Gardening is a very popular hobby for many people. It can give you a lot in return.
Gardening is such a type of hobby that can do all age groups. It can give you many types of mental, social, and physical benefits. It is a fun and relaxing way to get in touch with nature.
Through this blog, I made an attempt to create awareness about planting as a hobby. Gardening is not only an activity associated with recreation only. It has everlasting benefits.
Benefits of Gardening
Gardening can give us a lot of benefits including mental, physical, economic, social, and much more. It is a hobby that can give you opportunities for learning with fun.
Learning with Fun
Gardening is a great activity to do with kids. Your kids can learn the name of the colors, trees, flowers, birds, etc. by gardening.
By planting and harvesting, kids can also learn how to grow food. This skill will help his entire life.
So, when they are free, they can do gardening.
Spend Time in Nature
Gardening is a great opportunity to spend time in nature for the kids. It brings your kids closer to butterflies, ladybugs, worms, ants, spiders, etc. This allows your children comfortable with soil while learning that food comes from the earth.
Makes Responsible
Gardening teaches your kids responsibility. Watering, weeding, harvesting all are very important and regular work of gardening. When your kids involve gardening, they have to do the watering, weeding, harvesting on a regular basis. Your kids will become responsible for gardening.
Mental Health Benefits of Gardening
Gardening gives you the opportunity to keep closer to nature, birds, flowers, etc. All these elements have a very strong power to relieve mental stress. Studies collected by Growing Health also find that surrounding yourself with a natural environment reduces stress, provides relaxation, and can even improve healing processes. Many hospitals consider therapy gardens an important part of a healing process or lowering blood pressure and stress.
Gardening Keeps You Active
Gardening is a hobby that can keep you active. When a senior citizen retires from his job or business, he feels lonely and becomes frustrated. Hobbies like gardening can keep him active. Soil mixing, pot filling, and watering plants are valuable ways to actively strengthen the hands of senior citizens. It is a moderate exercise of the whole body. That’s why gardening can older adults active and healthy.
Gardening is Good Source of Organic Food
Gardening is just not a hobby. You can get fresh and organic vegetables and fruits from your garden. You never can get fresh and organic vegetables and fruits from supermarkets as they have to travel a long way to reach the supermarket.
On the other hand, when you eat your own cultivated fruits or vegetables, you will get a special feeling that you can’t buy.
Improves Immune System
Gardening significantly improves the immune system. Research shows spending time with nature, eating fresh and organic foods improves the immune system.
Social Networking
Gardening is a very good way to make social networks. Most of the gardeners who produce vegetables, fruits or flowers, share their gardening products with their community. Community gardening is also a popular way of making social networks.
Economic Benefits
Hobbies like gardening can give you economic benefits in many ways. When you are physically active, your immune system is good, living a stress-free life can enjoy a healthy life. You don’t need to take a lot of medicines as well as don’t need to go to the doctor regularly.
On the other hand, you are getting many varieties of vegetables and fruits from your own garden. In both ways, you are getting benefits financially.
How to Start Gardening
Gardening is not as difficult as many people think. Just follow the basic steps below to start your own home garden:
Decide What You Would Like To Grow
First, you have to decide what you want to grow. You can grow vegetables, fruits, herbs, flowers, etc. You should choose to garden those vegetables, fruits, and herbs that your family enjoyed the most. Try to consult with the local gardeners as the soil and weather are different in each area and soil and weather are key to successful gardening.
Choose the Location for Gardening
Most fruits and vegetables need full sun, with a minimum of 5 hours of direct sunlight. Think about how you will access the garden for picking, watering, and caring for your plants. Out of sight often equals out of mind – and a neglected garden. Avoid high wind areas and frost pockets
Plan Your Garden Beds
When you have finalized the gardening location, now time to plan for the garden bed. Raised beds are attractive and easy to use but in the dry areas sunken beds are good for gathering available moisture. Your garden beds should be 3 to 4 feet wide so that you can reach the center of the bed from either side and they can be extended up to 10 feet.
Invest in the Basic Gardening Tools
The right tools make your work in the garden enjoyable. You should not use a kitchen knife or kitchen instruments as gardening tools. Both are totally different. The basic gardening tools include:
- Garden hoe
- Scuffle hoe
- Dirt rake
- Leaf rake
- Garden Shovel or D handle Shovel
- Hand tools
Soil Test
Before start gardening or planting, you need to know about your soil. Is your soil acidic, alkaline, or neutral PH? Does it have a good amount of basic nutrients? For getting all the information you need to do soil tests. This information will help you to do the harvesting.
Soil Preparation
Most plants prefer a deep, well-drained, fertile soil rich in organic matter. Once you start a garden, you’ll gain a new appreciation for healthy soil as it improves year after year. Healthy, vibrant soil = healthy, vibrant plants with built-in disease and pest resistance and more nutrition.
Choosing the Right Seeds
All seeds are not good for planting or gardening. It is very important to choose the right seeds. You can buy seeds from a nursery or you can transplant them by yourself.
Nurture Your Garden
Taking care of a garden is the most important part of successful gardening. Every day you have to spend 30 minutes to 1 hour in your garden for taking care of your plants. If you could not spare this time, you should not start gardening.
End Words
Gardening is a great hobby that can give us a lot to improve our physical, mental, and economic condition. If you can spare a few minutes, you can start gardening.
