5 Mental and Physical Health Benefits of Gardening You May Not Have Known About

Whether you’ve recently developed an interest in gardening, beekeeping, and other outdoor hobbies, or whether
you’ve always had a bit of a green thumb, you may not have known that gardening can provide a wide range of
mental and physical health benefits. From helping relieve stress to boosting endorphin levels and more, here are just
a few of the benefits of gardening you may not have known about, courtesy of Sarah Noel of TaylorandNoel.com.

1. Gardening Lets You Enjoy Sunshine and Exercise All at Once
Spending time outside is key to ensuring your body gets enough vitamin D. When you make gardening a regular
hobby, it’s easy to soak up the sunshine and help your body synthesize vitamin D – no supplements required!
Additionally, weaving gardening into your regular routine could boost your physical health by getting you moving.
Although gardening may not generally involve strenuous exercise, you’ll still get some extra movement and exercise
in your day. Rather than hitting the gym, simply head out to your backyard for a relaxing gardening session!

2. It’s Ideal for Relieving Stress and Lowering Blood Pressure
According to one study, high blood pressure is associated with higher risks of stroke, heart disease, hypertension,
inflammation, and other health problems. Experiencing high levels of stress can compound those issues. Thankfully,
gardening makes it easy to address both of those issues. Even just an hour of gardening per week could help you:
• Reduce your stress levels
• Lower your blood pressure

• Reduce chronic inflammation
• Increase your energy and lift your mood

3. Your Garden Could Make It Simple To Eat Healthy, Fresh Foods
Perhaps one of the best health benefits of gardening often is that you can easily grow your own fruits and vegetables,
making it simpler than ever to eat a healthy, fresh diet. Instead of reaching for sugary foods, junk foods, or salty
treats such as chips during the day, you can simply head out to your garden and pick out some homegrown produce.
Switching to eating home-gardened fruits and vegetables could help you build up energy naturally, relieve hunger,
and get key vitamins and minerals, too.
Some of the easiest foods to plant at home include berries, such as raspberries or blackberries. You may also want to
grow tomatoes, cucumbers, and squash for a little variation.

4. You Can Let Your Creative Side Run Wild When You’re Gardening
If you have a creative streak, gardening could be the outlet you’ve been looking for. Your garden is a blank slate
where you can experiment with different plants, fruits or vegetables, and even layouts! Consider picking up
gardening if you’re interested in getting in touch with your artistic side in a unique way.

5. A Pesticide-Free Garden Has Perks for You (and the Bees!)
Lastly, as you put your garden together and start to reap the physical and mental health benefits, be aware that going
pesticide-free could offer even more perks, both for you and for insects and animals in your surroundings. Growing
your plants or vegetables without pesticides reduces risks to human health, but can also offer key protection to bees
that come to pollinate your garden, for instance.

If you have a green thumb, or if you’ve recently discovered an interest in gardening, you’ll be happy to know that
gardening can offer a host of mental and physical health perks. This unique hobby could be just the thing to help you
relax and support your overall well-being.

Redwood Nursery and Garden Center provides a great selection of landscape-quality, trees, shrubs, perennials,
annuals, potted plants, and hanging baskets for your landscape. Not to mention, we have the best customer
service in the industry. Call 800-585-3790 today.