A tidy garden filled with an array of beautiful flowers and comfortable furniture provides us with an ideal environment for some much-needed relaxation, especially during the spring and summer months. But have you ever considered how the act of gardening itself can be of amazing value when it comes to your mental health?
For gardening enthusiasts, it will naturally come as a joy to grow and prune plants, harvest crops and keep the area looking pristine all year round. For others, it may feel like a chore, but now is the time to turn that mindset around and think about how it can aid our mental health, focus, and concentration!
Here are tips from gardening expert Fiona Jenkins at MyJobQuote.co.uk on the ways that spending time working on the garden can provide a boost to your body and mind:
Improves Mood and Relieves Stress
Focusing your attention on the task of gardening can reduce negative thoughts and help you to feel more peaceful and content in the moment. It can provide a welcome break from our daily lives, which are often dominated by technology, and help us to reconnect with nature.
For many, simply spending time around plants and breathing in the fresh outdoor air can provide a great relief to stress levels. It can help us feel more grounded and connected to the world around us, which, in turn, has a huge positive impact on our mood.
Boosts Self-Esteem
Helping plants to grow and improving the overall appearance of your garden is a big achievement that will make you feel positive about yourself. When you see the work that you have put into creating a beautiful outdoor sanctuary pay off, your sense of pride gets a boost.
Getting directly involved in this hands-on task and subsequently seeing the result of your efforts can help you achieve a deeper sense of worth and purpose. Gardening has been proven to cause an increase in hormones such as dopamine and serotonin, which give us a more positive outlook.
Improves Attention Span
Gardening requires focusing on individual tasks at a time if you want to see a good result, so it can help us to practise concentration. Paying attention to a single activity, such as planting, watering, or pruning, can help you learn how to concentrate on what is in front of you without getting distracted.
Gardening is a great way to practise mindfulness and stay present in the moment as you take the time to put aside all other worries and enjoy the beauty around you. Practising mindfulness has a number of benefits, such as reduced rumination and decreased stress levels.
Provides Exercise
Working on your garden can be a great way to incorporate exercise into your routine without having to go to the gym (or alongside it, if you prefer). Tasks such as weeding, digging, and raking will all burn-off calories and provide the mental health benefits of exercise, all whilst improving your garden.
Regular exercise has been proven to reduce anxiety, depression, and other mental issues and keep our bodies and minds in good working shape. It can also help you sleep better, which is another key element of achieving good physical, mental, and emotional health.
Boosts Your Immune System
Spending time outdoors in the fresh air with exposure to natural light rather than being stuck in front of screens all day can provide a big boost to your immune system. Gardening outside in the sunlight will provide your body with a good dose of Vitamin D, which will help you build resistance against chronic disease.
Furthermore, getting your hands dirty needn’t be seen as a bad thing! ‘Friendly’ soil bacteria, which is common in garden dirt, has been shown to alleviate symptoms of conditions such as allergies, asthma, and psoriasis – and a healthy body will contribute to a healthy mind.
Strengthens Social Bonds
Gardening can help to strengthen your connection with others as you work to achieve the same goal. Involving family or friends in your gardening tasks will turn it into a social activity full of conversation and quality time spent together, allowing you to share your sense of pride with loved ones.
Another fantastic idea is to garden with others at a community centre or other group setting, which is great if you are an avid gardener or looking to take the first steps toward mastering it. Being part of a larger group working together to achieve shared goals can benefit your mental health by increasing your social connections and support system.
Final Thoughts
Whether gardening is an activity you have found joy in over the years or a new skill that you are looking to explore, it will do wonders for your mental health if you give it adequate time and care. The key is persistence – if things don’t go quite right at first, don’t be hard on yourself! Take pride in the small achievements and enjoy reaping the benefits of your quality time spent outdoors.
