Stress relief can be as close as your garden. Rather than reaching for a prescription drug or over-the-counter medication to calm your nerves, there are three types of gardens you can cultivate that will combat stress in almost any form.
Stress relief from the garden can come from flowers, a beautiful and relaxing butterfly garden or a food garden so you can enjoy nature’s bounty on your table in exciting and delicious recipes.
Just the act of cultivating a garden can be a restful and peaceful experience. Getting outdoors in the warm sunshine and communing with nature by helping plants grow and provide beauty or harvest can be relaxing and a healthy way to exercise.
A perfect type of garden to combat stress is the beauty of the flower garden. Let your creativeness and imagination run wild when creating a beautiful space in which you can relax and even bring some of the beauty into your home.
Grow them from seeds in flats and then plant them in containers or flower beds surrounding your home or on your patio. The rewards you get from a flower garden range from the scene of blooming flowers, the scent and the harvest for your own personal use.
Certain flowers, such as lavender (an herb) are commonly used in aromatherapy for stress relief. You can purchase the scent of lavender in soaps and lotions – or grow your own and tie up bunches to dry in your home.
A butterfly garden not only brings beauty, but the added benefit of observing gorgeous butterflies flying from flower to flower. A properly executed butterfly garden will attract butterflies and hummingbirds, filling your garden with life and aroma.
Among the plants you can grow in your butterfly garden include lavender, azaleas and hibiscus. Also try Tropical sage, butterfly bushes, purple coneflower and bee balm to attract hummingbirds and butterflies and to fill your garden with beauty.
And, for the ultimate in exercise and health, try a food garden. A food garden can bring beauty to containers or outdoor garden spaces and add healthy vegetables to your table.
Easy and fast-growing plants for your food garden include tomatoes, bell pepper, radishes, carrots and lettuce. Fresh produce from your garden tastes much better than what you can purchase from the supermarket.
If you have a large enough garden space, try growing extra produce for canning and/or freezing. This ensures you can be enjoying your gardening efforts far into the cold winter months.
Choosing any one or all of the above garden types ensures you get needed sunshine to increase serotonin and melatonin levels in the brain. Serotonin is the “feel good” chemical and melatonin helps you get a good night’s sleep.
The fresh air you enjoy with gardening keeps you healthy and promotes cell growth and renewal in your body. After gardening, you may also find that you can focus better and enjoy a sense of physical and mental well-being.
Carve out a space in your garden for your relaxation by adding water features and other sounds of nature – plus and comfy spot to relax with a good book or maybe a glass of wine.