This page contain affiliate links. Please read our disclosure below for more information.
Benefits of Gardening: The Perfect Pastime
Gardening has become one of the most popular hobbies for a good reason.
According to a report compiled by Texas A&M AgriLife Extension, there are many benefits to being around plants, including:
Reducing Stress – Studies show that people who spend time cultivating plants have less stress in their lives. Plants soothe human beings and provide a positive way for people to channel their stress into nurturing.
Mental Health – Studies have proven that people who spend more time outside in nature have better mental health and a more positive outlook on life.
Therapeutic Effects of Gardening – Gardening can act as therapy for people who have undergone trauma. The act of nurturing something is a way for people to work through the issues surrounding traumatic events and improve their mental health.
Flowers Generate Happiness – Flowers and ornamental plants increase levels of positive energy and help people feel secure and relaxed.
Improves Relationships/Compassion – Research shows that people who spend extended lengths of time around plants tend to have better relationships with others. This is due to measurable increases in feelings of compassion; another effect of exposure to ornamental plants.
Learning – Research shows that children who spend time around plants learn better. In addition, being around natural environments improves the ability of children with Attention Deficit Disorder to focus, concentrate, and engage more with their surrounding environment.
Medicinal Properties – Cultivating plants is beneficial to humankind because of the many medicinal properties of trees and foliage plants.
Recommended book: Medicinal Herbs – A Beginner’s Guide 33 Healing Herbs
In addition, more and more people are turning to a vegetarian or a vegan lifestyle. Numerous studies have shown the many health benefits of switching to a plant-based diet including improved cardiovascular health and lowered risks of developing certain diseases such as diabetes or certain types of cancer. Plus, this eating lifestyle boosts the immune system, can be helpful for losing weight and people report feeling better.
Growing your own food in a vegetable garden is a great way to ensure that nothing toxic is used on your food, as you can decide what types of products and organic options to use to grow your plants and to control pests and weeds.
Depending on where you buy fruits and vegetables, much of the produce sold in supermarkets has had contact with pesticides. Even the transporting of vegetables can cause tons of carbon dioxide to be released every day.
Vegetarians and vegans, as well as people who follow other types of diets, want to reduce their carbon footprint and to do what’s best for themselves and for nature.
A better way to eat, as well as reduce the carbon footprint, is to create a garden to grow your own food.
It’s not difficult to create a garden that’s good for you. To be successful with this type of garden, you’ll need to leave the soil as it is. When the soil is broken, it can mess up the natural balance.
Recommended Book: Kitchen Gardening for Beginners
Plus, it lets nutrients leach out. Gardeners can follow a no-dig method by using straw bales or building a no-dig garden. This is done by using compost or the straw over your gardening area.
To aerate the soil, let earthworms do the work because they won’t damage the soil.
Fertilize the soil naturally using nutrients provided by organic material.
One issue that can sometimes crop up in any garden is the pests that can harm food or plants.
To prevent this, use natural pesticides. These consist of food items that you can eat but pests don’t like. Among them are garlic or certain essential oils, such as peppermint mixed with water.
By starting a garden hobby, you can introduce a wide variety of healthy vegetables and fruits to your diet as well as help to protect the planet.
Let us know what you use to controls pests and for fertilizer. Leave a comment or email LawnAndGardeningIdeas@gmail.com
Click here to Shop for Lawn and Garden Items for Your Home
BUY SEEDS, HELP RAISE FUNDS :
Check out Raíces Cultural Center’s online seed shop: https://www.seedsnow.com/?rfsn=533738.a6a4a
Raíces Cultural Center is a local NJ non-profit organization and an affiliate of SeedsNOW. Any order, no matter the size will help keep funds coming in to the organization through this difficult time of canceled programming. The online shop has hundreds of varieties of veggies, herbs, fruits, and flowers, and offer low-cost sampler packs for $0.99 – $1.99 so you can try planting a diversity of varieties. Please share to help us spread the word, every bit helps!
Disclosure:
Please note that LawnAndGardeningIdeas.com has financial relationships with some of the merchants mentioned on the website. LawnAndGardeningIdeas.com may be compensated if consumers choose to utilize the links located throughout the content on this site and generate sales for the said merchant. LawnAndGardeningIdeas.com is compensated for certain paid links and advertisements. You are not obligated to click on any link or buy any products that are advertised. Per FTC guidelines, this website may be compensated by companies mentioned through advertising, affiliate programs, or otherwise. Any references to third party products, rates, or websites are subject to change without notice. Please do the appropriate research before participating in any third party offers.