How does YOUR Garden Grow?
This will not go down as one of the top ten springs in recent history. Cold, windy and rainy best describes it but those of us who love playing in the dirt are not to be deterred. I dodged raindrops this morning to get some new perennials (plants that come back year after year and even multiply!) for a garden I’m rehabbing in front of the house as well as some herbs to replenish the herb pots that sit on my patio all summer. Try as I might to winter them over indoors I seldom succeed longer than January. The rain held off while I was at the garden center but the plants are still in my car because of the deluge that followed me home. And as eager as I am to start digging in the dirt today is just not going to be the day to do it.
Do you garden? If not why not? Did you know that 45 minutes gardening can burn as many calories as a 30 min. heart healthy aerobics class? It’s a lot more fragrant than exercising in a sweaty gym also. You don’t even need a yard to garden. Container gardening has really come into its own. Tomatoes, herbs, flowers, can all be grown in large pots on a patio, or in a sunny window. They only need sun, water and a lot of love.
Baby boomers are gardening. 33% of boomers in a recent survey listed gardening as a hobby. Some of us have traded in our running shoes for gardening clogs as our knees and hips age.
Benefits are numerous, not only physical benefits but mental and spiritual as well. Gardening provides moderate exercise, fresh air and, believe it or not ,extra Oxygen is given off by the plants you are working with! Planting and weeding strengthens fine motor skills and gross motor skills are polished by raking and digging. Studies show an increased excitement about life, improved sleep patterns, and a decreased risk for osteoporosis and diabetes in those who garden.
In our everyday world we are bombarded with data, with demands on our time and attention. We are maxed out in “Pay Attention” time. We do NOT have an endless capacity for all the input we are hit with daily. Cell phones and e-mails, texts, faxes all demand our attention. When we reach the end of our supply we get irritable, stressed and error prone. This is known by scientists as Attention Fatigue. We need to replenish ourselves with involuntary attention activities. Gardening is just such an activity according to University of Michigan researchers. When we are outside the breeze blows, we get the scent of dirt and plants, feel the dew on the grass, hear the birds – all elemental things to human beings. Our cortisol level (stress hormone) goes down and we start to feel calmer, less stressed.
There is an additional mental effect to gardening recently found by University of Colorado researchers. While it will most likely never replace Prozac, scientists have found that a harmless bacteria, Mycobacterium Vaccae, found in soil increases the the release of serotonin in our bodies. Serotonin is the chemical responsible for cognition and mood. When this mycobacterium enters our body through our skin while we are playing in the dirt gardening it decreases depression and lightens our mood.
Plants, old or new bring back memories from past experiences. It encourages us to research what we don’t know adding to our knowledge base and increasing our self-esteem and decision making skills as we age.
Planning and planting a garden can be an exercise in self expression and creativity. I have had a spot in my front yard for the three years I have lived in this house where I cannot get anything to grow well, including ground cover. It’s shaded and the soil is pretty heavy clay. I’ve done my research and have resigned myself that the color and dimension will have to come from the plant leaves as few perennials that grow in shade give much color after the spring growing season. However many hosta lilies, astilbe, plumaria, fox glove and fern will do well and be visually appealing. I’m excited to go out and watch this garden take shape – if the rain ever quits. I will have a sense of accomplishment when its done.
Spiritual benefits, especially for young children and senior citizens, are found in gardening, relating to understanding the life cycle of living things here on earth, their growth, development and ripening.
Gardening is sensory stimulating, exposing us to various shapes,textures and colors of plants. The smell of newly turned earth, damp and cool in our hands, the smell of plant leaves and flowers all excite the senses.
I hear some of you moaning about aching backs and sore knees, remembered from last years gardening experiences. Let’s talk about Pain Free Growing :
- set modest goals for yourself. You can’t redo the whole yard in a day. Pick an area and concentrate on what needs to be done there. Assess your progress every hour or so. Stop when you get timred.
- Pace yourself. Its not a race – unless you are trying to beat the next storm. Even then its not critical. Leave the plants in their containers in the rain. Retreat to the porch with a glass of iced tea and a good book.
- Take breaks every hour. A 5 minute stretch and a drink of water to rehydrate yourself is enough to keep you going a little longer. Place comfortable chairs and seating groups throughout your garden.
- Stretch before starting. Work all the joints and large muscle groups.
- Use good body mechanics. Bend from the knees, not your waist. Use the large muscle groups to do the lifting and pulling. We have wagons and wheel barrows for a reason – use them to haul the mulch and bags of topsoil.
- Change positions every ten minutes. If you are weeding stand up and stretch.
- A garden kneeling bench is such a great asset for your knees. Most can be used either for kneeling or for sitting to weed.
Gardening is my summer blessing – doing something I love that is painless exercise, creative, fulfilling and when the tomatoes in the large pots ripen – tasty.
Have I convinced you?
Think about it.