We can all understand the health benefits that fresh fruits and vegetables provide for the body, even if we don’t have a home garden. But having a home garden and growing your own organic produce provides much more than just nutritional health benefits, there is also a mind-garden connection that promotes health and well-being.
Relieve Stress
The joy of watching food grow in your organic garden is one of the best ways to relieve stress. The entire process of starting with small seeds and ending with food you can eat provides physical activity that causes the body to release stress-reducing hormones. Plus the gardening tasks allows you to focus you attention on something other than office or family problems.
Recycling
A home organic garden allows you to recycle in a variety of different ways. Food scraps can be recycled into compost that will feed the plants. Rain water can be caught from roof-runoff and used to water plants and lawns. Autumn leaves, grass clippings and newspaper makes great organic mulch for garden. Many other things, like scrap lumber, small plastic food containers, twine and metal stakes have recyclable uses in the garden too.
Animals
Chickens, bees and other beneficial insects benefit from a garden and will help you stay true to growing organic vegetables and fruits. Chickens keep harmful bugs and insects out of the garden by eating them, then provide free organic fertilizer after eating the harmful pests. Bees are essential for pollination and food production and the blooming garden plants will attract and feed the bees. Certain bugs, such as Lady Bugs, are beneficial and provide organic pest control in the garden and are attracted to developing plants.
Family Bonding
Use gardening time to bond with your children. The knowledge gained of growing their own food and time spent with you in the garden will go with a child throughout their lifetime.
Carbon Footprint
An organic garden that recycles food scraps, rain water and other household items also leaves behind less of a carbon footprint for future generations. Less use of natural resources and less chemicals in the soil and water supply means we can leave the planet in better shape for those who come after us.
Sleep Better
The physical labor, reduced stress, better diet and peace of mind that growing an organic garden provides will also promote better sleep. Combine all these factors and you’ll have a healthier body and mind, and it all started by planting an organic garden in your backyard.
Have a healthy-in experience with gardening?
Let us know in the comments!
Don Sky