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The science is in: Gardening is good for you

<p>“That’s all very well put,” says Candide, in the final line of Voltaire’s novel of the same name, “but we must go and work our garden.”</p> <p>I studied this text at high school before I became a gardener and professional horticulturist. We were taught that Candide’s gardening imperative was metaphorical not literal; a command for finding an authentic vocation, not a call to take up trowels and secateurs.</p> <p>In fact, Voltaire himself really believed that active gardening was a great way to stay sane, healthy and free from stress. That was 300 years ago.</p> <p>As it turns out, the science suggests he was right.</p> <p><strong>The science of therapeutic horticulture</strong></p> <p>Gardens and landscapes have long been designed as sanctuaries and retreats from the stresses of life – from great urban green spaces such as Central Park in New York to the humblest suburban backyard. But beyond the passive enjoyment of a garden or of being in nature more generally, researchers have also studied the role of actively caring for plants as a therapeutic and educational tool.</p> <p>“Therapeutic horticulture” and “horticultural therapy” have become recognised treatments for stress and depression, which have served as a healing aid in settings ranging from prisons and mental health treatment facilities to schools and hospitals.</p> <p><strong>Gardening and school</strong></p> <p>Studies of school gardening programs – which usually centre on growing food – show that students who have worked on designing, creating and maintaining gardens develop more positive attitudes about health, nutrition and the <a href="http://www.kohalacenter.org/HISGN/pdf/HPP_2011_MMR_Sample1.pdf">consumption</a> of <a href="http://search.proquest.com/openview/61a8bb123ec000d6a6348aeb950645fa/1?pq-origsite=gscholar">vegetables</a>.</p> <p>They also <a href="http://horttech.ashspublications.org/content/15/3/439.short">score better</a> on science <a href="http://aggie-horticulture.tamu.edu/syllabi/435/Articles/Klemmer.pdf">achievement</a>, have better attitudes about school, and improve their <a href="http://www.tandfonline.com/doi/abs/10.1080/15330150701318828">interpersonal skills</a> and <a href="https://food-hub.org/files/resources/Blair_The%20Child%20in%20the%20Garden_J.%20Environ%20Educ_2009.pdf">classroom behaviour</a>.</p> <p>Research on students confirms that gardening leads to higher levels of self-esteem and responsibility. Research suggests that incorporating gardening into a <a href="http://kohalacenter.org/HISGN/pdf/Thechildinthegarden.pdf">school setting</a> can boost group cohesiveness.</p> <p><strong>Gardening and mental health</strong></p> <p>Tailored gardening programs have been shown to increase quality of life for people with <a href="http://www.tandfonline.com/doi/abs/10.1300/J004v16n01_02">chronic mental illnesses</a>, including <a href="http://www.tandfonline.com/doi/abs/10.1300/J004v16n01_02">anxiety and depression</a>.</p> <p>Another study on the use of therapeutic horticulture for patients with clinical depression sought to understand why gardening programs were effective in lessening patient experience of depression. They found that structured gardening activities gave patients existential purpose. Put simply, it <a href="http://www.tandfonline.com/doi/abs/10.3109/01612840.2010.528168">gave their lives meaning</a>.</p> <p>In jails and corrective programs, horticultural therapy programs have been used to give inmates positive, purposeful activities that lessen aggression and hostility during and after incarceration.</p> <p>In one detailed study from a San Francisco program, involvement in therapeutic horticulture was particularly effective in <a href="http://www.tandfonline.com/doi/abs/10.1300/J076v26n03_10">improving psychosocial functioning</a> across prison populations (although the benefits were not necessarily sustained after release.)</p> <p>Gardening has been shown to help improve the lives of <a href="https://www.researchgate.net/profile/Jacqueline_Atkinson/publication/265575473_AN_EVALUATION_OF_THE_GARDENING_LEAVE_PROJECT_FOR_EX-MILITARY_PERSONNEL_WITH_PTSD_AND_OTHER_COMBAT_RELATED_MENTAL_HEALTH_PROBLEMS/links/55094b960cf26ff55f852b50.pdf">military veterans</a> and <a href="http://www.joe.org/joe/2007june/iw5p.shtml">homeless people</a>. Various therapeutic horticulture <a href="https://dspace.lboro.ac.uk/dspace-jspui/handle/2134/2930">programs</a> have been used to help people with learning difficulties, asylum seekers, refugees and victims of torture.</p> <p><strong>Gardening and older people</strong></p> <p>As populations in the West age, hands-on gardening programs have been used for older people in nursing homes and related facilities.</p> <p>A systematic review of 22 studies of gardening programs for older adults found that gardening was a powerful <a href="http://www.tandfonline.com/doi/abs/10.1080/01924788.2013.784942">health-promoting activity</a> across diverse populations.</p> <p>One <a href="http://journals.lww.com/jcrjournal/Abstract/2005/09000/Effects_of_Horticultural_Therapy_on_Mood_and_Heart.8.aspx">study</a> sought to understand if patients recovering from heart attack might benefit from a horticultural therapy program. It concluded:</p> <blockquote> <p><em>[Our] findings indicate that horticultural therapy improves mood state, suggesting that it may be a useful tool in reducing stress. Therefore, to the extent that stress contributes to coronary heart disease, these findings support the role of horticultural therapy as an effective component of cardiac rehabilitation.</em></p> </blockquote> <div class="embed-responsive embed-responsive-16by9"><iframe class="embed-responsive-item" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/Yvir4sm2G7Q"></iframe></div> <p>While the literature on the positive effects of gardening, reflecting both qualitative and quantitative studies, is large, most of these studies are from overseas.</p> <p>Investment in horticultural therapy programs in Australia is piecemeal. That said, there are some standout success stories such as the <a href="https://www.kitchengardenfoundation.org.au/">Stephanie Alexander Kitchen Garden Foundation</a> and the work of nurse <a href="https://www.anmfvic.asn.au/membership/member-profiles/steven-wells">Steven Wells at the Royal Talbot Rehabilitation Centre</a> and beyond.</p> <p>Finally, without professionally trained horticulturists none of these programs – in Australia or internationally – can take place.<!-- Below is The Conversation's page counter tag. Please DO NOT REMOVE. --><img style="border: none !important; box-shadow: none !important; margin: 0 !important; max-height: 1px !important; max-width: 1px !important; min-height: 1px !important; min-width: 1px !important; opacity: 0 !important; outline: none !important; padding: 0 !important; text-shadow: none !important;" src="https://counter.theconversation.com/content/65251/count.gif?distributor=republish-lightbox-basic" alt="The Conversation" width="1" height="1" /><!-- End of code. If you don't see any code above, please get new code from the Advanced tab after you click the republish button. The page counter does not collect any personal data. More info: http://theconversation.com/republishing-guidelines --></p> <p><em><a href="https://theconversation.com/profiles/chris-williams-300083">Chris Williams</a>, Lecturer in urban horticulture, <a href="https://theconversation.com/institutions/university-of-melbourne-722">University of Melbourne</a></em></p> <p><em>This article is republished from <a href="http://theconversation.com">The Conversation</a> under a Creative Commons license. Read the <a href="https://theconversation.com/the-science-is-in-gardening-is-good-for-you-65251">original article</a>.</em></p>

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Ukrainian dwarf abandoned by adoptive parents denies claims she’s a “sociopath”

<p>The Ukranian dwarf orphan who was<span> </span><a rel="noopener" href="https://www.oversixty.com.au/lifestyle/family-pets/she-tried-to-kill-us-mother-who-adopted-9-year-old-girl-claims-her-new-daughter-is-really-a-22-year-old-sociopath" target="_blank">abandoned by her American adoptive parents</a><span> </span>who accused the dwarf of being an adult pretending to be a child has broken her silence in her first televised interview.</p> <p>Six years ago, in 2013, adoptive parents Kristine and Michael Barnett left Indiana for Canada with their other children and left Natalia Grace Barnett behind, which at the time, Natalia says she was nine.</p> <p>The Barnett family had adopted Natalia three years earlier in 2010 hastily as they were under the impression that she was a six-year-old orphan.</p> <p>However, Natalia’s former adoptive parents became convinced that after adopting her, she was actually 22 and was a sociopathic adult who tried to kill members of their family.</p> <p>“Natalia would do things like place clear thumb tacks on the stairs face up so that when we would walk up the stairs, we would be stepping on thumb tacks to pain and injure ourselves,” Kristine said.</p> <p>However, Natalia has refuted the claims and has spoken to Dr Phil about the accusations, maintaining that she is a child.</p> <p>“It's not true at all. I just want people to hear my side,” Natalia said.</p> <p>Natalia is joined by her new adoptive mother known as Cynthia Mans, who insists that a bone scan that Natalia underwent after she was abandoned proves she is the age she says she is.</p> <p>However, when the Barnett family ordered a bone scan for Natalia, the scans suggested that she had been born in 1989.</p> <p>Cynthia says that despite the first allegations from the Barnett family, herself and her husband did not worry about bringing Natalia into their home.</p> <p>“We're supposed to help. Me and my husband adopted these kids,” she said to Dr Phil.</p> <p>“It's like, who would do it if you don't?”</p> <p>The Barnett family has said that the allegations against them for child neglect have been “devastating”.</p> <p><em>Photo credit: <a rel="noopener" href="https://people.com/crime/ukrainian-adoptee-allegedly-abandoned-by-indiana-couple-opens-up-to-dr-phil/?utm_source=twitter.com&amp;utm_medium=social&amp;xid=socialflow_twitter_peoplemag&amp;utm_campaign=peoplemagazine" target="_blank">People</a>  </em></p>

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Gardening checklist for winter

<p>Even though the temperature is cooling down, there are still a few tasks that can (and should) be done around the garden – plus, a spot of gardening will certainly lift your mood on a grey and dreary day. Here’s our checklist of quick winter jobs to get you outdoors, active and enjoying the winter days.</p> <ul> <li>Clear up fading annuals and vegetables from the garden and rake up leaves and other detritus. Add to mulch or compost, unless they show signs of disease.</li> <li>Winter is the perfect time for pruning. Cut back:<br />- Herbaceous perennials like wind flowers, penstemon, bergamot, catmint, and canna.<br />- Spring-flowering deciduous shrubs such as weigela, flowering quince, forsythia (after flowering).<br />- Deciduous fruit trees including apple, peach, plum, pear, apricot, cherry and nectarine<br />- Roses in mid-to-late July. Ensure pruning is complete by early August.<br />- Invasive, damaged or disease branches from trees and shrubs. However, don’t remove more than a third of the plant at a time.</li> <li>Pull or hoe out weeds.</li> <li>Move cold-sensitive potted plants to sheltered spots like the veranda or porch.</li> <li>For plants in the garden susceptible to cold or frost, construct shelters (using cloth or plastic) around them in the evening. Remember to remove during the day as plants can cook in midday sun.</li> <li>In winter, reduce watering of potted plants as they require less water.</li> <li>Use the cooler season to prepare planting holes for new roses and fruit trees. Dig compost and manure into the soil. Dig new veggie or garden beds.</li> <li>Watch for signs of a waterlogged lawn, especially after heavy rainfall. If needed, aerate lawns to let excess moisture soak into the soil.</li> <li>You can still grow some tasty vegetables in winter. Check out <a href="/lifestyle/gardening/2015/05/vegetables-to-grow-in-winter/"><span style="text-decoration: underline;"><strong>our guide on veggies that grow well in winter</strong></span></a>. Winter is also a great time to plant bare-rooted trees and shrubs including fruit trees.</li> <li>Use the downtime in winter to organise your supplies. Clean, sharpen and repair tools. Label seeds and store in cool, dry area.</li> <li>Cheer the garden up with a few pots of annuals like pansies or polyanthus. They’re already in bloom so will add some instant colour.</li> </ul>

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