The serenity and peacefulness of being surrounded by plants and flowers can contribute to improving one’s physical, mental, and spiritual health. Flowers have an immediate impact on feelings of contentment and satisfaction. Being in the garden brings forth an opportunity to focus on beauty and inspires us to experience feelings of awe, gratitude, and stress relief. When you enter a garden, time slows down. Your mind and body relax as you step away from the daily bustle. It is a welcome escape from the news that infiltrates our lives.

Gardening provides an important avenue for aerobic exercise. Pulling weeds, reaching for various tools and plants, twisting and bending as you plant will strengthen muscles in your body and help with stamina and flexibility. According to the Centers of Disease Control and Prevention, 330 calories can be burned during just one hour of light gardening and yard work.

Another advantage to gardening is growing vegetables and fruits. It is a perfect way to supply nutritious foods for your body. Organically planted vegetables and fruits will give you sufficient amounts of vitamins to assist in a healthy body.

As you garden under the sun, you will absorb vitamin D. Exposure to the sun encourages the body to naturally produce more vitamin D. Getting a sufficient amount of vitamin D improves resistance against certain diseases and plays an important role in warding off depression. Vitamin D increases one’s calcium levels, which benefits the bones and immune system. Gardening increases levels of serotonin and dopamine (hormones that make us feel good) and the level of cortisol, a hormone associated with stress, is lowered. A session in the garden can be tiring, however, that can aid in improved sleep.

Being among plants and flowers reminds us to live in the present moment. When we stop ruminating about the past or worrying about the future and instead focus on the present, anxiety lessens. Just a short time experiencing the fullness of nature can be restorative to the soul. No matter how challenging the day may be, working in the garden and enjoying the sights and smells of nature gets one’s endorphins activated and exposes positive feelings of accomplishment and gratitude.

After retirement, many people struggle with fewer socialization opportunities. Becoming a Penn State Master Gardener and/or a local garden club member is an enjoyable way to engage with others and learn about horticulture. These organizations stimulate social interaction and education. For seniors specifically, gardening has been shown to have a bounty of cognitive benefits. The act of gardening, whether on a small scale or a larger scale, requires a multi-step thinking process. Senior gardeners are given the opportunity to practice cognitive skills such as planning, judgment skills, and critical thinking. Having the chance to use these cognitive skills on a regular basis and through a hobby that is pleasurable can be therapeutic for aging adults.

Exposure to nature and wildlife increases a person’s compassion for one another as it increases compassion for the environment in which we live. Being around plants and flowers can help to improve relationships between people and increase their concern and empathy toward others. In a world of instant gratification, gardening forces us to be patient and accepting because we must depend on nature, which is largely out of our control. We are forced to accept whatever nature sends our way and accept the outcome.

Gardening improves the quality of a person’s life by providing a catalyst for neighborhood and community development, encouraging social interaction, producing nutritious food, enhancing cognitive skills, and creating opportunities for recreation, exercise, therapy, and education. "Look deep into nature, and you will understand everything better." – Albert Einstein