Gardening as Meditation: Nurturing Body and Mind
Being close to the nature always gives us calming effect. But the truth is for many of us we don’t have to be near them especially if you’re living in a big city. The solution? Create your a garden. Gardening is not only therapeutic, it also bursts with meditation and other benefits.
Gardening can be a combination of moving and focused meditation. It involves slow and light motions combined with rhythmic breathing while staying mindful and focused in your activity and environment.
According to a recent study among Japanese aged 60 years in Japan, gardening is associated with good health, happiness, healthy diet, social skills and active lifestyle.
Gardening contributes positively to the health of Japanese people aged 60 years and older living in the community.
US National Library of Medicine
National Institutes of Health
This is also reflected in the book “Ikigai” or the reason for being. This book features the lifestyle of centenarians in Japan. All of these Japanese people cultivate their own garden, cook their homegrown vegetables, and share their produce with their neighbors. These centenarians see gardening as their way of cultivating their body, mind and heart.
Back in the past, farming and gardening considered to be the best way to survive. Our ancestors had to cultivate their land and plant their crops as way of living. People back then considered to be way healthier compared to us now. What’s their secret? It’s not only about farming or gardening that helped them but it’s also about being physically and socially active through free activities. They were a lot healthier and stronger compared to us. They lived more for free. Farming and gardening was one of their keys.
In another study, their results highlight that regular gardening on allotment sites is associated with improved physical, psychological and social health.
US National Library of Medicine
National Institutes of Health
They didn’t have any source of entertainment or even meditation. All they had to was to go their garden and they would definitely make friends or even an enemy with another tribe. Just like the people in this era, they would be in the nature if they want to be in a state of meditation although the term was not created back then.
Many celebrities are crazy about gardening including Oprah Winfrey, Julia Roberts, Jake Gylenhaal and Princes Charles. They find peace and joy in their garden when they are not in the spotlight.
Gardening Benefits: Scientific Evidence
Gardening itself is motivating especially if your flowers blossoming or your vegetables are ready to harvest. Not only that because gardening has a whole heap of mental, physical and social benefits, including:
- Meditation
- Stress Relief
- Positive Mood
- Positive Aging
- Active Lifestyle
- Weight Loss
- Social Health
- Money Saver
Meditation
This is one of the best place where you can meditate and reflect. Why? The element of nature has its relaxing and calming effect. The environment is suitable for meditation practices especially movement and focused meditation.
If you simply want the background of your garden as your meditation space. Then suit yourself. Practice moving meditation such as walking, Tai Chi, Qi Gong or yoga while being surrounded by your nature.
If you want to get dirty while meditating at the same, gardening can also be a form of meditation. Just remember to do it slowly and mindfully. Your mind focusing on your sensation and breathing. As you touch the dirt or leaves, feel them as if you were part of them.
Wanna bring your garden meditation to a different level, practice chanting your mantra or your repeated sounds while gardening.
Stress Relief
Whenever I’m feeling blue, the garden is my refuge. By merely looking at those planted pots, it gives me a sense of relief and solace. Because of this therapeutic effect, I make sure to bring a piece of this nature in my office. Your office can be a good place to meditate as well especially if you will give it some meditation elements.
Exposure to nature through gardens and gardening activities can enhance psychological well-being through emotion regulation and relief from stress.
In one relevant study among 331 gardeners aged 60–95 years from Australia, the results of this study show that regardless of ‘being’ in the garden or ‘doing’ gardening, gardens provide important restorative benefits for older adults.
US National Library of Medicine
National Institutes of Health
This study gives us the idea that you don’t necessarily need to do gardening in order to improve you well-being. The mere fact of being in the garden has its therapeutic effect. Combining it with meditation can maximize the potentials of its restorative effect.
Positive Mood
Your mood is a key indicator of your happiness. For those days when we fell down, being in the garden or doing gardening will cheer you up. One advice is to sit in the garden. You can also bring your book while relaxing. Why not create your indoor garden if you live in a city?
Subjective happiness and feeling a reason for living were positively correlated with health and with gardening with others.
US National Library of Medicine
National Institutes of Health
Positive Aging
Aging is part of life. But to age positively and beautifully is pretty challenging. One way to celebrate our aging is to combine it with gardening. It is proven our physical health and well being. Gardening gives us non-exercise activity that stays us active. The produce that we’re making also reminds us of healthy diet and nutrition. Garden is also your meditation place with its restorative effect. The act of sharing to your friends and neighbors is an act of kindness.
The current study provides support for promoting positive aging through gardening.
US National Library of Medicine
National Institutes of Health
Active Lifestyle
Want to be active but feeling unmotivated to exercise? Gardening is one of the most enjoyable way to increase your NEAT or non-exercise activity thermogenesis. To make it even more challenging you can rake leaves in your garden and lose 228 calories in 30 minutes.
Having a garden is like having a serious relationship. You can ignore it; otherwise, it will wither and die. It’s a good responsibility for us to take while being active at the same time. So instead of binge watching, spend a couple of hours outside and sweat.
One UK study found that moderate to heavy gardening activity of four or more hours per week was associated with significantly reduced risk of morbidity and mortality rates in a sample of middle-aged and older men with cardiovascular disease.
US National Library of Medicine
National Institutes of Health
Weight Loss
Good news for us who want to lose weight. By gardening, we can lose weight and stay active at the same time. Whether we like it or not, sometimes instead of hitting the gym, all we want after our nine-to-five job is to simply go home.
The benefit of heaving a garden is its therapeutic and restorative effect. So just spend some minutes meditating in your garden or simple walk around them. You’re even luckier if it’s time for you to pick those fresh tomatoes and put in in your salad. Combining gardening and the produce in your healthy diet like making a bowl of fat-burning salad is a surefire for a perfect shape of you.
Someone weighting 60 Kg or 132.28 lb gardening burns 228 calories in 60 minutes. This value is roughtly equivalent to 0.07 pound or 1.04 pounds or 29.5 grams of mass (fat and / or muscle).
- Doing this activity 3 times a week for 60 minutes will burn 0.78 pounds or 0.35 Kg a month.
- Doing this activity 5 times a week for 60 minutes will burn 1.3 pounds or 0.59 Kg a month.
Social Health
You don’t need to join a garden club to enjoy this benefit. You have your neighbors who are also benefited by merely looking at your beautiful garden. There are many ways to improve your social health through gardening like inviting your family or friends in gardening or in picking vegetables. You will feel proud of yourself. Your circle of friends will also appreciate your act of kindness and generosity.
Instead of staying inside the house, why not brag them about your garden. Educate your children by showing them how to tend a garden. Throwing a party in your garden is also a great for bonding while showing yoru accomplishement.
Gardening groups offer a way for people to connect with nature and each other, allowing social benefits to accrue.
US National Library of Medicine
National Institutes of Health
Money Saver
Last but not the least, your garden can save you a lot. Those vegetables in the supermarket labeled as organic are usually pricier. But yours is free. Can you imagine that? If you have overflowing harvest, share them with your neighbors or friends.
Since you are sweating in the garden, you may want to cancel your gym membership if you don’t actually have time to workout. There are other fun exercises that you can do in the garden or from the comfort of your home.
Here’s one more thing. You’re spending less in your vitamins and supplements. You are getting the direct benefit from the sun which is a good source of vitamin D. The nutrition value of your healthy vegetables and diet plan coming from your garden is an indicator that you are getting the recommend nutrition.
How to Garden in Your Tiny Space
If you live in a flat, space is not an issue to build your own garden. You need to get pots, bottles, glasses and shapes. Then carefully select the kind of vegetables or plants, and plan where you can strategically place them in your place.
First, identify if you want to use soil, water, air or a combination of three. Soil is perfect to grow plants but you have to spend time cleaning your place. This is the benefit of getting glass or bottles to grow your plants. This is my choice as I don’t have much time to clean up often. Orchids are also perfect choice as they need less water.
After identifying whether you use soil or water, think of what to grow. Cactus, orchids, herbs and water plants are the ones that you can see in my place. They are space-saving plants that gives me the advantage to move them anywhere in my unit. They are also economical as they don’t consume much of your time, energy and resources.
Indoor plants can increase humidity and produce oxygen. For people like me who have rhinitis, they are good for purifying air quality and removing toxins. Those little pots have potentials to improve your mood, focus and creativity. Your place can be an instant meditation place if you are surrounded by plants because of their therapeutic and restorative effects.
Do you really want to grow vegetables and not just plants for decoration? Watch this video.
8 Vegetables to Grow in a Small Space
There are vegetables and herbs that you can grow regardless of how big or small your place is.
- Carrots
- Kale
- Mushrooms
- Beets
- Bell peppers
- Potatoes
- Herbs
- Microgreens
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