Garden therapy?

[puglogic]

I'm just back from a dreadful trip back to see my family of origin (funeral). Toxic family, grudges, materialism, wastefulness, media-consumed, narcissistic. I feel like I've just been the losing fighter in a boxing match.

So I find myself spending tons of time in the garden. Pulling weeds, smoothing out the soil, mulching, fertilizing. And even when I run out of tasks, I find I just sit there in the closest shady chair, watching the bees come and go, seeing the little birds picking bugs off the plants....literally for hours if I could.

Does anyone else find being in their garden or small farm therapeutic in times of trouble?

[iris lily]

After my father died, I remember the healing peacefulness of working in my garden. Immediately after he died, for two weekends in a row, I had major mondo obligations to fulfill and that raised my stress level since I didn't want to socialize but had no choice. But once I was able to go out and weed and clean in the garden for 3 days, that gave me what I needed to get straight in my head.

Speaking of weeding, this year I've been blasting a lot of Roundup in places I've NEVER used Roundup due to way too many weeds and far too little time. Anyway, what I'm finding is that I don't get to know each plant in the same way that I normally do when weeding around them. In my home garden I don't want a production garden, I want cherished plants (unless they don't perform, then they are out! Out to the compost heap! We are loving but firm here, ha ha) There is nurturing in small scall garden care and that is good for us humans.

I have production gardens elsewhere where each plant isn't known and loved, it is there to produce bloom.

[JaneV2.0]

Just the opposite. Yard work just seems like War on Nature to me. If I had a private corner, I'd find sitting out in the middle of my indigenous plants listening to birds and bees therapeutic, though, absolutely.

[herbgeek]

I find pulling weeds to be very soothing when I have emotional upsets. Better than just sitting and fretting- I get the added satisfaction of having accomplished something useful. :)

[Gina]

Does anyone else find being in their garden or small farm therapeutic in times of trouble?
I find doing things in the garden theraputic at all times. :) It is one of the most relaxing things I do, even when hard labor is involved. I spent several hours outside yesterday shoveling, flattening, and moving very large pots... and felt so good afterwards.

First thing almost every morning, I walk around 'surveying the kingdom' just to check everything to see what's happened, what's blooming/fruiting, and what needs doing. This morning was no exception. In my mind there are several inviting tasks that I am looking forward to, even weeding. I want to set up some hydroponic lettuce, transplant a few more blueberries, 'do' the raspberries, trim the oleandar, clear under the plum tree.... The list is endless, but for some deep primal reason, it almost always seems more play than work.

When gardening I can totally lose myself in time...

[Jemima]

I find doing things in the garden theraputic at all times. :) It is one of the most relaxing things I do, even when hard labor is involved. I spent several hours outside yesterday shoveling, flattening, and moving very large pots... and felt so good afterwards.

First thing almost every morning, I walk around 'surveying the kingdom' just to check everything to see what's happened, what's blooming/fruiting, and what needs doing. This morning was no exception. In my mind there are several inviting tasks that I am looking forward to, even weeding. I want to set up some hydroponic lettuce, transplant a few more blueberries, 'do' the raspberries, trim the oleandar, clear under the plum tree.... The list is endless, but for some deep primal reason, it almost always seems more play than work.

When gardening I can totally lose myself in time...

That's exactly the way I feel about gardening. My job is very frustrating, but if I putter around pulling weeds and whatnot shortly after getting home I forget all about it. Give me half an hour and I won't remember *where* I work, let alone how bad it is.

[puglogic]

Give me half an hour and I won't remember *where* I work, let alone how bad it is.

ROFL! SO true!

This morning I walked down to one of the gardens I "sharecrop" (their owners aren't planting anything in them this year, so I'm borrowing the space). It's very sunny, has lots of wildflowers surrounding it, and is next to a creek. Beats an hour in a therapist's couch any day, I was thinking. Glad I'm not the only one!

[leslieann]

Welcome back, pug. I am glad to hear that the garden is so helpful.

The summer after both of my parents died, I mucked around in dirt and planted a perennial garden. Actually, I mostly moved stuff around, then moved it around some more. Anyway, for a number of years the fruits of that work were beautifully visible every summer. So it was therapeutic to do, and then gave lasting value in terms of reminding me of that intense summer.

[jania]

Weeding is such a zen meditation for me, yes, so therapeutic. My mind just gets such a good break and re-charge. What I have to watch out for is deciding to prune when I need to relax, I might find myself with just a stick-figure of a shrub left!

I came home yesterday after being away for 5 days and in the early evening mowed the back yard, watered and just walked around touching everything and looking. Filled the hummingbird feeders, checked out the bee house and then just sat around for a while looking at everything and at nothing. Very relaxing indeed.