since the first national lockdown. But, Mind also discovered that getting outdoors is the most popular way to cope with the ongoing strain.
So how exactly does gardening cultivate positive mental health?
The simple answer: In an abundance of ways. Here's how gardening can help with these 5 mental health benefits.
1. Decreases symptoms of depression
Spending time in a garden can promote feelings of mindfulness, which helps in reducing symptoms of depression and anxiety. Mindfulness is living in the present moment, being focused on what you are doing right now, and engaging your senses so that your mind gets a break from negative thoughts and emotions.
Gardening can also increase positive feelings by offering a sense of purpose and accomplishment. Seeing things growing and thriving can be affirming. And the joy of growing and tending to plants and flowers brings peace and calm.
2. Lowers levels of stress and anxiety
Stress suppresses wellbeing, but spending just 10 minutes in a natural space can offer your brain a much-needed mental reset, and this helps to lower stress levels. The physical movement involved in gardening can also be a stress-buster; gardening can help lower blood pressure and decrease levels of the stress hormone cortisol.
Tending the earth provides a more creative and enjoyable way to experience physical exercise, which in return contributes to improving psychological health. Even the feeling of soil in the hands is a literal grounding experience. It’s an easy way to feel connected to the earth and nature.
Proof that green spaces boost wellbeing
In 2021, the RHS released research that revealed those who garden every day have wellbeing scores 6.6% higher and stress levels 4.2% lower than people who don’t garden at all.
3. Higher self-esteem
Allow your confidence and self-esteem to blossom with gardening! The simple act of gardening and seeing the results of your dedicated efforts – whether that’s a vegetable harvest, a beautiful floral display, or simply a tidy lawn – can offer a sense of improved confidence in your ability. This in turn can raise self-esteem and enhance self-perception.
For me, the experience of sewing seeds I’ve planted in the earth and the dedication to watering them each day brings with it a sense of purpose and I’m able to marvel at the wonder of nature.
4. Essential vitamin D
The body absorbs vitamin D primarily through exposure to sunshine. Research has shown there is a link between depression and low levels of vitamin D, so spending time in the sun while gardening can boost those levels. Vitamin D also offers other crucial health benefits, including supporting the immune system, keeping bones strong, and calcium levels stable. But remember, while filling up on sunshine, always be sure you apply appropriate sunscreen regularly.
5. A sense of purpose
Gardening offers a sense of empowerment and purpose. The ability to grow and care for another living thing can have plenty of positive emotional effects. Feel a sense of achievement when you see the results of your efforts and the many positive emotions associated with it such as joy, fulfilment, achievement, pride and happiness.
Something as simple as scraping moss from the cracks in the patio can feel fulfilling. Seeing the results before your eyes can feel completely satisfying and brings with it a sense of achievement and purpose.
Gardening is a powerful and accessible tool that can positively support our mental health.
Make gardening part of your everyday life
I hope you’ve enjoyed these 5 simple tips. I invite you to spend some time gardening and notice how it makes you feel. Then, come back and let me know in the comments below.
Do you use gardening as a way to support your mental health?
Tell me your gardening wellbeing tips in the comments below.
Resources:
If you are struggling with any mental health issues, please know there are sources to support you such as Mind.org.uk.