The Healing Power of Gardening for Mental Health

Ahhh, depression, my old foe. It sucks the motivation and joy out of everything for me when I’m under its spell. For the past 16 years, I’ve lived in apartments, some of which had small balconies, and I must admit that just sitting on the balcony was lovely when I didn’t want to face the world. I was still in my own little bubble, but I felt like I was outside and connected in some way too. In the last two years, I experimented with a bit of balcony gardening, and it brought me such joy! I loved watching as the little seeds hidden in the moist fertile soil started to peek through and show their green tips. Even better, when the mint plant grew enough for me to harvest some of the leaves to use for tea, and when the flowers came out bright yellow, so lush!

It got me thinking, is it just me that gets something from gardening? I moved into a house with a gorgeous garden space a few months ago, and I want to get out and do something when spring comes along because I know I will feel better in myself. But why does it do that? I thought I’d delve into the internet and try to find out why gardening might help with depression and other mental health problems. I’m still a scientist at heart, and although I know that it certainly can help (I’ve felt it myself!) I want to know how. I’ve come up with three potential theories for how it can help with mental health:

Mindful Moments

So, you’ve probably heard of mindfulness, right? If not, I have a metaphor that I tend to use which is strangely appropriate for this subject which is taken from my book I'm Not That Depressed:

“Thoughts in my mind are a bit like seeds in a garden. I can choose which ones to water and give food to. The ones that I water, that I feed, that get sunlight and attention are given the things they require to grow. If I decide not to water certain plants, generally they will start to die off. Seasons will come and go, the rain will fall, and the sun will shine to help every plant grow, but I don’t have to nurture them with extra plant food to help them grow out of control if I don’t want them getting taller and taller."

In short, it’s about learning to focus on what you choose to rather than getting caught up in things you don’t want to and learning to let them pass by. It’s about being truly present, and gardening naturally creates this because you are paying attention to what you’re doing. Whether it’s feeling the texture of the moist or dry soil between your fingers, noticing the plants growing, or just sitting back for a moment and hearing the birds chirping while you work away. It all helps to make me feel a bit calmer in the moment and really focus on what’s happening there and then. 

Planting for Purpose

When I’m growing or looking after my plants, I’m getting into a routine of caring for them, giving them what they need to grow, thrive, and flourish. I love seeing what happens when I put the effort in, when the seeds start to sprout, when the mint leaves are ready to pick to make a cup of tea (or to just chew on there and then, yes, I do that too) and seeing a bud finally bloom. I get a real sense of achievement, I feel like I’ve got a purpose in my garden.

Daylight and Depression

We all know that there are vitamins that are supposed to help us feel good, healthy, and strong. Well, I’ve heard from Google that low vitamin D is supposed to be linked to depression. We get a good chunk of vitamin D from sunlight, so it makes sense that if you are gardening outside, you might catch a bit of sunlight every now and again, right? Plus, I love the feeling of the warm sun on my face, which in itself can make me smile!

Final Thoughts

I love a bit of gardening, and I think I love it even more now that I’ve been able to come up with some guesses as to how it helps me. Feeling like I’ve got some purpose, a bit of peace and calm, and the simple joy of feeling the warm sun rays on my cheek. I’m going to make sure I plant some lovely things soon and keep watch over them, nurture them, and see the results bloom later in the year. Oooooh, maybe I could grow my own pumpkin for Hallowe’en! Is it too early to think that? Never!

If you liked this post, make sure you follow me on Instagram @LauraRoseAuthor for more updates and pictures of my plants once I get going with them!

If you're interested in my book I'm Not That Depressed you can find it on Amazon as a paperback and e-book. It's even on Kindle Unlimited! Just click this link to find it .