Gardening’s benefit on mental health – KLTV

BRYAN, Texas (KBTX) – As mental health awareness month comes to a close, what better a time to highlight an activity that can help reduce stress and anxiety.

Charlie Hall, a Professor in the Department of Horticultural Sciences at Texas A&M University and holder of the Ellison Chair in International Floriculture joined First News at Four to share how gardening can not only benefit peoples’ yards but also their wellbeing.

Hall began investigating plants’ benefits about 12 years ago when he noticed that plant sales were increasing. One of Hall’s biggest findings was that levels of the stress hormone cortisol lowered dramatically whenever people were gardening or outside in nature. According to Hall, anytime someone has less stress then they have a higher quality of life.

Gardening doesn’t just help adults, kids are shown to have benefits too.

“Whenever you have a school garden a lot of the divisiveness that we’ve seen throughout society is mitigated at the school because of the school gardening programs. What I mean by that is that when kids are outside and they’re in nature, they worry less about the color of one’s skin or the type of clothes that one is wearing”

If a traumatic event has occurred to a person or in a community, gardening can be used as a form of therapy to treat PTSD.

Gardens give people something to “be engaged in and to to get away from the stress of life,” explained Hall.

Watch the full interview in the player above.

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