There is a lot of research on the benefits of gardening and maybe the question should be “why not garden?” The benefits of gardening apply equally to children, young adults and older adults. In fact, one of the largest groups of new gardeners are millennial’s. Just think about how you felt that last time you observed the beauty of a flower or the joy of harvesting a vegetable you planted. The good news about gardening is that the benefits are broad, let’s read on.
Increase Vitamin D – We naturally get vitamin D from the sun and gardeners spend a good amount of time outside, I know I do. Ultraviolet rays from sunlight strike the skin and trigger vitamin D synthesis. Vitamin D aids in calcium absorption and thus helps protect our bones. This is particularly important as we age.
Decrease Stress – Who among us couldn’t benefit from a reduction in stress. When I am in the garden I am “in the moment”. That moment can be preparing the soil for planting, nurturing a seedling, observing the beauty or harvesting what I have grown. I am being mindful of each action I take and can be so focused as if I were meditating. You also get a lot of exercise from gardening, bending, digging, planting, watering, etc. Research has shown that all these activities improve your overall health, reduce stress and contribute to a feeling of well-being.
Improve Healthy Eating – when you grow your own vegetables you become more conscious of how things are grown and what you are consuming which usually leads to a healthier diet. This has certainly been the case for me. Not only that, but I have increased the variety of vegetables and herbs that I eat.
Increase Creativity – One of the unexpected benefits for me is the feeling that I am being more creative. Gardening comes with its share of challenges and learning how to overcome requires you to think and read and experiment. I believe that his skill can easily transfer to the workplace because the garden can teach us how to take risks and deal with failure and success.
Lower grocery billS – the cost of getting the quality we want in the supermarkets can be high. When I talk to friends and family about organic produce, I usually get a similar refrain. “It is so expensive and what is the real benefit?” I challenge them and you, start a garden and grow your own organic vegetables.
Increase property value – with gardening being so popular, families shopping for a new home may see this as a value add to your property. It can certainly be used to market your home.
Connect with neighbors – Gardening is a great conversation starter. You can get and give advice, share your harvest and beautify your property.
Join a Community Garden – Community Gardens are a great way to connect with people who have similar interests and to learn from one another.
Garden with your children – What a great way to spend quality time with your children. Children love to work in the soil and the joy on their face when they see the seed, they planted, grow is priceless.
Carbon Dioxide Reduction – Managing healthy organic soil will lower the amount of carbon dioxide that is emitted into the atmosphere. This contributes to less green-house gases. It is a small part that we can all do.
Reduce chemical application – by creating a garden and reducing your lawn space, you can reduce the chemicals that are applied to a lawn. This was one of my goals and now we have about 50% of our backyard dedicated to flower and vegetable gardens.
Reduce Waste – Compost piles are a great way to ‘recycle’ many of your vegetable scraps, coffee grounds, lint from you dryer (see my post on compost recipes).
So, what are you waiting for? Remember you can start small, get experience and ‘grow’ from there!
The Benefits of Gardening: https://www.lovethegarden.com/community/ideas-inspiration/benefits-gardening
Raising Kids Outdoors: https://www.backwoodsmama.com/2018/03/how-gardening-benefits-kids.html
I really love starting seeds indoors because there is such a joy when the seedlings emerge. Next, watching as the seedling matures enough to be planted is equally rewarding. Finally, the biggest excitement, of course, is from either harvesting a food you have grown or seeing a beautiful flower develop. In addition, I like having complete control over how much I plant and when I plant. In th
Crop rotation is one of the key practices followed by organic gardeners/farmers. Crop rotation is the practice of moving vegetables around your garden each year (e.g. not planting your lettuce in the same place each year). Why is this important? Rotating crops does two key things, first it interrupts the insect and disease cycle that may have disturbed your vegetables in the prior year and
For years I planted my vegetable garden with little thought of preparing a plan. That worked fine when I had two 4’x4’ beds and only grew tomatoes and cucumbers. As the size of my garden expanded to 400 square feet, I realized that planning would not only be beneficial but was needed. In my first attempt at planning, I started the planning process when I transplanted seedlings in the garden
Microgreens are one of the most profitable crops you can grow.They can be grown in a small space and can sell for $50 per pound or more, making them an ideal crop for small farms and urban growers.In an area as small as a shipping container, garage, or basement you could potentially be earning six figures in revenue per year!The set up cost is low and the growing cycle is super quick, meaning you can be harv