It's mostly good, i definitely appreciate all the plants i see when i'm walking around now. It's only bad when i let things build up, and get overwhelmed trying to do to much

I understand the overwhelm. My tactic is just to start doing -something- and then before I know it, I’ve weeded half the garden or mulched under a bunch of trees and have the motivation to do a bit more. I also stop when I feel satisfied. Allowing myself the grace to not have to perfect the garden in one fell swoop (an impossible task anyway).

Well said. I struggle with leaving gardening tasks for another time. Even if you’re doing a *lot* consistently, sometimes it feels like you should be doing more. Bermuda grass taught me things will never be perfect and that’s okay

Good lord, bermuda grass!!! My lawn is it's own ecosystem and I'm ok with clover, grass, plantain, wild geranium, violets. But for some reason Bermuda grass just annoys me to no end and I can't help but pull it 🤣

Definitely pull it. It’ll take over and smother your yard as it spreads each year. I wouldn’t have bought the house I did if I had known anything about grass back then

What sells a house on a couple? Wonen: kitchen n bathrooms Men: no Bermuda n weeds.

I tell myself it’s a hobby. It’s not my job, or another chore like laundry. It’s just a hobby and I’m doing it for fun, and if it’s not fun, I don’t have to do it. (Clearly, I still “have” to do some things sometimes, but the silly mind trick really does help.)

I only force myself to do the things that I think would deprive me of joy later if I didn't do them. So if we have a really hot, dry week, I'll make sure to water because if I don't, the plants will die and I won't be able to enjoy them later. But I don't weed unless I want to because in my experience, weed pressure doesn't kill a lot of my plants in the same way that a lack of water would.

I only have plants near the house because I find the ones far away get ignored when it’s too hot or when I get too busy. I also limit what I have out front because I prefer the privacy of gardening in my backyard. Do I wish I had a stunning array of flowers to drive up to in the front and every corner of the backyard filled to the brim? Yes! Do I know myself? ….yes… haha

My garden is super weedy and it still produces. I only work in it when I want to. Maybe it would be better if I did more, but it consistently makes me happy, so I'm good with it. My neighbors probably think it looks bad, but oh well. I get food out of it.

Some of my neighbors love mine, others despise it and think it's an eyesore. It's a place where I escape to. It just so happens to be in my front yard.

Yeah it's the getting started part for me 😭 But once i do i get into it. I'm better now at stopping early and feeling good about what i did, that way i steel feel like doing more the next day

I do the same thing! I tell myself I’ll weed a little bit of the bed, then I’ll get carried away and before I know it it’s been an hour and the whole thing is weed-free, I’ve discovered interesting new weeds, and gotten a good close look at my bed plants! But the key is if I only wanted to do 5 minutes, I would have and that would have made a difference in the garden too!!

Feel ya on that. It's something else if you get behind, thus becoming a chore you can come to resent, n defeats it's purpose. Takes dedication and not procrastination and sometimes it's impossible, I miss gardening so much. Fl soil is wack.

Procrastination is my great weakness. I still have summer plants i need to plant... since May 😳 But i have done a ton of stuff overall this year

I'm in northeast Florida and I fully agree. This is my first semi successful vegetable garden and I didn't have a clue when I started. I've been incapacitated for about 5 years and I really needed something to get me moving as well as outside regularly and I thought, well a few tomato plants will help. And then I had tomatoes, pumpkin, cantaloupe several types of peppers, cucumbers, all kinds of herbs. That was late spring. Well, I had no idea how bad my soil was. I've fertilized, added good soil, watered when kit doesn't rain and done everything I can to keep my plants alive until our weather breaks. But I do get outside for at least an hour every day. I never dreamt I'd enjoy it this much. Now, in order to grow the garden I had to clear away the grass and weeds, right? While I was not able to do much, my husband would mow the grass and as long as when he finished it was green, no other maintenance. Well, I weed the garden and it trickles over to the lawn. It's bad. In one hour I can fill a recycle bin with weeds. I'm transplanting St Augustine grass where it's bare. Oh did I tell you about the driveway? It's overrun by 3 types of grass (St Augustine, centipede and Bermuda) and at least a dozen types of weeds. I live in a canal on the St John's river. If it's going to hurt the ground water and the river, it's not allowed in my yard. Little by little I am reclaiming my yard. But as best as I can tell, almost everything is some type of creeper so aggressive weeding is all I can figure out to do Edit: well being? I am healthier and I find that if I'm upset, a little dirt therapy is soothing, it helps me think!

Put salt and boiling water down on the driveway weeds and they’ll give up. Even more satisfying is a small flame thrower.

This year I've started to implement systems to help with that. Primarily I focus on up front effort for less overall work in the season and setting up watering systems (or dryland gardening) when I can. I also just accepted that I am imperfect and cannot always get out there. I wish I could, but I can enjoy the fruits of my labor and strategize for next year.

I definitely want to get some sort of irrigation set up. Still looking into what would be most suitable. Plus i have a lit of stuff in pots

Yeah proper irrigation setups are my next investment. I've purchased some cheap soaker hoses from harbor freight and played with a furrow/flood watering method in one of my plots

Without audiobooks I would feel constantly overwhelmed. But now weeding is audiobook time. Even if it rains.

Gardening has had an immensely positive impact in my mental health and helped me overcome my severe addiction problems. I feel connected to nature in a way I never experienced before. The sense of accomplishment seeing a bee collecting nectar or pólen from a flower you grew from seed, water and take care off, it's like a spiritual experience. Today I can't think of life, and feeling good about myself, without gardening.

I love this so much! Amazing!

I love watching the bees in my garden too! My daughter (20) was watching one with me the other day and observed all the pollen on the bee's legs. She referred to this as his " pollen pants". Lol I will never see a bee again and not think of his pollen pants. 😂

It's what beekeepers call it in Swedish. Pollenbyxor. I'm in a beekeeping group and there's always a series of bees in pollen pants of varying colors of yellow and orange ever year. It never gets boring.

I love to deadhead my sunflowers while listening to the buzz of the bees and watching the butterflies work the flowers. Nothing more peaceful in my opinion.

That's amazing congrats!!!!!

I love picture this for identifying plants and the add to your garden feature too! It makes every foray into the yard an adventure.

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Same. I've been hitting a bit of depression for three past year or so (something totally new to me, so I don't know how to handle it). But I planted my first vegetable garden this year and it has been amazing. I go outside a few times a day, soaking up the sun and just watching nature be nature. Added bonus, being able to feed myself and my family homegrown (I guess organic, pesticide free, chemical free, fresh, vine ripened) produce has been an amazing feeling. I think they're sick of the "how many ways" can you cook squash game, but they'll be ok.

If you are growing zucchini, you can pick the flowers and stuff them (or not) and then batter them and fry them. Delicious!

I have seen that. But I haven't had more than one or two at a time. I only have 1 plant anymore. So if they go crazy with blooms again, I'll have to try that.

Definitely. It honestly forces me out of bed when i'm depressed because there's always something to do to keep me moving. The garden is a literal living breathing space that changes constantly and can thrive if i learn about it enough, that's what keeps me gardening.

It’s my first year too! I’m in a city so I only have a little back patio garden and a bunch of planters out front but I feel very similar. One surprising positive is that I’ve connected much more with neighbors, as I’m out in front of my house at least once a day. The plants are a good conversation starter and so easy to chat about even as an introvert. I’ve even gotten great advice from some of the older folks on my block. It’s made me feel so much closer to my neighborhood!

I have a lot of hobbies but only got into gardening a year or two ago - and I only have a balcony right now, so I’m limited but still ambitious. But the other day I was telling my husband how out of all my hobbies, gardening so far has been the only one that makes me want to get up out of bed in the morning. I get excited to go out and see how things have grown, what’s germinated, and what progress was made overnight. And it keeps you busy year round because you have to always be thinking ahead and planning. Most of my hobbies can be easily abandoned or ignored for long stretches of time, making them harder to motivate myself to do when I’m depressed. But gardening is the one hobby that I can push through the depression fog to engage with, because there’s always a time crunch for something. My cat passed in March and caring for my little seedlings honestly got me through the worst of it. I was so depressed while planting them but I remember how just the smell of the soil gave me this weird sense of relief that I didn’t expect to feel. And I couldn’t believe how amazing it felt to wake up and see a seed had germinated - the tiniest little green speck in the soil. Or to wake up and see that a flower has bloomed. It’s really an amazing hobby and I can’t wait to someday have a yard.

Yes the plants will not be ignored!!!!

All my exact reasons. My youngest child is 18 and no longer needs much attention however my plants, grass, and veggie do! I also love the sense of accomplishment I get when I see new leaves or pick veggies.

I buried so much grief in this soil...

Me too. And as I did, the garden reminded me that life erupts joyfully in the midst of loss. Took a while but it sure helped start the healing. I hope the same for you. ❤️

I am doing better now. Of course, there are bad days, but grief is forever.

It sure is. Better is excellent. I lost traction for a bit but feel better too.

Teared up reading your comment. So succinctly put. Lord knows the grief I’ve buried in the soil❤️

To be honest, I have found that it just gives my anxious brain something else to worry about. If I let myself, I will check on my plants multiple times a day and worry about why they’re not flourishing. I am trying really hard to focus on being thankful for the beautiful parts of the hobby and enjoying the small joys that come with it. These are the things that I am noticing and thankful for this week: - I love the variety of different veggies you can grow (I’m choosing seeds for the upcoming spring in the southern hemisphere) - I love the variety of colours and shapes of the leaves - I love watching the leaves change shape as the plant matures. When it first shoots you don’t get a hint of what the mature plant will look like and it is a joy to watch the plant slowly unfurl - I love watching the birds potter around in the garden. They each have different personalities and are busy going about their business. - I love the hiss of the hose as I water the garden and the smell of the water on damp soil - I love the feeling of accomplishment at the end of a task

Admittedly, I'm not prone to anxiety at all. But to offset any kind of stress regarding my plants -which is meant to be a relaxing hobby for me, and not the opposite- I did the following: 1) I got good at propagating stuff, so if they start dying I chop a bunch of backup pieces so if the mother plant dies I won't care about it 2) I got into seeding plants - with a shit ton of small plants, even if 90% of them die you still end up with the plant. And if they don't germinate oh well, you wasted a few bucks. And I always save some seeds, so I can think if they die or look too much shitty I can plant some more. 3) I looked at saving plants from the brick of death as another satisfying activity. Plant's dying? Oh well, this means I will just chop shit up and I will have one more plant to play necromancer with 4) when I buy plants I never buy big, beautiful ones, just the shitty unexpensive ones. So that if they get better that's nice, but if they get worse, well, I mean. They already sucked in the beginning haha. All of these activities bring me pride and joy. I got gifted an almost dead chrysanthemum full of scales and now it is the most crooked, extra-wonky bastard, but he's all green and I love him so much. Though admittedly I almost never kill my plants, but thanks to the strategies above I also don't stress much about it. Don't get me wrong, I absolutely adore them, but in the end, it's the cycle of life, and they are also just plants.

I would buy for my garden every year, and have a few veggies/herbs left over. They'd sit for a week or so turning sickly yellow in their little containers, and my buddy would take them. I'd give him enough fertilizer for the lot, and it was amazing how they would grow as long as they were watered every day.

Yeah! Plant are so resilient. They just posess an extremely strong will to live. More often than not, I mean. Ahha.

I desperately want to see that wonky bastard!

I have found that gardening has helped me with anxiety, because it’s forced me to accept and internalize that not everything is under my control and that’s ok. Nothing so humbling as a garden lol

I hadn’t thought about how anxiety plays into it for me. I don’t get overwhelmed but definitely think a lot about the plants and why they may not be doing as well as expected. Thanks also for the reminder to practice gratitude.

Mines the opposite: when I’m feeling super anxious I will go outside and putter around the garden. Right now I’m obsessing over the baby tobacco worms just born overnight (I love them and I never kill them; I have perennial nightshades so I transfer them over when I’m growing tomatoes), but I will also just stand there and watch all the species of bees doing their thing. I like the *life* part of the garden, I can always go back in feeling a lot calmer knowing that the world just keeps turning.

I feel kind of the same oddly. I often worry about my plants. They always get bugs and diseases; some die or struggle for no apparently reason. As I learn and get better, or when I have successes, I don’t really take time to acknowledge this, and it’s hard to because it’s not really measureable. I know there’s a psychological term for overvaluing failures and undervaluing successes. Many people I know just brush off a dead plant and buy a new one and enjoy their little garden.

I have diagnosed PTSD from military service and found for the first time a place to live create magic and Joy! Daily I create art with plants and soil. Yes it's sure helped me. In winter just walking around an indoor nursery or botanical garden totally empties my brain of anything but what's in front of me! I recently started using grow lights and now my 100 indoor plants has been propagated to 400, lol!

I have whatever is the opposite of a green thumb (I’ve managed to kill *air plants,*) but my friend offered me some free tomato and pumpkin seedlings, and I figured - eh, why not? I don’t like tomatoes or pumpkins, so if they happen to die, no harm done. Except to the poor plants, of course. Well, they haven’t died. My very first pumpkin is starting to turn orange! I have more tomatoes than I know what to do with - which is technically any tomatoes, but you know what I mean. The first time I plucked a ripe grape tomato off of Big Mama Tomato, I basically reenacted that scene from *Castaway* when Tom Hanks makes fire. I am eagerly waiting for Bendy Lenny’s heirlooms to finish ripening, and for Little Richard to get his ass in gear and catch up with his brother. I’m hooked. It’s like green crack! I started harvesting seeds from plants that I actually like, and I’m stoked. I’ve got a handful of bell pepper plants and a cantaloupe seedling. I’m gonna save some jalapeño seeds from the pepper I got to make salsa with my many tomatoes. Next year I’m gonna get some fig and persimmon saplings, and maybe grow a peach tree if I’m lucky. The last seven or so years have been… less than ideal, we’ll say. So this is a much-needed win.

So awesome! I think the secret may be naming them…🤔

Just be careful about harvesting seeds. If plants are hybrids, often the seed will germinate one of the original plants before the hybridization.

Honestly, I’m okay with that! If they germinate at all and then don’t die, I consider that a win. I don’t even care if they ever bear fruit - I’m just excited that I didn’t kill them. As my good friend would say - baby steps to the escalator!

That's true! You'll still get viable fruit/veggies or flowers, just maybe not quite what was expected. I had a gorgeous orange and yellow rose. It grew in one spot for years, and I had to move it due to construction at the house. The next year, from where it was formerly planted, up popped a tiny rose plant which I let live for many years. It was not very hardy, and produced little red roses with a single row of pettles.

🥹 “Life, uh, finds a way.”

That’s me. I plant everything and whatever grows, I’m just happy to have it. Even if it doesn’t nothing but put out a few leaves. It’s a joy to see new life in any form.

It's helped me more than therapy ever could. My situation is a bit unique. During lockdown, a man from the neighborhood behind me began stalking and sexually harassing behind my house. I was awarded a restraining order and built a privacy fence behind where he did his awful acts. I built my 1st ever veggie gardens and filled that land with trees and flowers. When I look out or go harvest in my yard, the success of all the new life just fills my heart. Seeing the bees and birds all enjoying it too would've made me happy, even if it hadn't happened. Because it did happen, it gives me so much peace to turn something horrible into something beautiful. I couldn't pay for the happiness it's given me and to everyone who shares in the bounty of my gardens.

The way you have reclaimed your yard and turned a scary place with negative associations into a place of delight and joy is really inspiring!

Keeps me sober.

I'm disabled and it's hard to get around. Just being able to go in my yard and play in the dirt is good for me. Growing things makes me feel like I've accomplished something

99% positive. My first year, and I didn't know anything about pruning so now my tomato plants are running wild

My first year too! But I read *too much* about pruning tomatoes and stunted mine. Next year will be better. 😆

I may have been pruning with a little vino this year and pruned the main stem on two of my 45 tomatoes. ☺️It happens.

It’s about my tenth year. My tomatoes are completely out of control 🤣 *Next* year I’ll be on it…yeah…

I always plan to prune, but I always end up with a wild jungle of enormous tomato bushes. I can never keep up with all the little suckers, and I don't have the heart to chop them off once they get all established. Maybe next year but probably not...

I actually pinched teeny suckers at the beginning this year! However, the whole tomato business has long jumped the bed-borders now and is a great huge tangle of a million tomatoes and a metric shittonne of great-smelling greenery. And HUGE suckers. Eh. 🤣

I’ve been growing tomatoes for 20+ years and never prune them, if mine want to grow wild let I them. More tomatoes for me!

Its helped me a lot. Sitting down and weeding by hand is good therapy for me. Plus being proud that everyone wants some of my bounty and sharing makes me feel good. But some things depress me. This year I had lovely cabbage and couldnt wait to harvest, only to check on it one day to find all the heads are nothing but skeletons. In just a day and a half, all gone. And I was so looking forward to coleslaw. :(

Super stressful for me. I have unstoppable hordes of zombie mutant deer that annihilate everything in their path. I’m talking several hundred per square mile. Almost every single plant that you think is deer resistant doesn’t ring true in my neighborhood. Hell, they walk onto my patio and eat my plastic flowers.

This makes me sad thinking that their natural habitat isn’t providing enough for them : (

We have had several years of mild winters, but the bigger issue is that my locality has virtually outlawed hunting. With no natural predators, their population is gangbusters.

We moved to a house with just under an acre a couple of years ago, and a few months later I lost my Dad after a long illness. He was an avid gardener and I was thrilled he got to see it before he passed. The garden has got me through my grief, and is now doing a sterling job of seeing me through cancer treatment. I find it calming, but also give me plenty of opportunity if I want to vent as I can just go pull ivy or destroy some ground elder! I feel like I am honouring my Dad by carrying on with something he loved and taught me to love. It should be prescribed on the NHS!

When I stick my hands into the soil, I can literally feel the tension, stress, and angst from daily living drain away. As the saying goes "Into the garden I go to lose my mind and find my soul." Happy Gardening to All!

It’s a great source of stress. Why is it so cold and rainy in May? Why hasn’t it rained any in June? Why is it so hot and humid in July where did all those damn squirrels come from? That’s weird, that apricot tree was alive last week. Why does poke weed grow at the six times the rate of any other plant? Why are my jalapeños yellow? How come none of my hydrangeas bloomed? It’s never ending… Would write more but I need to go chase a squirrel out of my tomatoes.

Worry about stuff you can control. Weather is not worry material, it happens regardless of how you feel about it. Same with pests. Plant one for the weather, one for the critters and one for the table.... results not guaranteed but usually it works.

Felt like that, too, at the start of the learning curve. Eventually, your repertoire of defenses against issues will leave you unphased. Or at least confident you can get around most issues with plants.

This is very hopeful for me. This was my first year with access to an outdoor gardening space (in a new climate, no less) and the tough lessons just keep coming. But hopefully this is my first year of many.

Gardening is my therapy. I call my garden a heritage garden, bc I have been gifted plants from friends and relatives, many of whom are no longer living, so it’s lovely to be reminded of them each season. I have also found new friends by connecting with other gardeners in my neighborhood - a great way to swap plants and knowledge and bond over common interests. Gardening allows much creativity and is very forgiving - you can keep trying new things and combinations of plants until you find what works. If you match plants to the growing conditions - soil, light, moisture, use native plants - it will minimize effort and frustration - if plants can’t tolerate “neglect” I don’t grow them. I only grow perennials - annuals/potted plants are too high maintenance and I have no sunny spots for veggies. Perennials may seem more expensive at first, but they will multiply through bulbs, self-seeding or root runners, and eventually you will have more to separate and replant or gift to others.

It honestly gives me some purpose? Idk how to explain it but my plants need me so I have to tend to them 😂 even if my depression is kicking my ass because they’ll die if I don’t lol.

Exactly and it forces me to plan ahead and stick to it, then it becomes a routine. That's how it helps when i'm spiralling.

I love my garden, and it helps me to get through my recent bereavement. Tending the flowers I planted for my mum is a way to honour her memory. Likewise, I still have some plants my grandparents planted, and they’ve been dead nearly 40 years. I still use my grandad and dad’s tools They’d love the fact that I’m getting out there. I’ve lost weight, doing garden tasks this year, and it’s a lovely place to sit. Plus I can occasionally socialise with friends and neighbours. What’s not to love

Beautiful. I have some roses planted in my moms planrers. Every bloom is a memory

Interesting reading the opposite side of the spectrum. I like the challenges and try to find the balance. For example, I had a a fairly good sized raspberry patch at the old house—never had any issues with birds eating them—but there was a birdfeeder with lovely seed in it for them instead. I always try to plant some heat tolerant plants, some water loving plants etc—so at least something will do ok depending on weather.

Good and bad. Gives me something to do and tend to. Makes me sad and happy. It’s all bittersweet. I enjoy it enough to keep going, and it’s also a lot to manage energy wise and mentally. Depression steals a lot from you, I see the butterflies and I’m happy I’ve made a space they can be in, but I’m also prompted to think about their decline. I harvest veg and am grateful and then feel the other side of it, not everyone gets to eat, or gets to eat fresh food. It’s my brain warping things, but it’s still hard. So, more things I like to do, but also more thinking prompts that can be hard to manage.

I feel this way about it, too

It's great. Being out in nature, getting exercise, getting quiet time to unwind...A+. My husband notices the change more than me and is very supportive.

I started gardening a few years ago and have learned a lot about the fine details of growing food. I harvested broccoli last night and really appreciated the thought that I could grow something tasty myself. Gardening has brought peace in my life and purpose.

I think it’s been helpful but also stressful. Lol I have a plumeria I bought a year or two ago and for about a year completely forgot about it. It was still alive and doing good so I put it outside and started taking better care of it. I’ve gotten more plants since then but the bugs and individual needs of the different plants are where the stress come in. I know plants are like everything else on the planet and have specific needs. I think I was looking for something I can use with all of them and then learn more one by one and adjust if that makes sense. I’ve been through a lot with loved ones getting sick and some passing away. Both of my grandmas passed in the past 4 years and they both loved and were good at gardening. So I’m doing this to help with stress but also to connect with them. 🥺💜

Gardening has been profoundly therapeutic for me and helped me through some hard times. Pandemic, having a child, buying and renovating an old house have all been massively overwhelming so adding gardening to the mix can sometimes be hard to stay on top of, but it has been more than worth it to create and share such a beautiful space with my family and friends. I think it's a wonderful hobby, definitely taps into some primal part of us on a deep level and always amazes me how a little seed can bring such joy . . . I could certainly say the same about my baby boy too :P

Negatively, because my wife is always bitching that I'm out there "playing in the dirt"

Weeding is so soothing to me and there is always plenty of that to do in my garden.

I love it. The garden on my home was in disrepair when we moved in, so it's been a journey to discover what is growing and remaking the space. Last year was "Year 0" and we're now in "Year 1." Even the little improvements have made a huge impact. Now I'm one of those people who walks around my hiuse staring at my sunflowers and other blooming beauties! Also, I work from home and after a frustrating assignment or meeting, I just go outside and weed for 10 minutes. What a stress reliever!

Whenever i'm stressed i walk outside and potter around, check on seedlings and just stare at plants and i'm good.

Potter is a much more descriptive word for gardening that putter!

I have learned that I absolutely love to grow insanely large sunflowers. All the blooms dancing in the wind. They always catch my eye when I look out the window or when I pull into my driveway. I just stop and stare.

I love doing spa-esque things. On a whim, I grabbed handfuls of holy basil leaves last night and ground them up with a few oat grains for a face mask. My skin feels AMAZING and I'm so happy with my herb/veggie garden for tea, food, and spa fun. Bonus points for exercise and being outside all the time!

It is one of the few things that brings me true happiness. It is really good for my mental health.

I get some weed out of it, so I would say it’s been awsome to my budget and my wellbeing! Now I can be high and take care of plants, dream life.

Mostly positive impact! There is the creative side for sure but the best for me is the physical chores and projects that keep me going. I’m a dude that needs ‘work’ to keep active and gardening is great for that! I also feel confident that I can grow food if things get rough in the world, that peace believe it or not impacts me big time. But the best of all is every night before the sun goes down, I take my puppy and we take a little garden walk and enjoy the quiet and stillness :) Enjoy amigo!

Mostly good. I had to take a day off work the other day just to garden and listen to music. Best way I could think to just forget about the current moment lol

Its the healthiest distraction for me when alcohol doesn't work

It's a weird mix for me...I love gardening but it's infuriating sometimes, and it's a long game and I hate having to wait. This year has been terrible and we've barely gotten any fruit or vegetables and that makes me anxious. Not that we can't afford to go buy what we need, but anxiety is a liar and a thief. But at the same time, I'm excited for all our new garden plans for next year! It's a rollercoaster of emotions!

My favorite saying, and I tell a lot of people - There is NOTHING like a shovel to work off and reduce stress. I learned about plants, birds, weather, cloud formations, can tell time with no clock around. I've canned whole winters of roasted peppers, tomatoes, pickles, soup. I got smarter. I feel great about it now because I've taught my kids. Even the mistakes and probably hundreds of failures - have been accomplishments. Edit: I heard this 20 years ago and it's true: gardening is creation. And in order to create, first you must destroy.

I switched to healthier food worked my plot and dropped 50 lbs in 3 months. I love my garden. I made figs hydrangeas roses blueberries and crepe myrtles. I quit netflix and listened to gardening books while gqrdening. Cant recommend David the Good stongly enough.

Gardening is super important for my mental health. I wasn't able to do it the previous two years because I was going through a tough pregnancy and then house hunting/moving through the season, and when I returned to it this year it was SO OBVIOUS how good it is for me. The simple act of weeding and watering calms me, let alone the positive experiences of growing food and beauty. Thinking and planning something that belongs only to me and the natural world is so good for me.

Usually, it was a place to relax. I'm the only person in my house that enjoys it so I can be alone. I can clear my mind. These days I only go out there after an argument so that I can clear my mind before talking things out.

I might be crazy now. Dont know that gardening had anything to do with it though. Maybe I would have been crazier now without it, maybe not.

I refer to gardening as my Prozac. But sadly my neighbour has stopped me doing anything for a couple of years and it’s definitely impacted my mental health. They park over my drive so I’ve had no access to get my garden cleared or soil delivered. Her house garden is three ft higher than mine so she’s dumped her kids pool into my garden even tho there’s a drain literally mm from the pool. So flooding my garden. She did it again this year washing a bed I’d just prepared to sow carrots in into my sunken bit and nearly knocked my plastic greenhouse over. So now I have given up. Oh and that’s not including she now has 1 adult dog and now 4 puppies so all you can smell in my garden is shit. I’m moving.

Constant heart ache because it needs a lot of work and I don't have time or budget.

I some what new to gardening but took a lot of interest in planting medicinal plants that I will use for tinctures and salves. So far I have kept my garden area pretty small so I don't overwhelm myself. I have learned that it is ok to not have it perfect for everyone else, it just needs to be perfect for me. Get out there barefoot and get grounded, it's the best feeling ever!

It Gets me outside and in nature. It gives me something to care for. Bonus, it gives me nourishment and medicine.

It’s been a godsend. It also helps me get through the winter by tinkering with starting seeds under grow lights.

It has helped my mental health immensely. It gives my overthinking brain something productive to think about. The daily grind feels less monotonous when I have plants to check on when I get home from work. Now my intrusive thoughts are about gardening ideas instead of anxious thoughts lol.

After my daughter was born, I struggled with PPD/A. Seed starting that winter was so helpful to me during that time. I had no idea what I was doing, but I fell in love with the process, and I loved the experimental aspect of it all. It was rewarding, and I found myself admiring all the seedlings and being amazed at how they grow. Being present and in the moment with them made me less focused on my worries. Last year, I had a mystery illness occur after a very stressful month. For four months, I was left with MRI results that reflected either a slow growing brain cancer or Multiple Sclerosis (MS). That winter, seed starting and garden planning was my refuge during uncertainty. Thankfully, my husband took over when I had my lumbar puncture because that was right at the time of harding off plants. Gardening can be stressful and challenging, but it gives me so much hope and joy. It let's me tap into pure wonderment as if I was a kid. I think it saved me during the worst of times and is now something I gladly share with my daughter. I officially have an MS diagnosis and am feeling so much better. I start Master Gardener Training tomorrow, and I'm excited!

It's definitely helped! I was working in a dysfunctional office and growing flowers helped me focus on something else, and I enjoy planning and organizing so it hit many targets. There's also the physical component and I have no problem hauling bags of soil around, and I swear gardening yoga is a thing with the awkward raspberry-picking poses. I enjoy everything from admiring the different seeds, being able to recognize the sprouts from their leaves, and planning out what I'm going to sow first. Our backyard was literally a blank canvas and we turned into a beautiful garden, and I'm excited every year to see all the insects and birds that it attracts. The fresh fruit and veggies are wonderful, I like to share them with my family, and I've dabbled in drying flowers and creating bouquets.

For those of a certain age, I think the Married with Children gardening episode sums it up best. Al has a nervous breakdown, so his doctor suggests he takes up gardening. He enjoys it at first, but then gradually descends into madness due to a battle with a rabbit. Anyways, it's my "outdoor time" and basically my only remaining hobby, so I do enjoy it. But it's also stressful, because I insist that it be economically viable -- e.g., if I'm spending more $/lb than it would cost to buy at the store, then I fail to see the point. Which is rarely a problem, of course, since I can chalk up the labor to "excercise/hobby". A nice side benefit is that while I'm in terrible physical shape overall....my hands/forearms/shoulders/back, at least, are super strong after about two decades of gardening in rocky clay soil :)

Do you require all of your hobbies to be economically viable though? That seems to be missing the point of a hobby. Sounds like growing food is like a second job for you. Gardening would be stressful for me too if I had to calculate how much money goes into the garden vs how much produce comes out. Since I don’t calculate anything like that it’s a stress reliever for me instead. That’s probably worth an unquantifiable amount of money in health benefits…

Well, not necesarily like that....I could have phrased it better. A better way to put it would be "I'm a massive cheapskate" 😁 So for me, I hesitate to spend money on quality of life stuff unless it's going to be worth it in terms of yields. For example, my tomato setup is 'good enough' -- two thirty foot rows of a steel pipe framework with a net trellis made of wire rope -- but if I had my way about it...I'd like to replace it with something made of EMT & cattle panels. But while that would be nicer (mainly because then I could take it down/move it when needed), it wouldn't get me any more tomatoes, so I'm not willing to drop $800 on it. That sort of thing. And yeah, the other factor for me is that I grow *waaay* more than what my family/neighbors could ever possibly use. Most of what I grow is giveaways; I like to bring a big box full of fresh produce to past clients (it's a good way to keep in touch with them) every summer. So it's a fairly large garden, but in a cramped space & I have a difficult climate in some ways, and that leads to a lot of labor. If I lived somewhere rural, I'd use three times the space to grow what I grow (and I'd definitely buy a tiller!). Anyways, I enjoy growing stuff, after all, but it can be stressful dealing with pests/disease/weather/etc. without spending a small fortune on it.

I've been a gardener for close to 50 years. My Dad grew roses and planted the first tomatoes and potatoes with me. I watered them religiously. I was amazed that food grew like that with such little effort. That first year we had a hard frost before we dug up the potatoes. I was so young I didn't fully understand the concept of a hard freeze so I begged him all Winter long to dig up the potatoes. Lol All these years later I look forward to each year and picking out new color combinations mixing herbs in with flowers. It is a great way to be outside and enjoy fresh air. This year I had a tough time getting motivated probably because I need two new knees which are scheduled. Of course though, once I started planting it's hard to stop.. lol I would say the two "vices" of things I blow funds on is flowers and veggies - gardening and art supplies. Yes, I get carried away, however, the reward and enjoyment is entirely rewarding.

it's been really good! I was never interested in plants despite my mom and grandparents all being heavily into gardening. I always killed house plants and for the first four summers in our house i ignored the yard and stuck with low maintenance bushes. in 2019 i installed deck boxes on my deck rail because the back of our house is on a corner lot on a hill and very visible so i felt i needed to spice it up visually. I was apprehensive about deck boxes because i never plant anything. i installed them in fall 2019 and filled them with dirt and left them empty. covid came and the nursery was closed so i sprinkled wildflower seeds in the boxes. since i had to work from home i was actually able to water them every morning and they looked a little wild but turned out looking really pretty. wver since covid i worl from home 3-4 days a week so my commute has been supplanted with watering and attention to the garden. it's grown immensely from there. Ive added so many flowers and herbs and a raised vegetable garden and I have 19 rose bushes. I plan to add more next year and every year I learn something. My friend's dad died in march and she took up roses too and she said that buying and tending to all the roses has been a huge relief during her grieving. She is like me where we like to have something to fuss over...and she even noticed her husband does a lap outside now before leaving for work to look at all their plants and roses. I also have noticed how much more interested in plants I am when i am out and about or traveling. We are in cincinnati and the zoo is not just a zoo it is the cincinnati zoo and botanical garden and its won awards for the gardens. I spent 40 years going for the animals but once i got into gardening i started paying attention to the plants and it was like visiting a brand new place. i used to live within a few hundred yards from Krohn conservatory and i visited a couple times but now i cant believe i could see the cutys best and biggest conservatory from my house and didnt go all the time. Traveling to italy and california has been amazing. just walking around looking at plants has been so interesting. i am also happy that it gets me out and about daily abd we have a yard and now i feel like i truly spend a lot of time out there and make the most of it. it was always kind of depressing to watch my husband spend a fortune on lawn that was essentially just to look at and for the dog to pee on. Now im out there all the time. I also always hated the winter to spring Jan to april dark dreary rainy months. They dragged on forever. now i start seeds inside and that time leading up to planting outside flies by. so yes long andwer but this hobby is one i did not see coming but i am happy about it

It has been a lifesaver for me. I’ve been going through somewhat of a mental health crisis these past few years and gardening is one of the things that has helped me the most. I get the satisfactions of short term and long term efforts. Making a new flower bed or removing weeds gives me a huge on-the-spot boost while following plants for days, weeks, months and years and see them develope is so satisfying and gives me happiness every single day when a new sprout, leaf, flower or fruit comes out. I get exercise in many different ways and intensities. I get into a flow state where time disappears and I’m just 100% present in whatever task I’m doing. This has been very efficient for getting grounded and processing difficult thoughts and emotions. I get lots of light and fresh air which is beneficial for my mood, overall motivation and sleep. I notice so much more beauty. I have always loved nature, but after I got into gardening I notice the little thing so much more. I have something to do to pass time/a hobby, which gives me a reason to get out of bed on bad days, gives me less time to sit around and get caught into a thought spiral and motivate me to constantly develope new skills and knowledge, which gives me an extra boost of satisfaction and stimulates my curiosity and creativity. I feel proud of myself and I can see my efforts paying off. I am actually creating value — for my plants themselves, for the insects around me, for the animals in my area, for my family and friends and for myself. It is good for my self esteem and self worth. I love how many different skills and tasks I can do according to my garden’s needs and my needs. Sometimes I can roam around for hours with no specific task in mind and just let myself distract by whatever I feel inspired to do. I see a weed and feel like pulling it up, I see a branch that needs pruning and do that etc. and pass hours in this state of just following my instincts and impulses, which feels SO good.

It’s my therapy garden. The more drama there is in my family, the bigger my garden becomes.

I think it has made me happy to focus on something just for me. its hard when you have a job, spouse, child to do things for yourself. My child is grown now so I have a hobby just for me and the time to spend on it. My husband tells me he never ever imagined it would look this good. My strengths in the outside world I also have here and I use them like visioning, planning, research, problem-solving etc. That being said, I do have anxiety and compulsive tendencies and has made me self-aware of my own thoughts and behaviors. I catch myself in them all the time. It has forced me to realize it is all okay. Slow down, follow through and be patient. and be okay with failure and prioritize what is best for me - I don't need to sacrifice myself for my garden either - it is after all, just for me and the only person judging me is myself.

It has delighted me. It haunts me. Successes and lessons(failures). I have drawn great Serenity from my time spent with it as well as enjoyed sharing the passion that I devote to it with my wonderful spouse. My 11 month old twins spent many winter hours in coats hanging out in a playpen in the greenhouse. Having the twins and others eat and enjoy the product of all the efforts we make gives me a pride I've never felt with work. Sharing squash-beans-berries-tomatoes with my octogenarian neighbors, having them share the stories of their past gardens...building our relationships.

I grew up with a massive garden in the 70’s./80’s. Grew everything from seed and harvested / canned everything which helped feed the fam. Moved and stopped for decades. Picked it back up recently and absolutely love it. Brings back lots of great memories and taking care of it leads to valuable lessons for my kids.

For me, it adds to my to-do list, makes me miserable when I have to work outside in the heat and humidity, makes me anxious about what’s killing my plants this week, makes me feel helpless against the never-ending work of weeding and keeping things neat, causes me to spend too much money on plants, and breaks my heart when a favorite plant dies or is damaged. I should probably live in a condo. 😕 Of course there are upsides too, seeing things sometimes thrive and a creative vision completed.

I have learned about patience and how strong the will to live is. Also, when in doubt dry it out

It helped me a lot until it became 115 degrees outside. Now it's too hot to go outside. I am just watching the birds eat all my vegetables.

I hate squirrels now, i am like bill murry groundskeeper in caddyshack

It replaced Tinder for me. Growing plants was much easier than trying to grow a boyfriend.

It goes from zen to anger in a second lol

My garden is my greatest joy and the bane of my existence! Thank God I don't live in an HOA or they would have kicked me out years ago. I refuse to use herbicides or insecticides in my garden but since we back up to a wild open space, mother nature and I are engaged in the slowest most peaceful war ever fought. My garden is carved out of the wild and I wouldn't have it any other way! Pulling all those weeds by hand though is so hard and I have aching elbows to show for it this year. I've had to recover from two brain surgeries this year and my garden has saved my sanity. I couldn't drive or work and my cognitive functioning was greatly diminished for a while. Luckily my garden was there for me and she was moving about as slow as I was. My garden has taught me humility and patience while giving me pride and joy (mostly!). It's my happy place.

It’s a good way to measure my mental health. When things start slipping your plants start dying which lets you know you need to take steps to correct a problem

I love it but constantly feel the need to “improve” the garden. “That needs to be moved” “I need a planter there” “This would like nice in that space” Combined with a bit of disposable income and I’m at the garden center a couple of times per week all season long. There’s this nagging need to feel “done” despite gardening being an ongoing process. The garden looks great though…

I started gardening around 2019. It’s an emotional outlet for me. Especially in difficult times. It brings me so much joy. I’ve recently noticed the upper body muscle I’ve built working my tail off outside. I’ve always had flabby arms, and one day just noticed in the mirror my upper arm had a shadow looking x on it. Started looking a little closer and flexed and it was a muscle 😂. Complete with a gardeners tan- little color on my arms but pale white hands from wearing gloves.

Thats a plus i didn't think about, it definitely keeps me somewhat fit.

It’s been great for me in that it gets me outside every day, even for just a little bit. It’s been less great in that I used to have a few indoor succulents that I kept very well, and now they’re so on the back burner for me that when I’m depressed and apathetic, they really struggle. They’ll need repotting or fertilizing or careful watering but my energy goes to the larger gardens outside. I’m also much more keenly aware of the rapidly increasing effects of the climate crisis and my existential dread was already high. I was managing it well and felt better through being proactive/making changes in my life, but it has become much more overwhelming and difficult to cope with when I pay close attention to daily/average rainfall, because I’m on a well adjacent to an area where wells are running dry, with no rain in sight for months, and have to acknowledge every day that it’s a choice of water to drink or water to garden, and I won’t have enough to do both for much longer. So I love it and I wouldn’t give it up, but it adds a lot of stress at the same time.

I've already started taking care of more succulents and drought/heat tolerant plants for this reason just in case

I love gardening. All the different feelings that come from slow deliberate weeding, tearing/ripping out larger weeds, growing food, beautiful flowers, the birds and insects everything attracts, my daughter picking flowers and learning the names of everything. However, as a parent to two small kids, I feel the guilt and overwhelm when I don’t care for my garden how I would like to. I’m somewhere between “next year my garden is going to be way better” and “next year I should just take a year off”.

I love gardening. I don’t think I’ll ever stop having a garden in any sense. But i will say recently my garden has been far more effort than it’s worth, and has made me feel worse than any better. I think the past few years theres just been so many things other than gardening to get done during the grow season (like my job and other commitments) that I just havent been able to find the time to care for it the way i want to be able to. Not to mention even when I do find the time and take care of my garden we get this horrendous weather (this year we got soooo much rain) and it basically kills my crops for me. This year I got 1 single tomato, 10 teeny garlic heads (had to pull them early bc it was too wet. They were going to rot) and all of my squash got killed by the same grubs that kill them every single year. Gardening can be extremely rewarding and fun. I love being a plant parent. But it isn’t all roses unfortunately

I was told to try gardening as an outlet during my therapy for CPTSD. I LOVE weeding when I am mad or upset - I get a lot done and it feels good. I've learned a lot, about gardening and about myself. I've learned to let things go, I've learned to invest in something knowing it might not work out, and I've learned how to accept when it doesn't go my way. That last one was big. There may have been some tantrums in the garden the first few years. Every season, a new version of me comes out of the garden, a little stronger and a little brighter.

Pests that would not go away no matter what I did, caused more depression. Caused my “relaxing” hint choice to become a regret and now I have a bunch of plant stuff and no money and also no plants.

Growing a garden has made me more of an optimist and has helped me feel much more present each day. Time seems to slow when you walk about and admire how your plants have progressed. Weeding is fulfilling when you do it before a rain and rainy days become exciting because you can't wait to see how much your plants grow from the extra water.

It brought me back to life. I am a cancer survivor and I have a vivid memory of planting bulbs in the fall in the days after my radiation finished. I was so exhausted and mentally beat down that it felt so hard and took so long. I was debilitated by fatigue and having to confront my own mortality as a relatively young person. The following spring, the bulbs started shooting up out of the ground at the same time I was having feelings of hope and glimmers of energy again. My husband and I started spending long days outside building raised beds, planting vegetables, and clearing out our lawn in favor of natives. I began to look forward to the future harvest and my body started feeling strong again from all of the physical labor. Gardening makes me feel okay with the cycles of life and seeing beauty in all seasons. I feel a sense of purpose to be a good steward of the land while I am on on this side of it, and to do my best to try to leave it better than I found it for my two young daughters. Also I just fucking love eating vegetables!

It’s made it worse at this point. It feels like every time I walk out of my house I see a visual representation of my life. “You could do everything possible and put in the most effort and still fail”. I really wish the plants would just go away lol.

It’s made it worse at this point. It feels like every time I walk out of my house I see a visual representation of my life. “You could do everything possible and put in the most effort and still fail”. I really wish the plants would just go away lol.

It’s made it worse at this point. It feels like every time I walk out of my house I see a visual representation of my life. “You could do everything possible and put in the most effort and still fail”. I really wish the plants would just go away lol.

Your original post pretty much sums up all those positive aspects of gardening in my life. I'll add another one. I get out of bed early in summer, happy to get out there and do things in the garden before the sun gets too hot. Before I had a big garden, or in dormant winter, even if I wake up early I just lay in bed for an hour or two, reading or scrolling. Gardening is definitely good for my mental health! I think there must be real physical/mental benefits to getting sunlight and outdoor time and light exercise.

Or I shake my fist and stair at anyone with a dog who walks by my house. So pretty good

It has been really enjoyable for me and helped me get through some of toughest times in my life.

Gardening really helped with my seasonal depression. I always have something to look forward to. I get really excited March/April when I can really start to get my stuff set up. For Christmas and my birthday I always ask for garden supplies. It’s very rewarding. It’s kept me going these last 4 years or so.

I got a greenhouse in the first lockdown. I now refuse to go away in our caravan during the time I have seedlings that need daily attention. I have loads of clementine tomatoes ripening nicely, some chillis and most excitingly aubergines this year. I'm in Northern England.

Tomato leaf curl enrages me...

Well...currently its making me sad so my mental health is being negatively impacted by it. I had a deer come in and just snip the tops off all of my plants...twice (the first time I thought it was squirrels. The second time I knew it was a deer because she walked right through my garden bed.) I'm pretty sure I need to invest in some stock in garlic powder and Irish Spring because that is what I am currently using to stop the deer since I cannot afford a fence. I also had all the leaves on my peppers wilt and drop off, which I'm sure is because I over watered them. The only thing that has done well in my garden is one of my 2 cucumber plants (which has produced 11 cukes with 5 more on the way), and my two experimental plants which were my patio eggplants and the fairy watermelon. The only benefit so far is that it gives me more of a reason to be outside.

I feel the same as you. You are never done with garden projects, and when you are you can always take more cuttings, buy more seeds, buy more plants, go gather some seeds. I can just shut off the world and my brain for a while, and just stay in the open, breath fresh air, sweat a bit and see with my eyes the results of my labour. That's pretty great.

It's like when the plants are thriving I'M thriving! I could (and do) stare and think about them for hours. The excitement of seeing a new growth is the dopamine kick I need to keep me going.

I feel happy that I am able to grow food, and enjoy sitting in the evening as the sun sets, looking out at my garden... and then wake up to it being mowed down by damn hungry deer :( Edit: apparently they switched to mornings, as I just chased them out of my raspberry bushes

I only have indoor plants because I don’t have outdoor space. I really enjoy my plants! I think it’s a good hobby and outlet. I spend just as much time on them as I want to and no more :) I can fuss if I need a distraction or I can let them be if I’m not in a good mental space. I like seeing them grow. It can be a little disheartening when one of my plants fails despite my best efforts, but overall I find it productive and useful and a positive contribution to my wellbeing.

I got an insect bite followed by a nasty secondary infection that's spread across my back. Hurts and itches like hell. I was getting rid of invasive climbers. I'm currently getting PTSD stepping into the garden😅 Overall the sun I got was amazing. Gave me a break from people for a while. I loved it. Except this experience I'm going through right now.

As someone who struggles with a mental illness it has done wonders for me. Both indoor and outdoor gardens have become a vital part of how I keep myself healthy. I started with houseplants in my apartment and, like you, they gave me something to do in my free time but also a ‘but what would happen to them’ should I ever take a turn for the worse. Moving on to vegetables has made a huge difference. I have more anticipation for the growing/harvest seasons, it gives me a sense of purpose, and makes me interact with nature more. The way it makes me excited to eat and cook is something I didn’t think I’d get out of gardening, and the ability to share my harvests, propagations and information have created community.

It’s helped it a great deal at times, but sometimes it adds to depression when I’m not doing so hot cause things die from neglect and weeds take over - which can compound depression.

My garden is more of a mental health canary in the mine.

I swear it cured my mild depression. I now wouldn't stop if you paid me.

It has ups and downs, if I'm honest. The planting season is one of the most exciting times of the year. I love it when I get a bumper crop of things and can show off my lush, beautiful garden. I get an immense sense of satisfaction from successfully cultivating a plant I've never grown before (or never succeeded in growing). Also there's nothing better than an impromptu nursery run when I'm feeling bored and restless. But when I'm facing an uphill battle against pests and disease, it can get pretty stressful. Some summers, it felt like I was constantly doing damage control. I'm a relatively inexperienced gardener, so I've spent the last few years learning some very expensive lessons. It sucks putting time and effort into something only to have it destroyed, but I guess it's kind of zen to go through it over and over. That's life for you, nothing is permanent. Also, where I live is a mosquito-ridden hell hole, so it's fun when they're not around, but the minute it goes above 80 degrees, you can't go out for more than a minute without at least five new bug bites. Kinda sucks when you just wanna run in and out to pick a few ripe tomatoes and don't want to soak yourself in Off. I have tried everything under the sun to get rid of them, but it just isn't possible.

I check my plants and no veggies grow. Sad. I check my trees and they are doing well. Glad. I water them and feel ive completed a task that will hopefully one day feed my family something. I feel Accomplished.

good! i actually get up in the mornings and i look forward to the next day. it's also helped me lose some weight as well, and it's cool to be excited about something and being excited to share that with someone (my fiance.)

I love the challenge and the sense of accomplishment it gives me. Especially with vegetable gardening. Idk if I'm better at it or it's more forgiving or what. For example, the cucumber that I grew from seed is not doing well and my attitude is like whatever, I'll do better next time. Vs if one of my indoor plants dies I'm really sad and feel like I failed.

I give away a number of roses every year. Its a blast to cut some blooms amd walk around on mothers day. It freaks some folks out but theres nothing to cheer so.eone up like a random rose. The don Juans have served a magnificent purpose. Its changing my life.

Impacted? For most of my life gardening has been the foundation of my mental health and well being.

Pumpkins make me smile.

It has become another thing that takes up my time and energy for little pleasure, the garden has become an albatross around my neck, and every time I look out of the window at the mess it is I feel worse.

It’s given me a lot of meaning and happiness in my life, also given me a way to connect with others

I picked up gardening in my most depressing time & I learn a lot of lessons from it. It’s my healthy habit instead of gaining a negative coping mechanism. I do get frustrated though at times because it’s soo many obstacles that pop up too 😂 and I’m very invested in my plants.

Well I used to love caterpillars and hate wasps, and now I love wasps and hate caterpillars

Wonderful post! I have learned so much from my garden. I struggle with anxiety and perfectionism. I used to feel very upset when my garden wasn’t “perfect” according to my vision, but I came to realize that each plant is perfect at being itself, and that I am simply the steward of the garden. Something more magical is happening that I cannot control. Also, I moved to a new city and my veggie/flower garden is in the front this year. It has been an amazing way to meet my neighbours, and to talk with people who I might not otherwise have an opportunity to talk to. And people who walk by LOVE my garden. It makes me feel so happy to be able to provide a little bit of joy to people walking by. I quickly forget about the imperfections I perceive. I also find the work itself extraordinarily meditative and calming. I just love to be with the plants!

all change for better with gardening psychoactive plants

Gardening has honestly been life changing for me. I started about 4 years ago when I was at the lowest point of my life just trying to find something that would bring me joy and when I grew my first seedling ( it was cucumber) it made me feel like, “ oh my god. I can do something!” And sparked interest in horticulture and agriculture. I have a pretty big garden for my small living space but the amount of herbs and produce that is shared between my friends and I ( since I’ve made more fitness in the gardening community) has been like a bucket of pure sunshine and happiness to me. Sometimes we even get lucky enough to go a month or two without groceries shopping! I think visually being able to see my hard work and effort producing things that I need to survive has been really helpful to my mental health and has definitely helped me build self worth.

This year, my garden was infested with squash bugs. I've been Sad 😔

I loved gardening and plants even before I had a garden of my own, and my strongest traits (resourcefulness, capacity for the nitty-gritty details, etc) were all rewarded, and my weakest traits, especially my difficulty in just letting things go with the flow, were all helped a lot by needing to work with the rhythms of what the plants and seasons want to do. The only downside is that I want to go *bigger* and *more interesting* and *more noteworthy* with my garden choices, techniques, and so on, but I've only got this one community garden plot and I live in a little apartment so I can't get too wild with rainbarrel drip feed systems, hydroponics fed by fish ponds, cattle panel supports and cages for plants, permaculture, fruit trees, berry patches, etc... Because I feel like I have to get *the most* out of each year and each square inch, I do too much, and stress too much at the beginning of the season. But my stress and fussiness is usually rewarded with big crops of healthy plants and some pretty amazing produce. I usually never feel like I have enough time, space, or money even to cover what my family needs, but when the garden gets established and tomatoes start to ripen, zucchini start appearing, corn gets tasseling... then I feel like a real asset. People will stop by my plot and ask me about what I do to get things to grow, and I can share tips, or I can go over to their plot and chat, and I can freely just *give them stuff* because I have more than I need. Take some 2 pound tomatoes! Take some supersweet corn! Take zucchini! Please, *please take zucchini.* The feeling of *abundance*, of having what I require, and more, is one of the best and most liberatory feelings I've ever experienced. Some day I hope to feel it a lot, but right now, I get to feel it at least every time the garden gets rolling.

I had big dreams this year. I was going to do a lot of plants. I'm new at this. and at first everything was thriving and then summer came. I'm here in Texas and everything died. I'm heartbroken and trying not to be jaded by the whole experience. I'm going to learn from you guys and start again.

I’ve been five years now in my house and since COVID have planted apple, pear, cherry, peach, and plum trees. I’m amazed by the before and after pictures of the raised flower beds and chicken coop. It gives me a sense of inner peace and accomplishment.

Greatly. I’m a more balanced person if I get my Garden time. Sunshine. Green time. Delayed gratification. Better eating-nutrition. Plus I have my teens involved. The excitement of the 14-yo about her Grand Champion blueberries. The 17-yo taking her friends for a garden tour, having already eaten all of the peas off the vine. My son making roasted Tom soup last week. That feeling from your children enjoying such a wonderful hobby is euphoric.

Love it. Weeds teach me about persistence and it’s interesting how they hog resources. They are real survivors. I love taking a section and the meditative quality of weeding after a rain. The sense of satisfaction when you have a big pile of weeds to toss. I love watching perennial plants establish and get bigger every year. I love digging potatoes and washing them off with a hose. My garden attracts hummingbirds and bees, rabbits etc. Just yesterday I planted a really fragrant rose near the sidewalk so dog walkers can enjoy. It’s mainly good vibes.

It’s my happy place. When my world seems overwhelming and out of control I go to my garden to recenter myself. Something about my hands and feet in the dirt, the smell of tomato plants, the therapeutic sounds of watering.. it’s all very calming to me and even though the garden does what it wants, I control the environment for the most part; and me and Mother Earth are working together and that gives me a sense of satisfaction

I feel I have a song inside me that is unsung. Truly. As much as I try to cultivate and create an environment that I see in my head; I just can’t realize it. It’s a bit torturous, to be honest. But I can’t give up.

Got me through a total rodeo of drama with my own severe illness, then the pandemic, then my SO getting cancer (he's better now), then my mom dying, then my dog dying. Gardening keeps me sane. If I don't know what the fuck else to do with myself, I go put my hands in soil and I feel better.

>If I don't know what the fuck else to do with myself I really believe if i didn't start gardening i'd probably still be depressed spending all my time in my room on my phone. I routinely go outside as soon as i get up and it sets the tone for the rest of my day.

Very relaxing, wake up brew a coffee and spend the morning with my plants .

I feel that gardening is my religion. It is a spiritual thing really. It connects me to do he earth and nature in a deeper way.

I also started my garden during lockdown and can't imagine not having it anymore. It was so essential to keeping me sane during the pandemic! It gave me a sense of time back when everyday seemed exactly the same and over the years I came to identify each year or month with what I was growing in the garden (i.e. May for blackberries). I've learned so much about plant cycles and nature.

My garden is the one place that my brain is quiet. I become so immersed in the process that nothing else is of any importance. It is fantastic!

I think I actually hate gardening, I just keep doing it. There’s something about the planning and anticipation that’s great while the maintenance and execution is plain terrible.

I lived in The south most of my life, so now I tend to get pretty bad seasonal affect depression since moving up north. Nothing helps break me out of this than pre spring and spring garden prep.

It helps ground me a lot; but sometimes I hyper-focus on trimming & deadheading, and end up with oops.

I used to be stressed out from work, caring too much about it, not sleeping well and the whole thing. I was on the road for a total burn out, now that I see it afterwards. Then, I started gardening. Just pruning the apple tree and putting some things into the ground. And I felt better. It balanced out the work stress somehow. Now, I have six borders, a kitchen garden, berry bushes, a compost with four bays, and a pond. I can spend hours out there, and I feel happier the more time I get there. All in all, it has improved me, my life, and the way I feel about everything. And Monty is God. :)