Need something to chase away the dull moments in your life? Looking to find a hobby that allows your mind to relax and tension to be released through physical activity? Maybe you are missing that daily dose of Vitamin D and you just want to be outdoors more. Or perhaps you just want to be able to see a touch of beauty and survival each day when you step outside to head to work.
Any of the above sound familiar and tempting? If so, that is why you should consider gardening. Gardening doesn’t necessarily have to be for just flowers or plants, it can also be vegetables, fruits and herbs or a combination of everything. you can have a garden that overpowers your lawn or garden beds that are in streamlined rows. You can decide to transform your lawn with a showcase garden of organized chaos that is fit for a magazine.
You could even write about what you’re doing and your achievement in a gardening blog.
That’s one of the perks of having a garden – the final decision? Is yours. Even if you live in a small apartment, you can still nurture your green thumb and start a small window box garden or consider a small grow light setup. There are vertical gardens, flowerpots and even dwarf fruit trees to consider.
As this article shows, gardening provides both physical and mental benefits. In an interesting piece published by Sloane & Sons about the benefits of gardening, Marissa Katrin Maldonado writes:
“The effects of gardening, being physically out there in that happy place nurturing plants, can do wonders as an antidote to stress and anxiety.”
Let’s Get Physical
When it comes to creating, having and maintaining a garden – you are going to have to get your hands dirty. It’s one of the most physical hobbies, outside of sports, that a person can have but it doesn’t feel like exercise as you are kneeling in the dirt. You are able to move your body in ways that you wouldn’t consider a workout but definitely it as you squat to weed your garden beds, kneel to plant or harvest your garden beds, and lugging a wheelbarrow full or soil or produce is no easy task.
Once the garden is completed, you also need to make sure you complete required maintenance tasks, so your garden grows to its best potential. You’ll have to weed your garden to ensure that there is no encroaching vegetation that can choke your plants, spread compost to provide nutrients and spread mulch to maintain a barrier between weather changes and your garden. Watering is also an important part of garden maintenance, so you definitely want to have a sturdy and high-quality hose. Depending on the size of your garden, you might want an expandable garden hose – head over to Backyard Boss for the best ones!
Creativity
The best thing about having a garden is the ability to exercise your creative outlets. You are in control of designing your garden, you are in control of the colors of your garden and the different items you can use in your garden to offset the plentiful blooms.
People find that using their creativity in such a way is extremely beneficial to their mental well-being. The mental process that is required during gardening is relaxing and can soothe the mind of any person. This outlet allows for physical representation of their happy place and installing a bench amongst your blooms invites people to just sit and relax while smelling the roses literally.
Mental Relaxation
Gardening can relax the mind as previously mentioned in terms of creativity but its also a meaningful activity; allowing the gardener to see the results of their hard work in relatively short periods of time.
The repetition that is required when it comes to maintaining a garden helps relax anxiety within the gardener while the physical labor reduces tension and stress in the body which has its own mental health benefits.
Gardening is also a hobby that instills a sense of responsibility within a person, with the required maintenance of watering, weeding and caring for the plants allowing for those with low self-esteem to have a sense of worth as there are living things counting on their presence. Connecting with nature, surrounded by living things, is a balm to the soul and mind that you didn’t know you needed.
Conclusion
Whatever the reason you start your own garden – it’s something that will benefit both your mind and your body. When your mind is calm and relaxed while your body is strong and healthy, that is just plain good for your soul. When your soul is at peace? Combined with a strong body and healthy mind? Your well-being is in good hands.
Not sure how to start gardening? Then head to your local library branch and start researching. You can also go online to numerous forums and blogs or track down some farmers in your area, along with nursery workers and gardeners, to get a feel of the best species to plant in your area, what vegetables will grow strong and hardy, and you’ll learn how to have the garden of your dreams as well!