Gardening: A Hobby for Your Health and Happiness

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Gardening: A Hobby for Your Health and Happiness

Gardening A Hobby for Your Health and Happiness

Gardening, by definition, is the practice of growing and cultivating plants as part of horticulture. Gardening can be done just for fun, for food, and as a profession.

Studies show that gardening can boost your happiness and increase your health. Gardening has been around since prehistoric times. Now, we can find them in all shapes and sizes ranging from container gardens to factory farms.

For Your Health:

Growing your own food means you know where it came from and how it was grown. If you grow your own food, you’re getting fresh produce that you know hasn’t been treated with pesticides.

Everyone needs vitamin D, which increases calcium levels, and helps keep our immune system and bones healthy. Gardening outside can be a good way to increase your exposure to sunlight, which can increase your level of vitamin D.

Gardening can have extra special benefits for kids. Early exposure to dirt has been linked to a number of health benefits, including reducing allergies.

For Your Happiness:

Whether you’re looking to grow a few herbs in your windowsill or you’re hoping to scale to a full-sized farm, getting your hands in the dirt can be good for your health. Digging around in the dirt can be quite the workout, which is good for your heart.

Gardening also helps reduce symptoms of depression and anxiety by giving you a task to focus on with a goal in mind. Just breathing in the fresh air (or dirt) can improve mood. Inhaling M. vaccae, a healthy bacteria that live in soil, can increase levels of serotonin and reduce anxiety.

Read More: How Gardening Reduces Stress

The Beginning of Gardening:

Forest gardening is the world’s oldest form of gardening, originating in prehistoric times along jungle-clad river banks and in the wet foothills of monsoon regions. The families who lived there were the first gardeners. They protected and improved useful plants, while undesirable plants were eliminated.

Fruits, vegetables, and herbs can be used for more than just-food. Plants have been used to make dyes, medicines, and cosmetics. Flowers and foliage are grown to look pretty. Aesthetically pleasing gardens have been used as a sign of wealth for centuries.

Today, gardening takes many forms. They can range from large scale fruit orchards to container gardens on a windowsill or balcony. Gardening may be very specialized, with only one type of plant grown, or involve a variety of plants. Growing your own food today is not a common skill. It takes time and effort to learn, but the reward it worth it.

Why You Should Garden:

Gardening is a tool humans have used for centuries. It provides food, medicine, sources for clothes and so much more. Getting outside, breathing in the fresh air, and soaking in the sun provides health benefits and increase happiness.

Gardening is a chance to practice patience and listen to nature. For everything, there is a season. We are all connected. It does take time, knowledge, and a bit of luck, but the labour is all worth it when you get to harvest season.

Sources:

https://healthtalk.unchealthcare.org/health-benefits-of-gardening/

https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC5153451/

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Gardening

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