Gardening isn’t just about tending to plants; it’s a powerful therapeutic practice that nurtures both body and soul. Whether you have a sprawling backyard or a tiny balcony, connecting with the earth through gardening can significantly impact your mental and emotional well-being. Let’s explore how digging in the dirt can cultivate resilience, mindfulness, and healing.
1. Practicing Acceptance
Gardening teaches us to embrace the ebb and flow of life. As we sow seeds, we relinquish control over their growth. We learn to accept the unpredictability of weather, pests, and seasons. Just like in life, we can’t control everything, but we can create the best environment for growth. The garden becomes a canvas for practicing acceptance—of imperfections, setbacks, and the beauty that emerges despite it all.
2. Grounding and Mindfulness
When our hands touch soil, we ground ourselves in the present moment. Gardening invites mindfulness—a deliberate focus on the task at hand. As we plant, weed, or water, we engage our senses fully. The scent of damp earth, the texture of leaves, the warmth of sunlight—all anchor us in the now. In a world of distractions, the garden becomes our sanctuary of presence.
3. Connection with Nature
Amid concrete jungles and screens, the garden offers a direct link to nature. The rustling leaves, the chirping birds, the dance of butterflies—they remind us of our interconnectedness. Studies show that exposure to green spaces reduces stress, anxiety, and depression. So, step outside, dig your fingers into the soil, and let nature’s healing energy envelop you.
4. Physical Activity and Vitality
Gardening is a workout for body and soul. It engages muscles, improves flexibility, and boosts cardiovascular health. The rhythmic motions of planting and weeding release endorphins—the body’s natural mood lifters. Plus, the vitamin D from sunlight nourishes our bones and spirits. Gardening isn’t just about growing plants; it’s about cultivating vitality.
5. Creative Expression
The garden is our canvas, and plants are our palette. Designing flower beds, arranging pots, choosing color schemes—it’s all creative expression. Whether you’re a seasoned gardener or a novice, experimenting with shapes, textures, and combinations sparks joy. The garden becomes an evolving masterpiece—a testament to your unique vision.
6. Sense of Accomplishment
Harvesting your first tomato, witnessing a bloom, or nurturing a sapling to maturity—these moments fill us with pride. Gardening provides tangible rewards. It’s a reminder that effort yields results. When life feels chaotic, tending to a garden offers a sense of purpose and accomplishment.
7. Community and Connection
Gardens bring people together. Community gardens foster camaraderie, shared knowledge, and a sense of belonging. Whether you swap seeds with a neighbor or chat over a fence, gardening connects us. It’s a language spoken across generations—a bridge between young and old, novice and expert.
My first start; My Experience
For the past years, I have wanted to start a garden and I finally did this year with the push of others also. Before I got into it I was seeing so many different videos and pictures of what was going on with the earth and our foods being genetically processed with different chemical activates. It made me want to start my own and prior to starting my own, my grandfather had started a garden in our back yard and also his own. Growing corn, okra, lettuce, tomatoes, watermelon, and so much more. It was so beautiful to see the fruits and vegetables come alive with the works of his hands and sweat. Very sad to say I didn't really go out and help much. Sometimes me and my mom if we could remember we would water it. Half of the time I didn't even know that he was out there till I would open my bedroom blinds for light. I was also more of not wanting to be in the way but it would have been a great way to bond with him even more. But there were great moments of him walking us around showing what he had grown and picking them to eat and taste.
Seeds and Seeding
So luckily from that point, I was able to have a lot of my seeds from leftover send bags my grandfather had from previously starting his gardening journey. But I have yet to use any of those sends to start at this part of my journey. They will be used in the future of course. I happened to start out with fresh and raw sends from the fruits and vegetables out of my kitchen. Those monthly groceries that you purchased have an extended purpose. The seeds from the peppers, tomatoes, papayas, other fruits, and vegetables from when you cut them up. You can either put them in the soil right then and there or let them sit and dry to store them for later. Or when you sometimes forget or just don't get to the other foods like potatoes, ginger, and sweet potatoes that seem to regrow a green sprout out you can either hydro grow them or stick them and soil. And with the fruits that I don't get to and they ended up rotten I just mash them to get the seed and throw the rest in the compost.
How I started my home mini garden
In 2019 I and my mother started our first compost not knowing when I would actually start a garden. Because I always want to get things right the first time but everything is trial and error to guide you in the right direction. First using storage bins to start with using scraps of fruits, vegetables along with their skins, worms from prier fishing, grass, sticks, and leaves, we began the process. And at the beginning of this year transferred it to a big trash can that was an extra. But going back to the bins due to it being easier to stir for oxygen. For my pots, I end up buying microfiber pots Which I really love so if it is overwatered it can easily escape. Then also using saved jugs and containers putting holes in the bottom for drainage. Since I already had my compost soil made already. We went and bought more soil to mix with adding eggs shell for more nutrients and playgrounds sand for better drainage. And this is how it all began.
So, grab a trowel, feel the soil, and let your hands create magic. Gardening isn’t just about plants; it’s about nurturing your soul. As you tend to your garden, remember that you’re also tending to yourself. Cultivate wellness, growth, and resilience—one seed at a time.
STARTING FROM MAY 2021 TILL NOW NOV 2021
(1 tier: tomatoes, dandelion, ginger, sunflower)
(2 tier: 5 ginger, peppers, potatoes, 2papaya)
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