Nurturing Plants Cultivates Therapeutic Benefits

There are few things in life more satisfying than seeing a vibrant flower garden in bloom. The colours, delicate scents and thriving wildlife are enough to bring calm to any mind. If you’ve been searching for a new hobby or something positive to focus your spare time on, nurturing plants in your home or garden is an excellent choice.

In this article, we’ll discuss the therapeutic value of growing plants, and the effects this has on our mental health and wellbeing. We’ll also give you a few pointers on how you can get started.

Watering Your Way to a Happy and Healthy Wellbeing

Self-care doesn’t always have to involve taking care of our own mind and body. Caring for plants is a great way to boost your overall wellbeing. Here are just a few of the ways that plant nurturing has been shown to help:

• Sense of achievement: As your plant begins to grow, seeing the results of your hard work is bound to leave you feeling proud of your achievement. As you begin to develop your hobby, you’ll also feel more confident in your abilities.

• Happiness: For many of us, being out in nature brings an immediate sense of peace and happiness. In fact, immersing yourself in natural surroundings is an effective way to fight stress and anxiety. By raising plants, you can bring a little piece of nature into your own home.

• Focus: All too often, it can be easy to find yourself scrolling through social media in your spare time, which isn’t always kind to our mental health. You can replace this time with plant nurturing — promoting some healthy time away from your screen.

• Mindfulness: Creating a daily pattern of tending to a plant also helps to encourage mindfulness and awareness of your surroundings. Don’t just take our word for it: research has found that raising plants can actually boost your attention span.

Gardening for Beginners

If you’ve yet to try the benefits of nurturing plants, you might feel that you’re not quite sure where to begin. Fortunately, you don’t need any prior expertise in gardening or horticulture to get started. You’ll also find that there are plenty of low-maintenance plant species that are perfect for beginners. These include:

• Succulents
• Cacti (Cactaceae)
• Prayer plants (Maranta leuconeura)

There’s no need for a huge garden brimming with plants in order to enjoy this nurturing process, either. If you’re short on space, add some mini cacti and succulents to a hanging planter or a couple of pots on your windowsill — they’re also an attractive addition to your home. House plants don’t require any significant physical exertion to take care of, which means absolutely everyone can give it a try. A little watering every few days can go a long way.

You can also find a wealth of inspiration by following Instagrammers, such as the wonderful Poppyokotcha. Her vibrant feed of plants, recipes and illustrations have certainly inspired us to both notice and nurture plants and nature in our own lives. You don’t even need to buy fancy pots or equipment to get started on your mini garden. We’ve been #growingwo with our upcycled pots and empty monodose vials for seed markers. Glass containers, such as empty cosmetic and candle jars are perfect for planting new seeds. Great for the planet and your purse!

Thinking of Giving Plant Nurturing a Try?

The benefits of nurturing plants are incredible; from improving mood to promoting mindfulness. Taking time out of the day to care for plants is also a gentle reminder to take care of ourselves. It shows how just a little care and attention can nourish and nurture — something we can apply to our mental health and wellbeing. As Audrey Hepburn once said, “To plant a garden is to believe in tomorrow.”

The best thing is that everyone can enjoy its therapeutic benefits, and it only requires a small amount of commitment to get started. Although, once you’ve raised a few plants and experienced the benefits for yourself, you may find yourself heading over to the nearest plant nursery a lot more often...

Have plants helped to improve your wellbeing? Let us know your thoughts by leaving a comment below or sending a DM at @wearewo_uk.