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  • The Healing Power of Gardening: Using the Garden for Recovery – Garden Therapy

    The Healing Power of Gardening: Using the Garden for Recovery – Garden Therapy

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    The garden saved me in so many ways, and I want it to do the same for you. The action of gardening and getting outside has many healing and health benefits and is one of the best ways to get your body moving again. Let’s talk about the power of gardening and how to get started while your body is still recovering.

    Many people who stumble upon Garden Therapy come here while searching for help in their own recovery journey. For me, the garden is a powerful place to heal, both in what you grow and the action itself.

    Gardening came to me at a crucial time, offering me an outlet to slowly heal my body and find a new passion in life. Gardening is amazing for mental health and can also be a gentle way to get the body moving.

    Every message I get about someone who finds hope in my own story and shares their own journey means the world to me. I never would have expected that Garden Therapy would reach so many people when I started it.

    Someone recently asked me for tips on how to help increase their time and physical stamina in the garden while recovering from brain surgery, and I thought it was time I dedicate a whole post on tips for utilizing the healing power of gardening.

    Here’s what I’ll be talking about today:

    butterfly pathway garden in the communitybutterfly pathway garden in the community
    The key is to garden in a way that works for you and you alone.

    My Recovery Story

    I didn’t grow up as a gardener. Instead, it found me when I needed it the most. Many years ago, I woke up with a headache. Little did I know, this was just the beginning of my chronic disability.

    I spent that first year almost entirely in bed, trying to sleep off my pain and finding myself with no energy whatsoever.

    After a year and a half, I was able to do small tasks with my body, like walking around the house or brushing my hair.

    By the third year, I ventured outside. My garden was little more than a neglected lawn, but I decided I would build a garden and my health at the same time.

    It started off with just 5 minutes a week, then 5 minutes a day, then 10 minutes a day. It was gradual, very slow, but very rewarding.

    Here I am, almost two decades later, and I’m a Master Gardener, permaculturalist, and an award-winning author of 12 books and counting.

    And it all started with those 5 minutes a day during recovery.  

    healing power of gardeninghealing power of gardening
    I still struggle with pain daily but I have learned how and when to push my body.

    Finding That Balance

    The first thing I’ll say about using the garden to recover is that you need to find a balance between pushing yourself in moderate ways without overdoing it, all while listening to your body.

    As someone who is a type A personality and doesn’t like to stop once I’m hustling, I had to really come to terms with listening to my body. It was important that during my healing, I continued to listen to my body’s signals while also not being sedentary.

    You have to be so careful not to slip into that toxic positivity. Continuing to push yourself more than your body is ready for can develop into a detachment from the signals of our bodies.

    Accept what you can do, and listen to those messages your body puts out.

    lush eco lawn mixlush eco lawn mix
    Find ways to make your garden low maintenance, like switching from a turf lawn to an alternative lawn.

    Choose Your Hard

    In my eyes, those physical and pain symptoms telling you to slow down is your body healing. German homeopathy really embodies this idea that hurting is part of the healing process. When you don’t feel the pain, the healing process hasn’t even begun yet.

    Think of pain like an alarm system. Once you stub your toe and it hurts, you try not to do it again. When you push, it’s going to hurt, but the pain will also encourage you not to push too hard.

    For me, it was all about choosing my hard. Yes, moving at first was very difficult, but I also found being sedentary especially hard on my body and my mental health. So I chose my hard and pushed my body to its current capabilities and watched it grow.

    Just recently, I hurt my back. For almost two weeks, I didn’t do much movement, not even walking Kiddo to school. Every day for the past 11 years, even when I was pregnant, Kiddo and I would go on our daily walk. It’s really part of how we bond and a big reason why he’s so outdoorsy.

    It was really hard for me to be in a place where I couldn’t even walk with Kiddo. After two weeks, I finally went on a walk with him and actually felt better because I got that movement. But the next day, I only got a block and a half before I had to turn around. And that’s okay.

    I was kind to myself and listened to my body. It needed recovery time and rest.

    Tips for Gardening for Recovery

    My biggest tip is listening to your body and finding that balance, but here are some other ways I recommend using the garden as a form of recovery.

    1. Set a goal that’s easy to achieve. For me, it was those first five minutes a day. Be reasonable, and just do something little to get started.
    2. Get outside even when you can’t garden. If you’re unable to get much movement in, that’s okay. Simply sitting outside can give you immense benefits.
    3. Enjoy garden therapy inside. There are more ways than physically gardening to get some much-needed garden therapy. From indoor herb gardens to garden-inspired crafts, you can enjoy the benefits of nature even inside.
    4. Utilize permaculture zones. Keep things that you want to access regularly, such as houseplants or vegetables, close to the home (follow these tips).
    5. Relax after gardening. For me, that’s sitting in the bath with Epsom salts to immediately relax my muscles after working.
    6. Try reading. If you aren’t able to get out that day, try reading up on gardening practices, designs, and ideas instead. I really got my start by reading vegetable gardening books from the library.
    7. Stretch before you begin gardening. From yoga to simple sitting stretches, try to move your body ahead of time to increase blood flow to your muscles.
    8. Garden in a way that works for you. Ignore the trends and what everyone else wants your yard to look like. For instance, I ditched having a front lawn that needed to be mowed and watered since that requires lots of physical work and maintenance. Now, I have a beautiful wildflower front lawn that requires almost no effort on my end.  
    9. Utilize ergonomic tools to relieve strain on your joints and muscles (I’ve listed a bunch in this article).
    10. Take it day by day. Just because you did fifteen minutes in the garden yesterday doesn’t mean you can replicate that today. Always listen to your body and adjust as needed.

    Those are just a few of my tips for using the garden to heal. If you have more you’d like to share with others, please leave them in the comments below. I hope you find the power of gardening in your own life!

    More Ways to Discover the Healing Power of Gardening

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    Stephanie Rose

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  • Try These 13 Natural Mulches & Ditch the Dyed Bark and Rubber! – Garden Therapy

    Try These 13 Natural Mulches & Ditch the Dyed Bark and Rubber! – Garden Therapy

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    Don’t even think about getting that bright red mulch when there are so many better, more inexpensive organic materials you can use instead! Let me explain natural mulch and the different materials you can use to mulch the garden.

    Mulch is a word you hear often in the gardening space. We use it a lot, from suppressing weeds to conserving moisture to making the top layer of our garden look good.

    What many people think of when they picture mulch is the classic bits of wood shavings and pieces. It’s often a nice natural cedar that smells heavenly or…heaven forbid…dyed red.

    But this is really only one kind of mulch. And it’s one of the more expensive ones!

    Today, I want to talk to you all about the natural mulches we can use in our garden and why they’re a much better option than the stuff you buy at the landscape supply store.

    Natural mulch is one of the many practices you’ll find in my book, The Regenerative Garden. If you’re looking for more ideas on how to flip the traditional garden up on its head in lieu of more sustainable spaces, be sure to check it out!

    What is Natural Mulch?

    Mulch sits on top of the soil and acts as a protective layer of organic material. While most think of wood for mulch, there are many more natural materials you can use as mulch (I’ll get into that shortly!).

    Like I said, many people use unnatural mulches like plastic, shredded tires, or dyed bark. These can leech contaminants into your garden and just aren’t worth it when there are so many other natural materials that you can use as a mulch.

    I joke about dyed mulch all the time. I think it’s one of the worst things to add to a garden! I see it as lawful evil, where it’s popular and accepted but really not a good idea for the environment.

    Meanwhile, my method of chop and drop mulching is chaotic good. If I see plant material, I scoop it up and put it in the garden.

    Some people will have issues with this. I remember the realtor taking one look at my last house and all the plant material in the garden beds and suggesting I top it off with soil instead.

    But I always ask, do you like the forest? Because that is what we’re going for. You can have a neat and tidy look that models a living room or a natural space that mimics our forests.

    leaving behind fallen debris as natural mulchleaving behind fallen debris as natural mulch
    Mulches are incredibly popular with permaculturalists because of their regenerative properties for soil.

    Benefits of Natural Mulch

    Mulch has SO many benefits, many of which you might not get if you use store-bought stuff instead of what’s already in your garden.

    Mulch is a soil insulator that works year-round. It helps to keep the soil temperature more consistent, meaning it can help protect the base of plants, roots, and bulbs in the winter months but also keep things cooler during the hot summer days.

    It also helps to conserve moisture, which is very helpful for full sun areas. It reduces your need to add supplemental water all the time by preventing surface evaporation.

    If you have a weed problem, you can also apply a layer of mulch to prevent the seeds from getting light and germinating.

    Finally, it will decompose slowly and add nutrients back into your soil. I never add any fertilizer to my garden beds, allowing nothing but my layers of mulch and compost to go back in and feed the soil.

    natural leaf mulch in an urban woody settingnatural leaf mulch in an urban woody setting
    A natural forest floor is covered in mulch.

    What to Use as Natural Mulch

    So, what can you actually use from your garden that will work as a natural mulch? I’ve got plenty of ideas for you, and if you still want the neat and tidy look, some of these can still give you that. Try one of these thirteen natural materials that make wonderful mulches.

    Compost

    Compost is what I use the most in my garden, and it appears like fresh, dark soil. I like to add about two inches of compost in the spring before the growing season really begins. The spring rain will also help water the microorganisms into the soil below.

    scoop of compostscoop of compost
    Compost is garden gold for your garden.

    Leaf Mould

    Never, ever bag your leaves in plastic bags and send it to the dump. Instead, use the leaf mould of partially decomposed or chopped leaves as mulch. It breaks down quite quickly and works wonderfully in vegetable gardens.

    This is best done in the fall when you can pile your dried leaves, wait a few weeks for them to begin composting, and then chop them up with a shear or a lawn mower to sprinkle over your garden bed.

    fallen leaves on the groundfallen leaves on the ground
    Only use leaves free from pests and disease.

    Wood Chips

    Wood chips are very popular for those who want a neat and tidy look. Just PLEASE don’t buy the dyed stuff as it’s not good for your garden and soil.

    Wood chips will last for multiple seasons and are often inexpensive and readily available when bought from an arborist or local source. As they slowly break down, they feed beneficial fungi and create a strong mycelium layer.

    Rocks

    Another popular tidy option is to use decorative rocks such as river stones, gravel, or volcanic rock. Of course, they won’t decompose. They do not add beneficial microbes or bacteria but will prevent water loss.

    Keep in mind that it will absorb and hold heat and cold. A layer of cardboard under the rocks can help.

    Pine Straw/Conifer Needles

    Take a page of out woodland gardens and allow the cones and needles from your evergreens to remain where they fall. You can also spread it to neighbouring gardening beds.

    pine needles and pine cones on forest floor as natural mulchpine needles and pine cones on forest floor as natural mulch
    Woodland perennials love this mulch.

    Straw

    Many rural homesteads will use straw, considering how readily available it is. Just avoid hay, as it can contain weed seeds!

    It’s beneficial to apply straw in the fall as an insulator and remove it in the spring, followed by a new layer of compost.

    sheet mulching with straw on a large garden bedsheet mulching with straw on a large garden bed
    Use straw to create a strong layer of winter protection for annual crops, tender perennials, trees, and shrubs.

    Cardboard

    People love using cardboard since it’s free, and we all have lots of it. Use cardboard as winter protection for garden beds in rainy areas to prevent nutrients from leaching from the soil. Make sure to remove the cardboard sheets in the spring and compost them.

    You can use cardboard at other times of the year; just make sure to break it into small pieces so the soil still gets some airflow.

    cardboard mulchingcardboard mulching
    Carboard acts as a carbon source.

    Grass Clippings

    Your lawn would love it if you left the grass clippings after moving. They will slowly break down and create a soil-protecting mulch that will feed the grass’s roots. Letting your grass flower can also help to reseed your lawn!

    green lawngreen lawn
    If you’re mowing, you might as well feed the lawn with the grass clippings.

    Living Mulch

    Groundcovers can provide many of the same benefits of other organic material. Plant low-growing perennial and native plants no higher than 12 inches. Ideally, ensure they are hardy enough to be lightly tread upon so you still have access to the plants in the garden.

    ground cover plantsground cover plants
    Groundcovers look wonderful in gardening beds that aren’t often disrupted.

    Chop and Drop

    This is another one of my favourite natural mulch methods. Whenever you cut back plant material, you leave it on the soil surface to decompose in place.

    The leaves, stems, and flower heads will then feed the roots of their own kind, mimicking how they fertilize the soil in nature. Just avoid plants that have gone to seed, unless you intend for those seeds to grow.

    chop and drop natural mulchchop and drop natural mulch
    In the fall, top your chop and drop with leaf mould and compost for a strong base to decompose come spring.

    Snow

    Many won’t consider snow mulch, but it is extremely useful for protecting the soil temperature and plant roots in cold climates. There’s no need to move snow; just allow it to fall and sit on your garden beds on a snowy day.

    rosemary in the snowrosemary in the snow
    Snow protects garden beds from dips in temperature.

    Aquatic Plants

    If you have a water garden environment, you can add your vigorous or even invasive aquatic plants to dry land gardens. Because the conditions are too dry, they will decompose and protect the soil.

    wildlife pond from the regenerative gardenwildlife pond from the regenerative garden
    Thin overgrown aquatic plants and use them as mulch on dry land.

    Seaweed

    If you have a seaside garden, seaweed works well as a mulch where the plants can handle salt spray and salt accumulation in the soil. Forage for seaweed sustainably, and only take what you need from the beach rather than in the ocean. Chop it or run it over with a mower before applying it to the garden.

    garden with dried plant debris on soilgarden with dried plant debris on soil

    Those are some great natural mulch ideas to try! In the comments below, let me know which of them you use in your garden or are planning to use.

    More Ways to Try Regenerative Gardening

    Try These 13 Natural Mulches & Ditch the Dyed Bark and Rubber!Try These 13 Natural Mulches & Ditch the Dyed Bark and Rubber!

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    Stephanie Rose

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