With warmer weather just around the corner, now is a perfect time to start laying the groundwork for this year’s gardening season. Even if you’ve never gardened before, this hobby is one that you’ll thank yourself for starting, as—although it may not seem like it at first glance—gardening has tons of benefits, especially for older adults.
1. Great Way to Exercise
Exercise may not often be associated with gardening, but that’s not to say that this hobby can’t get you up and moving! You’re far more likely to get up and outside when you have a garden, as many garden plants require frequent, consistent attention.
As an older adult, it is recommended that you get 150 minutes of moderate exercise each week. While this number can seem large, it’s generally pretty manageable if broken down into small amounts of time across the whole week. For example, if you enjoy walking and gardening, this might look like taking 15 minute walks on weekdays, and longer 30 minute walks on weekends. The goal here isn’t to be perfect, but rather to develop and maintain a routine that works for you; with consistent exercise, you’ll be able to decrease your risks of heart attacks, strokes, diabetes, and even some forms of cancer. Exercise can also improve your sleep quality and blood pressure.
Luckily, gardening requires a wide range of movements—including raking, weeding, digging, moving pots, carrying watering cans, and spreading mulch—which can all count towards your exercise goals. These movements may not seem that labour-intensive, but they are great for increasing both your strength and endurance. If the majority of your time is spent sitting or kneeling, you’ll probably naturally stretch out after you’ve stood up—in this way, gardening can also promote better flexibility, as you’re more likely to stretch your muscles than you would be sitting on your couch.
2. Improves Dexterity and Coordination
Just as gardening is great exercise for your big muscles, it’s also great for your smaller muscles—namely, the ones involved in fine motor control. As you age, these fine motor skills begin to deteriorate. According to one study published to the National Library of Medicine, older age has been found to be “related to a worse performance on all measures of fine motor skill” especially in those over the age of 75. Since these motor skills are crucial for many everyday tasks—such as tying shoes, buttoning shirts, using cutlery, and writing—it’s important to maintain them as best as possible.
To keep your fine motor skills intact, it’s recommended that you use them as often as possible. In gardening terms, this might look like picking up small seeds, transplanting delicate plants like seedlings and flowers, using scissors, and tying twine. You’ll also be using fine motor skills when you write labels, draw diagrams, or paint detailed pictures; because of this, taking some extra time to beautify your garden or draw a “garden map” is a fantastic idea. It’ll let you unleash some creative energy too!
3. Helps You Get Some Sun
When gardening outdoors, you’ll have plenty of opportunities to soak up some sunshine. This is great for two main reasons: for vitamin D production, and for the regulation of your circadian rhythm.
As a vitamin that isn’t abundantly found in food, vitamin D can be a bit tricky to get enough of, especially in the colder months. While it may be tempting to just take supplements, they can have dangerous side effects if not dosed correctly. According to the American Academy of Family Physicians (AAFP), high doses of vitamin D supplements have been shown to increase risks of falls in older adults; even at low doses, it is recommended that unless you have a clinically diagnosed vitamin D deficiency, you avoid taking supplements. By increasing your vitamin levels through sunlight exposure, you’ll be able to naturally boost your bone and immune health without needing a prescription.
Getting more sunlight is also beneficial for your overall energy levels, as it helps to regulate your circadian cycle. Also known as your internal clock, this cycle is what dictates when you sleep and wake up—as it’s heavily influenced by your environment’s light level, it usually falls in line with the Earth’s day and night cycle. However, when you aren’t exposed to light at the right times, this natural rhythm can become dysregulated, leading to uncomfortable symptoms like fatigue and insomnia. By getting outdoors and exposing yourself to the sun’s rays during the day, you’re helping to keep your internal clock ticking at the right rate.
4. Proven to Boost Mental Health
In recent years, there have been many studies that investigate the link between greenspace and mental health. In 2018, an article published to the National Library of Medicine gathered evidence of the positive effects of gardening. These benefits included physical effects ranging from lowered blood pressure to decreased risks of post-surgical complications, as well as several psychological benefits. Several of the studies mentioned in the article found that exposure to greenspace—including walks in nature and gardening—was associated with decreased risks of depression, anxiety, and general stress.
While some of these benefits may largely be due to the increased social interaction and exercise that comes with getting outdoors, it’s still a definite, scientifically proven positive. In fact, because gardening has so many associated mental health benefits, it’s actually being prescribed by doctors in the UK as a means to improve patients’ overall wellbeing.
5. Benefits Cognitive Health
With so many physical and mental benefits, it’s likely no surprise that gardening has also been linked to improved cognitive health. Cognitive health conditions such as dementia and Alzheimer’s disease become increasingly common as you age—and, since dementia currently has no known cure, it is crucial to do everything you can to prevent it for as long as possible.
Though there is still no definitive evidence that gardening can single handedly prevent dementia, there are some very promising signs. This is largely thought to be due to gardening’s social and physical benefits, since frequent socialization and exercise have been linked to decreased dementia risks. However, there may be something about gardening, being out in nature, and enjoying the sun that helps to combat cognitive decline, too! The process of learning new things has also been proven to improve cognition, which further supports the benefits of gardening.
Even for those already struggling with dementia, gardening can be a fantastic and therapeutic hobby. In a 2021 review of research, it was found that gardening has many clear, positive effects on people with dementia. These benefits included decreased agitation, lowered risks of falling, and marked improvements in mood, depression, and stress. Dementia patients who gardened also required less medication, and had better cognition scores.
6. Promotes a Healthier Diet
By growing your own food, you’ll naturally start to eat more fresh vegetables and fruits. As your garden produces crops, you’ll be able to take them straight from your garden onto your plate—not only is this incredibly satisfying and rewarding, it’s also great for your health.
In a 2023 study, a team of researchers investigated the effects of community gardening programs on the diets of gardeners. The study concluded that during the growing season, people who gardened ate 60 ~ 70% more vegetables than their baseline, and were more likely to eat seasonally—in other words, they ate more foods that were in season. Since diets high in seasonal fruits and vegetables are generally more nutritious, you’ll be getting more out of each meal, particularly if you grow your own food in nutrient-rich soil. And, as an added bonus, homegrown foods generally taste better, as you’ll be eating them fresh off the plant!
Gardening can also bring some excitement to your kitchen; depending on your crops, you might try experimenting with some new recipes, or preserving them through pickling and canning. Just be sure to do your research, as improper canning can cause nasty problems like botulism.
7. Grows Your Community
Growing a garden can also help you to grow your social community. This can happen both directly through gardening, or indirectly through the changes that gardening brings to your lifestyle.
For example, if your garden happens to have an unexpectedly abundant harvest, you may find yourself with more produce than you can use up on your own. While there are many things you can do—like preserving or composting extra fruits and veggies—this can provide a great opportunity to connect with your friends, family members, and neighbours. Sharing abundance is a low-cost, low effort way to show a bit of extra care to those around you. Even if you don’t know your neighbours that well, sharing your harvest is an excellent conversation starter; you might even end up making a fellow gardening friend!
Another great area for socialization is to join community gardens and gardening clubs. Depending on your area, a quick search on Google for local community gardens should turn up a handful of suggestions. If planting in a plot is a bit intimidating, you’ll also usually be able to simply join as a volunteer, which can help you to grow both your community and your confidence in gardening. Similarly, gardening societies and clubs can help you to gain new friends alongside a wealth of gardening information, tips, and anecdotes.
8. Supports Your Environment
If you’re looking to do your part to combat climate change, or hoping to revitalize your local environment, gardening is an amazing way to do it. By selecting plants that are native to your area and / or plants that are easy for bees and other pollinators to harvest from, you’ll be able to revitalize your little corner of the Earth.
According to the USDA’s Natural Resources Conservation Service, plants such as milkweed, aster, goldenrod, sunflowers, and black-eyed susans are all great options for your local pollinators. By doing a little research into which flowers are native to your area, you can also help to keep invasive exotic species at bay, protecting your area’s natural biodiversity.
And, as the climate continues to change, every little effort counts—no matter how small it may seem. Even though planting a few shrubs won’t be enough to rid the world of climate change, making the choice to swap from a paved front yard to a grassy one can make a big difference in your own life. Since garden beds can soak up a lot more water than concrete and pavement can, this single change might just be what protects your home in the case of a flood or heavy rainfall. This is just one example, though—in the end, it’s all about trying to do your part to leave a better world for your kids and grandkids to inherit.
9. Gives You Purpose and Accomplishment
Due to the COVID-19 pandemic, you may have found yourself experiencing a good deal more boredom in recent years. Even without social isolation measures, older adults are more likely to experience boredom than younger adults. While this may seem harmless enough, the fact of the matter is that when you feel bored for long periods of time, you’re likely to begin feeling lost, sad, or like you don’t have a purpose anymore. In one study done during the pandemic, it was found that older adults often felt worried and uncertain when faced with their newfound lack of activities; however, the study also concluded that their participants were highly resilient, and were able to adapt to their new circumstances through finding new hobbies.
If you’ve been feeling similarly anxious or lost, growing your own garden can help to alleviate these feelings. Whether that be through growing beautiful flowers to improve your neighbourhood’s biodiversity, or through harvesting and sharing food crops, there is something for everyone. In fact, the simple act of caring for your plants and watching them flourish under your care can provide you with immense satisfaction, a strong sense of purpose, and motivation to keep pushing forward.
10. Creates a Peaceful Relaxation Area
After you’ve put in the time and effort, your garden might just become your new sanctuary. While gardening can be tough sometimes, it can also be immensely rewarding—both through the plants themselves, but also through your garden space itself.
When starting a garden, you’ve got a blank canvas in front of you that can be tailored to your needs and desires. If you’re a social butterfly, you could include a set of tables and chairs in a nice shady spot to create an outdoor area to entertain guests. If instead you’d prefer to keep things highly functional, you can fill your space with beds for vegetables; a great way to maximise a small garden’s productivity is to use vertical space through things like trellises and hanging or wall-mounted planters. And finally, if you’re more of an aesthetics-forward gardener, you can take your time designing each area to create a cohesive, beautiful garden.
Once your garden is set up to your liking, it’s time to bask in its glory! If you’ve already included a seating area, you might try coming out to your garden to read a book, eat a meal, or simply to observe the beauty of nature around you. For those of you who don’t have an area to sit in, you should consider either adding one or—if your garden is tight on space—finding other ways to relax in your garden. This could look like taking a slow walk around your garden in the morning to intentionally observe all of the little signs of growth, or sitting indoors near a window to admire its beauty from within your home. However you choose to go about it, taking the time to admire your work is a great way to build your sense of accomplishment, as well as relax after a hard day’s work.
There are many other benefits to starting your own garden, but our hope is that this has given you a hint into the vibrant and gratifying world of gardening. Now, what are you waiting for? Get out there and start planning your next great adventure!
