This article focuses a lot on large, well curated gardens, but I'm an engineer who found a lot of solace and safety in managing my own garden. (As someone who has faced burnout and anxiety from work before.)
There's something about planning, planting, and then caring for a garden that appeals to my engineer brain. It's an exercise in organization and planning that scales from "throw seeds at dirt" to "these plants will attract bees near these other plants, these plants will repel insects. These will bloom early, these bloom late".
You can grow flowers, you can grow vegetables which you can turn into cooked, canned, or pickled food.
There's something about putting food on a plate that came from your yard, from your care. There's something about sitting in a green (or red, or blue, or yellow, etc.) space that you made.
I'm a sucker for games like Minecraft, Factorio, etc. Raising a garden is like a slow motion version of those things. It's a fusion of creative and scientific/engineering brains. It's great.
> putting food on a plate that came from your yard, from your care.
Can't second this enough. This connection between soil (direct environment) to your gut is, as stupid as it seems, a marvellous thing.[1]
> There's something about sitting in a green (or red, or blue, or yellow, etc.) space that you made.
Few time I walk in a forest (semi-wild) I feel like a forest is like a big nest. Enough roof, enough sunlight, enough green things aronud. It feels very safe most of the time[0].
I'll add something, wood is so superb.. as a material too. Using it as construction (small or large) is a great pleasure. The soft sound, the soft touch, the pale color.. when seen with a bit of chemist eye, you appreciate it a lot.
ps: on volcanic side of caribean islands, the nature is also overwhelmingly present. Giving you a lot of opportunities to be around a tiny stream of clear water surrounded by plants. You know people listening to rainy sonuds to relax. It was an amplified version of this. It made my mind trip in a weird way, as if flowing water became my time source and made me forget about the world.
[0] there are times where your spidey senses will wake up though, which is also super surprising because it's not like fear or stress. It's N times more acute senses and focus. Almost a pleasure.. especially considering how dull a modern daily life can make you feel.
[1] society forgot that because of modern times social delegation but it should be a human right. Today you may not have enough to do your own food growing. If you fall of the city tree you'll starve.
> there are times where your spidey senses will wake up though, which is also super surprising because it's not like fear or stress. It's N times more acute senses and focus. Almost a pleasure.. especially considering how dull a modern daily life can make you feel.
After about 3 weeks into a multi thousand mile hike, senses that I didn't even realize I had started to wake up. I could sense animals in the woods around me. I couldn't say if this was sound, smell, or something else, but I just knew they were there. Sometimes I woke up in the middle of the night, immediately knowing that something was going after my food. I also began to sense water sources from very long distances. This was probably a combination of smell and recognizing terrain patterns. Weather was another big one. I gained an intuitive sense for the storm patterns in the mountains, and I could see them changing with the terrain as I moved.
It took half a decade for the positive side effects of that hike to wear off.
I winter hiked the Appalachian trail, starting in Amicalola Falls on January 1st. I ran out of money near Harpers Ferry, so I made it about 1100 miles.
I highly recommend doing this type of thing at least once in your life. I dreamed about using computers at night for about the first 3 weeks, and then my brain reverted to a more primitive state and I never missed tech again or felt bored for the entire time I was out there. It's very freeing.
Although if you're going to winter thru hike, winter hiking experience and good equipment is essential. A few sections ended up borderline mountaineering, which in retrospect was very foolish to attempt alone and with no experience. I did not know what I was getting into, and I got extraordinarily lucky a few times while learning how to survive outside during the winter through trial and error. Also had to spend most of the money I saved on better equipment, which is why I had to cut my hike short.
Look at the appalachian and pacific crest trails. Its really hard in occidental countries to be more than 50km from a city, so you always have places to buy food.
> This connection between soil to your gut is a marvelous thing.
Indeed, some research is pointing to the beneficial effects on your microbiome, too. The microscopic critters in the soil where you live may be very well co-evolved to live there, and there's a body of reasoning which says since you live there, too, they can be - sometimes - be very helpful to your own body.
Fair point although I only had the psychological link from feeling able to understand nature (aka most of the planet) to sustain your life (feeding but also whatever use you can make with plants, roots, wood etc).
People often just buy soil for their gardens in the local megastore. That soil is often dried peat and has nothing to do with local environment of your garden.
> There's something about planning, planting, and then caring for a garden that appeals to my engineer brain
Agreed, and it's also not a stressful task in itself for some reason. I'm somebody that's over analytical and tends to succumb to analysis paralysis, but when it comes to garden work I never experience that. (possibly because I know plants are resilient and it's hard to mess up?)
I come to gardening with the same attitude. Basically if it doesn't grow well in my temperate climate then I just grow something else next year. Tomatoes, mint, and squash all grow like weeds and are super easy, peppers are finicky, and leafy greens are a battle against aphids.
That said, I know plenty of other hobby gardeners who treat their gardens as an exercise in optimization. Heck, I even know one engineer with a grid of (legal) marijuana plants who varies the nutrient composition of the soil in each planter to play with his quality/yield.
I have had good luck in the battle against aphids on my kale by spraying them with a (1:1) mixture of 70% rubbing alcohol and water with a small amount of dish soap (I use about one sponge load worth in a full spray bottle).
Neem is great. We use it a lot in India. It's one of what some people informally call super-plants or wonder-plants, some others being banana, coconut, and bamboo. All have various uses, for different parts of the plant, not just the obvious ones, e.g. in the case of banana, people in India eat the flowers and stems too, made into curries).
Edit: Also garlic, ha ha. What would we do without it, for both food and (informal) medical uses.
Yeah it really breaks through the paralysis because once you get the seeds wet the plants are coming on their own schedule whether you're ready or not.
Plants are definitely resilient. I like experimenting with high densities/small pots on the very unlikely chance I find some plants with synergy (or just lack of space).
In 2017 this resulted in tiny (but tasty!) jalapenos (about a quarter of the normal size) growing off a plant that had sat on the windowsill doing nothing for 2 years.
If anyone has advice on plant pairings/symbiosis I would love to hear it!
>Plants are definitely resilient. I like experimenting with high densities/small pots on the very unlikely chance I find some plants with synergy (or just lack of space).
>In 2017 this resulted in tiny (but tasty!) jalapenos (about a quarter of the normal size) growing off a plant that had sat on the windowsill doing nothing for 2 years.
Very interesting. Must try that out some time.
>If anyone has advice on plant pairings/symbiosis I would love to hear it!
You probably know this, but nitrogen fixation via legumes is one such symbiosis, of a kind. You can plant non-legumes interspersed with legumes. The native North American "Three Sisters" concept [1] is an example of that - they discovered that corn, beans and squash work well in symbiosis - beans being the legume.
Edit: In fact, with the Three Sisters, it is not a two-way symbiosis - it is three-way:
>The three crops benefit from each other. The maize provides a structure for the beans to climb, eliminating the need for poles. The beans provide the nitrogen to the soil that the other plants use, and the squash spreads along the ground, blocking the sunlight, helping prevent the establishment of weeds. The squash leaves also act as a "living mulch", creating a microclimate to retain moisture in the soil, and the prickly hairs of the vine deter pests. Corn, beans, and squash contain complex carbohydrates, essential fatty acids and all nine essential amino acids, allowing most Native American tribes to thrive on a plant-based diet.[7]
Just to add to what has been said here. The three sisters is not the only form of companion planting you can do. There are many. My favorite other examples also include: Strawberries planted next to blueberries and carrots planted next to lettuce. These may not provide as complete nutritional value as the three sisters but they are easy other options.
I was aware of nitrogen fixing in theory but was wholly unaware of the maize/beans/squash combo. That's 100% the sort of thing I'm after although I would prefer it on a container friendly scale.
Good point. Not sure if it would work at that small a scale. You might have to look around more (on and off the Net); it could help. Some searching through organic gardening sites, Rodale Press mags/sites, permaculture sites, etc., may help.
Vaguely remember seeing some such points mentioned (about companion planting, plant-plant symbiosis examples for gardening, etc.) a while ago, but did not save those particular ones, unfortunately, although I do often save web pages of interest to my PC.
Just remembered / thought of another point: Just because beans and corn may not work at your small scale (tiny pots), does not mean that nitrogen fixation may not work at all (or other forms of symbiosis). I remember reading somewhere that there are many plants and trees in the legume family ( Fabaceae (or Leguminosae)) [1], and they range from small herbs to trees. So some googling for small leguminous plants may help. For example, clover (which can be small) is probably a legume. Also, a person I know - and who has a background in farming - once told me that there are many wild species that are legumes, and one way (not guaranteed to work always) to detect them, is that they have trifoliate leaves.
Just googled:
legumes have trifoliate leaves
and it seems to indicate that what he said is partly right, at least.
My family came across a fun synergy last summer - garden giants (aka wine caps, or probably any table mushroom) and squash. The squash likes to grow into the wood chip beds of the table mushrooms, and the mushrooms like the cool, moist climate in the shadow of the squash leaves.
I moved to "easier" plants and was a lot happier. Once I mastered growing an ivy, I felt more comfortable. For me the general problem is that plants just stop growing because they've exhausted the nutrients in the soil, and then I bungle the fertilizer (too much) and the plant dies.
Edit: I just saw your other post, this one in isolation made me think you had tried gardening once and given up.
That just happens sometimes!
Hard to explain failures are often caused by one or more of over watering, pests (including at the root level), too little soil, or bad soil PH. Symptoms of pests include visible bugs, mold, eggs, or webs (check under the leaves) or a weird smell. PH problems sometimes manifest as discolored leaves.
Also like animals plants have very different levels of vitality, there is strength in numbers!
If you want to try again let me recommend herbs and leaf vegetables. Mint, basil, arugula, lettuce, and mustard greens grow fast and mint in particular is somewhat invasive and hard to stop it gets going.
It can be tough to grow a tomato that looks like the ones at the grocery store without experience and more time and care. There's an art to it.
i’ve had great results growing basil. I had a plant we named Harry, who thrived in Palo Alto despite erratic care. Harry would drink as much water as we could give it and would be visibly wilted when thirsty. Otherwise, incredibly happy sitting in the sun and producing leaves.
>i’ve had great results growing basil. I had a plant we named Harry,
Wow, really cool idea, naming individual plants. Much better than the pet rock concept ;) Going to give it a try, next time I plant something. Related, as a kid doing organic gardening, I once read a book called Talk To Your Plants. Just searched for it:
I'm in the Pacific Northwest, and I've had mixed experience with basil. I'm trying to grow it hydroponically at home now, and it seems to be going pretty well.
Yeah basil really takes well to that kind of setup and has the ability, given sufficient light, to grow so vigorously that it creates a wide band of acceptable fertilizer levels which can be a real challenge.
As an engineer who also really loves the outdoors (forests, mountains, etc.), I find gardening to be one the most stressful activities I've ever tried.
For example, I had several trees planted for privacy, and I cannot even handle watering them. There's no good recipe to follow, no fixed amount of water, just a vague instruction to dig a hole into the root ball and make sure the soil is "moist" but not "wet" or "dry". Of course, that is just like a customer saying he wants a design that "pops but is not too flashy" - a nightmare.
On top of that, there's one watering system for 7 trees, and various holes next to them have different-feeling soil; and often, different holes right next to each other by the same tree have radically different levels of moisture. Even the rain doesn't helps because arborvitae are very dense and while 2 feet from the root ball it may be almost swampy, under the tree still looks dry and I've no idea whether to water or not water them.
And that's before we get to fertilizer, pests, etc. Ugh.
And ofc unlike e.g. burning a cake, if the trees do die I'll actually feel bad.
It's basically an engineering equivalent of a customer from hell who is super vague, changes specs all the time, and you have multiple bosses who disagree; and if you screw up the project people suffer.
I already wish I just had a taller fence built, cause I'll have to hire someone to deal with this no doubt.
They really should come up with bio-engineered "robot" trees that have an instruction manual with specific quantities of water and stuff to be applied at specific intervals...
Anyway, since you love outdoors, you know there are trees on this earth, who handles growing without human interaction?
And they only have natural rain and groundwater.
But yes they do not grow everywhere but only at a specific ground. So most of them die at young age, who were unlucky.
And with gardening you try to engineer the right conditions, but because of the complexity, you just fail so a lot of times. There are basic rules to follow and the rest is experience.
So just relax about the thought that things can die because of you. That just will happen a lot with gardening.
And with your arborvitae, well for them it is mostly the soil that matters. Imagine them growing in the wild ... and then try to simulate that as much as possible.
So don't panic if the ground moisture is not allways perfect, it allmost never is in the wild. The trees grow nevertheless, unless the ground is really unsuitable. And then you can adjust a bit. But mostly your trees need a lot of water it seems. And then they will grow..
As with most hobbies, you start with a lot of failures and some successes. Maybe these trees aren't the right ones for this spot in your garden. Maybe they are.
I've come to peace with the fact that some plans will die in my garden. The ones that do grow flourish and are a pleasant sight.
I also like to have my own garden, or at least a small communal garden that is harmoniously integrated into the property.
I was living in Copenhagen for a few years, and I was really impressed by how well designed some small blocks of flats were in order to get them integrated into wild gardens and little forests, e.g. [1,2]. Apparently a trend that started with Scandinavian mid-century architecture.
During Spring and Summer, from many living rooms you could not see neighboring blocks because there was an absolutely amazing small forest in between. With Summer breeze, you would only hear leaves moving. Absolutely amazing to work from home in such a property. Silent and very pleasant views.
Trees had been carefully selected and/or flats placed appropriately so that during darker months they would not give any shade. And these were mid-class flats I could rent with a (generous) MSc scholarship, nothing outrageously expensive. Good urban design makes a difference.
I'd guess that you would love permaculture [1], if you're not already familiar with it. It's a set of design principles for organizing and planning gardens that oozes a certain creative engineering and wisdom of natural things.
Yep! I try to practice permaculture as much as possible. There's always more to do, but much of our garden is designed to be both aesthetically pleasing and edible, and we try to recycle back into it and support native insects where we can.
The big secret with permaculture that I wish wasn't a secret: There's more things you can do, but there are fewer things you have to do right now. If you're home and it's sunny, you're mowing the lawn, and you can't stop in the middle.
If you wanna prune shrubs, chop and drop weeds, or plant bushes until the sun sets, it starts raining, or GoT comes on, you just can. Doing lawncare with thunderclouds passing overhead is just bad juju.
in the book Digital Minimalism Cal Newport does devote a chapter to this type of 'Leisure' activity. he makes a case that humans are evolved to interact with physical world and such activity is a lot more satisfying/relaxing than the simulated kind (digital world). its well worth a read and making me re-consider my evenings. Even though i avoid TV i still spend "productive" time on a computer. working on a garden would be an excellent candidate!
>I'm a sucker for games like Minecraft, Factorio, etc. Raising a garden is like a slow motion version of those things. It's a fusion of creative and scientific/engineering brains. It's great.
I can't believe you didn't mention Stardew Valley. It is a smash hit game and your comment is basically a short essay as to why it is so popular and enjoyable.
I love the uncertainty of it. There are so many things that can go wrong - weather, pests, misunderstanding a plants needs. Too many factors out of your control. At the end of the day you have to accept that nature will take its own course and appreciate it.
Wow. Have read about what they do, but thought it was only in nature / forested / non-urban areas. You live in such an area, or did they enter a citified area?
I live in a rural area on the Tennessee River. It's a little more rural than suburban, but not very far out of town. Came out one day and the tree stump (about 1 1/2" around) was cut off at an angle a couple of inches above the ground, sharp enough to puncture a lawn mower tire. That tree was just gone. (The other was a little older and sprouted volunteers, so it's trying to grow back.)
It's great to live and/or be near water bodies. I love lakes and rivers and the sea. I've not lived very near any, at least for extended periods, but have been to them a fair amount. Also, I once lived for a month or so in a beach hut (bamboo) about 10 feet from the ocean's edge, in Goa. It took about 6 seconds to open the door of my hut and walk to the water's edge. The roaring of the waves at night, from so close (more loud at night than in the day, because of relatively less ambient sound) was initially a little scary, but I got used to it, and liked it after that. It kind of lulls you to sleep. Great experience.
I've read as a kid about beavers cutting down trees for their dams and lodges (IIRC the terms). Amazing stuff. Indicates intelligence. Don't know if there are any closely similar animals elsewhere in the world, in terms of their building using trees.
> There's something about planning, planting, and then caring for a garden that appeals to my engineer brain.
Boy you sound like someone who would really enjoy square foot gardening. I doubt I'm telling you anything you don't know, but here's a link for those unfamiliar:
I remember watching a TED talk by Dan Gilbert in which he claimed that there was research showing that tending houseplants improved mood (and extended lifespans, I think?) for elderly nursing home residents, but also that the longevity benefits were reversed after the houseplants were taken away?
I'm very fuzzy on the details, but in retrospect, it sounds like a bit of a cruel experiment to conduct.
You're getting it twice there, because repetitive tasks can have their own soothing effect, especially on people whose minds tend to 'race'.
Weeding, pruning, harvesting become a meditation, after a fashion. That's probably what Grandpa was doing out there futzing with the lawn every weekend. I never got that knack with lawncare, but flowerbeds, sure.
Totally agree. My business partner started gardening from her balcony and blogging about the challenges, which then got several of us into it as well. I now have five raised beds, more than a dozen pots, some vertical planters made from eaves, and a good plant that feels like something out of Little Shop of Horrors.
It's such a connective thing for me now. Stress relief, feeling control over my food source, talking to neighbours more often, and thinking about food sources. Highly recommended gardening to anyone looking for a great and fairly easy hobby.
Drip lines are cool and helpful when you aren't there all the time. But getting your hands dirty and watering yourself is some kinds of meditation. I feel so relaxing and refreshing when holding garden hose pouring water for all the plants in the weekend.
That's what I like about gardening. You can approach it as an exercise in automation, or not. Both are available and widely supported. Whatever works for you!
My balcony becomes an urban farm every summer complete with custom PCB giving me moisture monitoring and individual watering of 8 plants. Not necessary but definitely calming.
Start with a small plot and grow some peas or beans. They are easy to plant and grow, and usually produce a ton of food.
I LOVE "Food Grown Right, In Your Backyard: A Beginner's Guide to Growing Crops at Home". It's approachable, it talks about growing vegetables primarily, but it also talks about how to set up a bed, how to fertilize, etc. It's aimed at beginners and it is full of pictures.
The important part is that you can basically experiment with a small plot one year, and see what you like. I built one raised bed. Then the year later, I added two more. Now I have 6 raised beds plus a whole bunch of beds on the ground. I started with carrots and peas. Now I grow basically all the fruits and veggies. :D
After I got comfortable with my veggies, I started looking into French potager gardens and companion planting flowers in my vegetables. I pawed through a bunch of books and didn't find one I loved, but found a lot of blogs and things to search through.
If you're in the SF bay area, I strongly recommend Golden Gate Gardening [https://www.amazon.com/Golden-Gate-Gardening-3rd-Year-Round/...] because it's approachable if you read it from the beginning, but comprehensive and highly detailed in the various aspects of this diverse region. Nothing more frustrating than growing a mandarin tree only to find out that the fruit will likely not be too sweet!
I've had a theory for some time now based on my own observations:
A big part of why nature is so calming is the absence of repeating patterns. In our artificial life everything follows standardized forms and patterns. It's a sterile world.
The most obvious example being rectangles and perfect 90 degree angles everywhere. But I would also count things like uniform colors, evenly spread (artificial) light, predictable sounds etc.
That makes me think that somehow something like this absence of patterns - and the knowledge/assumption for our brain that they are not to be expected in nature - helps us.
The beauty in this is that nature _is_ full of patterns. But on a different level, no two patterns are ever the same. When you look at a green tree you simply won't assume to find two leaves with the same color and shape. That's the difference.
Points toward volatile systems (e.g. cells and animals and humans and cultures and all forms of life) preferring a certain degree of fractal dimension and self-similarity, which to me hints at the right balance of chaos and order that is conducive to life and many self-sustaining systems. And so we intuitively "choose" and have preference for a certain fractal dimension range, which nature also happens to prefer at all sorts of different scales.
If this sort of thinking appeals to you, I also highly recommend looking into complexity science :)
EDIT: fwiw, the gist of this article REALLY struck me when I was in the Juifen market in Taiwan [1] (which the anime Spirited Away was inspired by) -- the chaos of the layered canopy covers and random infrastructural protrusions from the lack of central planning -- it immediately felt comforting, like walking into a shaded forest trail, despite being surrounded by a vibrant economy and commerce! (which I would normally kinda HATE)
Sort of off topic:
One of the more frustrating things about going out in nature where I live at least, is seeing the pattern of invasive plants over and over again. I can identify every plant in my area, an area that would have been full of thousands of different trees and bushes now has repeating landscape of about two dozen different plants.
No, invasiveness is a quantitative measure. A plant can force other plants out, or it can coexist. The amount of net pressure on other species dictates whether a plant is invasive. A Eucalyptus and a Live Oak will both use the same sunlight but the Eucalyptus will lol everything underneath it.
Also, it is true that sunlight is a fixed resource, but the earth is not 100% covered, even in mature forests. There are disturbances everywhere that can be moved into and stengthening the ecosystem.
There are also resources which are not sunlight. The resource competition is so multidimensional and open that you cannot conceive of life as a zero sum game. Not yet anyway. Maybe in another billion years of evolution we will be at the point where every movement is an invasion.
You might be interested in looking at and reading parts of The Grammar of Ornament. In particular some of the “principles” he spells out. I’ll link that page below.
“True beauty results from that repose which the mind feels when the eye, the intellect, and the affections, are satisfied from the absence of any want.”
What you say regarding patterns is true compared to human-made thubgs, but I'm not sure that is what is the root attraction.
For me it's the practically endless possibility that I will see or hear (or even smell) something new if I'm using my senses (instead of busy thinking about human problems).
There's little difference betweey explanation and yours, but I selfishly think it's all about our experience.
I feel like walls should be covered in green/blue stochastically transforming patterns meant to elicit the same response that nature does, ideally with feedback from an EEG headset that picks up on what patterns are most calming for a given person.
Of all the plants, trees by far give me the most pleasure. A suburb with trees is a thousand times better than one without. The shade of a tree is completely transformative. It gives me a fuzzy warm feeling inside.
It’s concerning to me that such an important aesthetic component is so transient and difficult to control. When you build a house, you control every aspect of its design. It’s materials are tough and long lasting. But the trees around the house are prone to dying. They get too old or they get sick or whatever. And when they do, you can’t really replace them. I’ve seen tons of houses where they had great atmosphere but then one of their large trees died and the feeling of the house is totally ruined. I’m not sure if you can order a grown tree and have it implanted but it’s probably really expensive. We need artificial trees that last longer and are easy to replace.
Humans are drawn to vistas. Standing on the top of a hill and looking at the vista is something everyone agrees is beautiful and feels good. I think it might be because our ancestors were tree-dwelling monkeys. The higher in the tree you climb, the better the view, the safer you are from predators. If we are drawn to views then we would likely spend more time high up in the tree. Maybe that’s also why we find trees themselves so appealing. Ancient wiring.
I am fortunate to have a house on a larger plot of land considering it's in a dense urban environment, and on the land are very impressive trees such as an oak, a maple, a few birch, and a black cherry. Regrettably the birch are short lived, and while they still produce leaves they are getting weak and I will need to bring them down in a few years. The cherry still produces leaves and may even flower this year, but its wood is very brittle and it will probably come down this fall. It truly is sad as their loss will definitely impact why I moved into the house.
Before we had kids, my wife and I would work in the garden almost every weekend. After spending a week dealing with servers on fire, doing mindless repetitive work was exactly what I needed to rest my mind.
At one point I dug out a garden that was 37’ x 14’ and over a foot deep. I did the math once and figured out that I moved more than 2000 lbs of dirt (a literal ton) and then I moved a literal ton of bricks to the back yard to build the retaining walls.
Measuring your accomplishments in tonnage is very satisfying.
The garden is too dangerous for the kids because there are a lot of sharp things around. :) I didn't build it with kids in mind, so for example all the wire fencing is just cut with no ends. We'll get out there with them in a few years. My daughter helps with the front yard sometimes.
Its all rusty barbed wire fence by us, so rationally it doesn't make a difference, wouldn't want my kids injuring themselves on something like that in the garden though.
>I cannot say exactly how nature exerts its calming and organizing effects on our brains, but I have seen in my patients the restorative and healing powers of nature and gardens, even for those who are deeply disabled neurologically. In many cases, gardens and nature are more powerful than any medication.
---
I have witnessed this with my wife who's neurological disorder causes her to be in a "fright or flight" state virtually all day every day.
When she is either planning the garden, tending to the garden or just enjoying the garden I can see a reduced level of stress and increased ability to focus and multitask. All things which are very difficult outside of the garden.
That's great to hear. I think being in a place where you can see seasonal change also has a calming and humbling effect. The wisteria in the springtime, the beautiful colors of the leaves in autumn - being around those changes in your natural habitat can be destressing and comforting, as they show that life and the natural world still goes on around you.
Not only is it visually pleasing, as an escape fro our usual concrete-filled world (probably because we evolved living in nature), but without doing any research to look up studies I feel like the reduced stress might also come from the smell (pheromones).
It goes deep in our psyche. In 101 Principles Of Design they mention a hospital that put up photos of bamboo trees in their hallways, so that it feels like you’re walking through a forest, because of the calming effect it has on patients. Photos of trees, not even real trees.
That sounds like you'd need a portable garden. (Whether that still works is another question.)
I've seen people talk about car plants, which would be a similar idea. (The feasibility depends a lot on climate of course.) And then of course there are many houseplants enthusiasts, it seems easy to develop some kind of addiction when stressed or mentally not well. Plants everywhere!
One of the gardens pictured in the article, Elizabeth Street Garden, is a great spot in the middle of retail chaos in New York. Sadly a real estate development filed a lawsuit this month in hopes of destroying it: https://static1.squarespace.com/static/581fb257b8a79bf741c67...
There's something about this I read on Slate Star Codex that I found entertaining and insightful. It's easy to forget that we needed to be in a fertile place in the past, and for the most part we don't need to now, except for emotional reasons.
"Most people are happier when they’re in at least some Nature, whether this means a grand national park or just a leafy suburb with lots of chirping birds. The average person would consider a concrete lot full of Brutalist apartments a little soul-crushing. This probably comes from an evolutionary heuristic in favor of fertile areas and against barren ones; the closest chimpanzee-parseable equivalent to a concrete lot would be a desert or lava flow, where food and shelter are scarce. But nowadays we can order takeout, and the Brutalist apartment buildings provide all the shelter we need. This is probably another obsolete evolutionary relic, but it’s a very persistent one."
I find the idea of “except for emotional reasons,” as if they are not Facts and Needs like any either, to be a good representation of the pretenses mentioned in my original comment.
I'd think it'd be well to also note, aside a evolutionary analysis based on the past, in the present, plants take in carbon dioxide and release oxygen.
We also need plants to eat. We don't need direct access to the plants to eat them, nor do we need direct access to plants to benefit from carbon dioxide to oxygen conversion. I'm not aware of where the plants I eat come from, most of the time. I'm not saying I don't need plants, I just don't necessarily need to live among them, but I like being able to see plants frequently. I have no desire to have my own garden though, I would rather appreciate nature in a public place where everyone can enjoy them, such as parks and along streets.
I'm (hopefully) on the tail-end of dealing with mental health issues. I was dealing with burnout, depression, substance abuse, trauma, psychosis, and severe anxiety. Right about then I started this backyard project to create a chemical-free, sustainable, and diverse "forest garden". Currently, about two years later that Eco-system is starting to explode with more bugs, fungus, and birds.
I found solitude, peace, and healing in the process of working with nature. I worked hard to revitalize the natural environment around me, and through that process I want to believe that nature found a way to heal me too.
Also, I had a therapist and a supporting partner who helped me through the tough times.
Anyways, I can't recommend enough getting your hands in the dirt, appreciating all forms of nature, and learning about the various Eco-systems that are needed for nature to thrive.
My wife and I have been gardening for around 15 years.
We spent a couple of years, maybe 5 or 7 years ago, trying straw bale gardens.
It was quite interesting. I would recommend giving it a try some time. You can do it even with just one bale. We did it with about 10-12 bales of oat straw from a farm we knew.
Given the author's observations, I would draw a different conclusion. I would conclude it isn't so much that gardens are good for you but that urban living, surrounding yourself with noise, strangers, glass, and concrete is bad for you.
Oddly, I have never felt the allure of gardens, I don't have any plants myself, and if I'd have to choose between a city environment and nature, I'd in most cases choose the city (and not because of its parks). Both when I am happy and when I am sad.
I like a good sunset but that's it.
I'm clearly in a minority with this, it seems.
I am actively working on a startup to encourage gardening for all the mentioned benefits. If someone wants to chat about it please reach out. Email in profile.
Gardens and other natural spaces absolutely affect social and mental wellbeing.
An interesting piece of research into the effects of greenery and nature on wellbeing was conducted back in 2001 by Ming Kuo and William Sullivan [0]. I love referencing it in discussions like these as it's a rather opportunistic experimental setting that might have otherwise never occurred, and gives us some pretty great data to recount when we only otherwise have anecdotes.
In Chicago there was a set of high-rise public-housing buildings. The residents of these buildings had been assigned randomly by the public housing system. Attrition over time had left some buildings surrounded by only concrete and asphalt and others with pockets of green. Kuo and Sullivan were able to compare levels of aggression of 145 residents. They found higher levels of aggression and familial conflict recalled by those living less close to nature. They backed up this data by looking at similar low-rise developments [1]. Controlling for other factors, they compared crime rates of inhabitants who experienced less natural proximity to those with more. They found that roughly 7% of the variation in crime that couldn't be accounted for by other factors could be accounted for by the amount of trees.
Ming Kuo has gone on to research the link between nature and school performance, one of her recent studies concluding that "greening has the potential to mitigate academic underachievement in high-poverty urban schools."[2] In another fascinating piece of research she has also found that "Children with ADHD have fewer symptoms after outdoor activities in lush environments."[3]
Many of this research matches our collective anecdotes. We know that we are somehow hard-wired for nature. Yet we keep ourselves locked away in buildings for hours on end with little of it except corporate potted plants (often fake) and the odd photo or poster on the wall. To pile on with another opinion... I think there's something about 'wild' greenery that is distinctly effective versus manicured greenery. Its chaos and growth somehow synchronise with the minds' inherent nature. In an incredibly fundamental way, we are supposed to be amongst that wildness.
> It's ok to post stories from sites with paywalls that have workarounds. In comments, it's ok to ask how to read an article and to help other users do so. But please don't post complaints about paywalls. Those are off topic.
This article focuses a lot on large, well curated gardens, but I'm an engineer who found a lot of solace and safety in managing my own garden. (As someone who has faced burnout and anxiety from work before.)
There's something about planning, planting, and then caring for a garden that appeals to my engineer brain. It's an exercise in organization and planning that scales from "throw seeds at dirt" to "these plants will attract bees near these other plants, these plants will repel insects. These will bloom early, these bloom late".
You can grow flowers, you can grow vegetables which you can turn into cooked, canned, or pickled food.
There's something about putting food on a plate that came from your yard, from your care. There's something about sitting in a green (or red, or blue, or yellow, etc.) space that you made.
I'm a sucker for games like Minecraft, Factorio, etc. Raising a garden is like a slow motion version of those things. It's a fusion of creative and scientific/engineering brains. It's great.
> putting food on a plate that came from your yard, from your care.
Can't second this enough. This connection between soil (direct environment) to your gut is, as stupid as it seems, a marvellous thing.[1]
> There's something about sitting in a green (or red, or blue, or yellow, etc.) space that you made.
Few time I walk in a forest (semi-wild) I feel like a forest is like a big nest. Enough roof, enough sunlight, enough green things aronud. It feels very safe most of the time[0].
I'll add something, wood is so superb.. as a material too. Using it as construction (small or large) is a great pleasure. The soft sound, the soft touch, the pale color.. when seen with a bit of chemist eye, you appreciate it a lot.
ps: on volcanic side of caribean islands, the nature is also overwhelmingly present. Giving you a lot of opportunities to be around a tiny stream of clear water surrounded by plants. You know people listening to rainy sonuds to relax. It was an amplified version of this. It made my mind trip in a weird way, as if flowing water became my time source and made me forget about the world.
[0] there are times where your spidey senses will wake up though, which is also super surprising because it's not like fear or stress. It's N times more acute senses and focus. Almost a pleasure.. especially considering how dull a modern daily life can make you feel.
[1] society forgot that because of modern times social delegation but it should be a human right. Today you may not have enough to do your own food growing. If you fall of the city tree you'll starve.
> there are times where your spidey senses will wake up though, which is also super surprising because it's not like fear or stress. It's N times more acute senses and focus. Almost a pleasure.. especially considering how dull a modern daily life can make you feel.
After about 3 weeks into a multi thousand mile hike, senses that I didn't even realize I had started to wake up. I could sense animals in the woods around me. I couldn't say if this was sound, smell, or something else, but I just knew they were there. Sometimes I woke up in the middle of the night, immediately knowing that something was going after my food. I also began to sense water sources from very long distances. This was probably a combination of smell and recognizing terrain patterns. Weather was another big one. I gained an intuitive sense for the storm patterns in the mountains, and I could see them changing with the terrain as I moved.
It took half a decade for the positive side effects of that hike to wear off.
Makes me want to walk in the country side alone. In France there's almost no real danger (except the eventual hunter).
Anyways it's odd how our world evolved toward comfort and disconnecting us from such important part of us.
Someday if I've got a few months to spare, I'd love to hitchhike around Europe. Seems like a pretty cool place to wander.
It certainly is and in much of Europe it's a legal right:
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Freedom_to_roam
the whole germany and its surroundings is also choke full of bike lane (according to https://old.reddit.com/r/MapPorn/comments/bdvap6/cycling_lan...)
Unless you live in Paris and Yellow Vests are burning your street.
> After about 3 weeks into a multi thousand mile hike
How far and how long did you hike for? I just can't imagine walking through the woods for so many months. Also where did you hike?
I winter hiked the Appalachian trail, starting in Amicalola Falls on January 1st. I ran out of money near Harpers Ferry, so I made it about 1100 miles.
I highly recommend doing this type of thing at least once in your life. I dreamed about using computers at night for about the first 3 weeks, and then my brain reverted to a more primitive state and I never missed tech again or felt bored for the entire time I was out there. It's very freeing.
Although if you're going to winter thru hike, winter hiking experience and good equipment is essential. A few sections ended up borderline mountaineering, which in retrospect was very foolish to attempt alone and with no experience. I did not know what I was getting into, and I got extraordinarily lucky a few times while learning how to survive outside during the winter through trial and error. Also had to spend most of the money I saved on better equipment, which is why I had to cut my hike short.
Look at the appalachian and pacific crest trails. Its really hard in occidental countries to be more than 50km from a city, so you always have places to buy food.
You must have come across some very delicate mushrooms while making your way.
> This connection between soil to your gut is a marvelous thing.
Indeed, some research is pointing to the beneficial effects on your microbiome, too. The microscopic critters in the soil where you live may be very well co-evolved to live there, and there's a body of reasoning which says since you live there, too, they can be - sometimes - be very helpful to your own body.
(not that you should eat dirt, of course)
Fair point although I only had the psychological link from feeling able to understand nature (aka most of the planet) to sustain your life (feeding but also whatever use you can make with plants, roots, wood etc).
People often just buy soil for their gardens in the local megastore. That soil is often dried peat and has nothing to do with local environment of your garden.
> There's something about planning, planting, and then caring for a garden that appeals to my engineer brain
Agreed, and it's also not a stressful task in itself for some reason. I'm somebody that's over analytical and tends to succumb to analysis paralysis, but when it comes to garden work I never experience that. (possibly because I know plants are resilient and it's hard to mess up?)
I come to gardening with the same attitude. Basically if it doesn't grow well in my temperate climate then I just grow something else next year. Tomatoes, mint, and squash all grow like weeds and are super easy, peppers are finicky, and leafy greens are a battle against aphids.
That said, I know plenty of other hobby gardeners who treat their gardens as an exercise in optimization. Heck, I even know one engineer with a grid of (legal) marijuana plants who varies the nutrient composition of the soil in each planter to play with his quality/yield.
I have had good luck in the battle against aphids on my kale by spraying them with a (1:1) mixture of 70% rubbing alcohol and water with a small amount of dish soap (I use about one sponge load worth in a full spray bottle).
I have a similar recipe, only I add in a tablespoon or so of neem oil.
Neem is great. We use it a lot in India. It's one of what some people informally call super-plants or wonder-plants, some others being banana, coconut, and bamboo. All have various uses, for different parts of the plant, not just the obvious ones, e.g. in the case of banana, people in India eat the flowers and stems too, made into curries).
Edit: Also garlic, ha ha. What would we do without it, for both food and (informal) medical uses.
I've had success against bugs using liquid Castile soap (Dr Bronner) in a recycled "foaming spray bottle" (Clorox Foamer)
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Insecticidal_soap
Just get a container of lady bugs, they're natural predators
Yeah it really breaks through the paralysis because once you get the seeds wet the plants are coming on their own schedule whether you're ready or not.
Plants are definitely resilient. I like experimenting with high densities/small pots on the very unlikely chance I find some plants with synergy (or just lack of space).
In 2017 this resulted in tiny (but tasty!) jalapenos (about a quarter of the normal size) growing off a plant that had sat on the windowsill doing nothing for 2 years.
If anyone has advice on plant pairings/symbiosis I would love to hear it!
>Plants are definitely resilient. I like experimenting with high densities/small pots on the very unlikely chance I find some plants with synergy (or just lack of space).
>In 2017 this resulted in tiny (but tasty!) jalapenos (about a quarter of the normal size) growing off a plant that had sat on the windowsill doing nothing for 2 years.
Very interesting. Must try that out some time.
>If anyone has advice on plant pairings/symbiosis I would love to hear it!
You probably know this, but nitrogen fixation via legumes is one such symbiosis, of a kind. You can plant non-legumes interspersed with legumes. The native North American "Three Sisters" concept [1] is an example of that - they discovered that corn, beans and squash work well in symbiosis - beans being the legume.
[1] https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Three_Sisters_(agriculture)
Edit: In fact, with the Three Sisters, it is not a two-way symbiosis - it is three-way:
>The three crops benefit from each other. The maize provides a structure for the beans to climb, eliminating the need for poles. The beans provide the nitrogen to the soil that the other plants use, and the squash spreads along the ground, blocking the sunlight, helping prevent the establishment of weeds. The squash leaves also act as a "living mulch", creating a microclimate to retain moisture in the soil, and the prickly hairs of the vine deter pests. Corn, beans, and squash contain complex carbohydrates, essential fatty acids and all nine essential amino acids, allowing most Native American tribes to thrive on a plant-based diet.[7]
Just to add to what has been said here. The three sisters is not the only form of companion planting you can do. There are many. My favorite other examples also include: Strawberries planted next to blueberries and carrots planted next to lettuce. These may not provide as complete nutritional value as the three sisters but they are easy other options.
Good points, thanks. I will try carrot and lettuce.
Make sure they grow well in your hardiness zone! Just in case people aren't aware of them :-)
They actually do grow there, and people are aware, but thanks for the caution :)
I was aware of nitrogen fixing in theory but was wholly unaware of the maize/beans/squash combo. That's 100% the sort of thing I'm after although I would prefer it on a container friendly scale.
Good point. Not sure if it would work at that small a scale. You might have to look around more (on and off the Net); it could help. Some searching through organic gardening sites, Rodale Press mags/sites, permaculture sites, etc., may help.
Vaguely remember seeing some such points mentioned (about companion planting, plant-plant symbiosis examples for gardening, etc.) a while ago, but did not save those particular ones, unfortunately, although I do often save web pages of interest to my PC.
Just remembered / thought of another point: Just because beans and corn may not work at your small scale (tiny pots), does not mean that nitrogen fixation may not work at all (or other forms of symbiosis). I remember reading somewhere that there are many plants and trees in the legume family ( Fabaceae (or Leguminosae)) [1], and they range from small herbs to trees. So some googling for small leguminous plants may help. For example, clover (which can be small) is probably a legume. Also, a person I know - and who has a background in farming - once told me that there are many wild species that are legumes, and one way (not guaranteed to work always) to detect them, is that they have trifoliate leaves.
Just googled:
and it seems to indicate that what he said is partly right, at least.[1] https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Legume
My family came across a fun synergy last summer - garden giants (aka wine caps, or probably any table mushroom) and squash. The squash likes to grow into the wood chip beds of the table mushrooms, and the mushrooms like the cool, moist climate in the shadow of the squash leaves.
The only thing that stresses me is when my plants fail and I don't know why.
I moved to "easier" plants and was a lot happier. Once I mastered growing an ivy, I felt more comfortable. For me the general problem is that plants just stop growing because they've exhausted the nutrients in the soil, and then I bungle the fertilizer (too much) and the plant dies.
Edit: I just saw your other post, this one in isolation made me think you had tried gardening once and given up.
That just happens sometimes!
Hard to explain failures are often caused by one or more of over watering, pests (including at the root level), too little soil, or bad soil PH. Symptoms of pests include visible bugs, mold, eggs, or webs (check under the leaves) or a weird smell. PH problems sometimes manifest as discolored leaves.
Also like animals plants have very different levels of vitality, there is strength in numbers!
If you want to try again let me recommend herbs and leaf vegetables. Mint, basil, arugula, lettuce, and mustard greens grow fast and mint in particular is somewhat invasive and hard to stop it gets going.
It can be tough to grow a tomato that looks like the ones at the grocery store without experience and more time and care. There's an art to it.
i’ve had great results growing basil. I had a plant we named Harry, who thrived in Palo Alto despite erratic care. Harry would drink as much water as we could give it and would be visibly wilted when thirsty. Otherwise, incredibly happy sitting in the sun and producing leaves.
>i’ve had great results growing basil. I had a plant we named Harry,
Wow, really cool idea, naming individual plants. Much better than the pet rock concept ;) Going to give it a try, next time I plant something. Related, as a kid doing organic gardening, I once read a book called Talk To Your Plants. Just searched for it:
https://www.amazon.com/Talk-Your-Plants-Jerry-Baker/dp/B000H...
That's the one, I'm pretty sure. There is also this one which I have not read:
https://www.amazon.com/Talk-Your-Plants-Will-Eisner/dp/08973...
I'm in the Pacific Northwest, and I've had mixed experience with basil. I'm trying to grow it hydroponically at home now, and it seems to be going pretty well.
Yeah basil really takes well to that kind of setup and has the ability, given sufficient light, to grow so vigorously that it creates a wide band of acceptable fertilizer levels which can be a real challenge.
Happy to help out. When you are ready to plant the next one we will be happy to help
Hail storms just after you've planted something (normally none hardy) out.
That's stressful!
As an engineer who also really loves the outdoors (forests, mountains, etc.), I find gardening to be one the most stressful activities I've ever tried.
For example, I had several trees planted for privacy, and I cannot even handle watering them. There's no good recipe to follow, no fixed amount of water, just a vague instruction to dig a hole into the root ball and make sure the soil is "moist" but not "wet" or "dry". Of course, that is just like a customer saying he wants a design that "pops but is not too flashy" - a nightmare. On top of that, there's one watering system for 7 trees, and various holes next to them have different-feeling soil; and often, different holes right next to each other by the same tree have radically different levels of moisture. Even the rain doesn't helps because arborvitae are very dense and while 2 feet from the root ball it may be almost swampy, under the tree still looks dry and I've no idea whether to water or not water them. And that's before we get to fertilizer, pests, etc. Ugh. And ofc unlike e.g. burning a cake, if the trees do die I'll actually feel bad.
It's basically an engineering equivalent of a customer from hell who is super vague, changes specs all the time, and you have multiple bosses who disagree; and if you screw up the project people suffer.
I already wish I just had a taller fence built, cause I'll have to hire someone to deal with this no doubt.
They really should come up with bio-engineered "robot" trees that have an instruction manual with specific quantities of water and stuff to be applied at specific intervals...
Your post amused me a lot ...
Anyway, since you love outdoors, you know there are trees on this earth, who handles growing without human interaction?
And they only have natural rain and groundwater. But yes they do not grow everywhere but only at a specific ground. So most of them die at young age, who were unlucky.
And with gardening you try to engineer the right conditions, but because of the complexity, you just fail so a lot of times. There are basic rules to follow and the rest is experience. So just relax about the thought that things can die because of you. That just will happen a lot with gardening.
And with your arborvitae, well for them it is mostly the soil that matters. Imagine them growing in the wild ... and then try to simulate that as much as possible. So don't panic if the ground moisture is not allways perfect, it allmost never is in the wild. The trees grow nevertheless, unless the ground is really unsuitable. And then you can adjust a bit. But mostly your trees need a lot of water it seems. And then they will grow..
As with most hobbies, you start with a lot of failures and some successes. Maybe these trees aren't the right ones for this spot in your garden. Maybe they are.
I've come to peace with the fact that some plans will die in my garden. The ones that do grow flourish and are a pleasant sight.
I also like to have my own garden, or at least a small communal garden that is harmoniously integrated into the property.
I was living in Copenhagen for a few years, and I was really impressed by how well designed some small blocks of flats were in order to get them integrated into wild gardens and little forests, e.g. [1,2]. Apparently a trend that started with Scandinavian mid-century architecture.
During Spring and Summer, from many living rooms you could not see neighboring blocks because there was an absolutely amazing small forest in between. With Summer breeze, you would only hear leaves moving. Absolutely amazing to work from home in such a property. Silent and very pleasant views.
Trees had been carefully selected and/or flats placed appropriately so that during darker months they would not give any shade. And these were mid-class flats I could rent with a (generous) MSc scholarship, nothing outrageously expensive. Good urban design makes a difference.
[1] https://nybolig.mindworking.eu/resources/shops/N270179/cases...
[2] https://nybolig.mindworking.eu/resources/shops/N270179/cases...
I'd guess that you would love permaculture [1], if you're not already familiar with it. It's a set of design principles for organizing and planning gardens that oozes a certain creative engineering and wisdom of natural things.
[1] https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Permaculture
Yep! I try to practice permaculture as much as possible. There's always more to do, but much of our garden is designed to be both aesthetically pleasing and edible, and we try to recycle back into it and support native insects where we can.
The big secret with permaculture that I wish wasn't a secret: There's more things you can do, but there are fewer things you have to do right now. If you're home and it's sunny, you're mowing the lawn, and you can't stop in the middle.
If you wanna prune shrubs, chop and drop weeds, or plant bushes until the sun sets, it starts raining, or GoT comes on, you just can. Doing lawncare with thunderclouds passing overhead is just bad juju.
Not only for gardens, although the term originated from "permanent agriculture". From your link, and from what I've heard from people who do it.
in the book Digital Minimalism Cal Newport does devote a chapter to this type of 'Leisure' activity. he makes a case that humans are evolved to interact with physical world and such activity is a lot more satisfying/relaxing than the simulated kind (digital world). its well worth a read and making me re-consider my evenings. Even though i avoid TV i still spend "productive" time on a computer. working on a garden would be an excellent candidate!
>I'm a sucker for games like Minecraft, Factorio, etc. Raising a garden is like a slow motion version of those things. It's a fusion of creative and scientific/engineering brains. It's great.
I can't believe you didn't mention Stardew Valley. It is a smash hit game and your comment is basically a short essay as to why it is so popular and enjoyable.
The more I've learned about gardening the less fun I find the abstraction of gardening games.
I think it's mainly about how important soil health is for growing plants and how poorly this concept seems to be modeled in games.
Oh yeah, I love Stardew Valley. And it's an obvious miss in a thread about gardening.
I love the uncertainty of it. There are so many things that can go wrong - weather, pests, misunderstanding a plants needs. Too many factors out of your control. At the end of the day you have to accept that nature will take its own course and appreciate it.
...beavers. I've lost two trees to beavers.
I hope the jerks enjoyed it.
Wow. Have read about what they do, but thought it was only in nature / forested / non-urban areas. You live in such an area, or did they enter a citified area?
I live in a rural area on the Tennessee River. It's a little more rural than suburban, but not very far out of town. Came out one day and the tree stump (about 1 1/2" around) was cut off at an angle a couple of inches above the ground, sharp enough to puncture a lawn mower tire. That tree was just gone. (The other was a little older and sprouted volunteers, so it's trying to grow back.)
It's great to live and/or be near water bodies. I love lakes and rivers and the sea. I've not lived very near any, at least for extended periods, but have been to them a fair amount. Also, I once lived for a month or so in a beach hut (bamboo) about 10 feet from the ocean's edge, in Goa. It took about 6 seconds to open the door of my hut and walk to the water's edge. The roaring of the waves at night, from so close (more loud at night than in the day, because of relatively less ambient sound) was initially a little scary, but I got used to it, and liked it after that. It kind of lulls you to sleep. Great experience.
I've read as a kid about beavers cutting down trees for their dams and lodges (IIRC the terms). Amazing stuff. Indicates intelligence. Don't know if there are any closely similar animals elsewhere in the world, in terms of their building using trees.
> There's something about planning, planting, and then caring for a garden that appeals to my engineer brain.
Boy you sound like someone who would really enjoy square foot gardening. I doubt I'm telling you anything you don't know, but here's a link for those unfamiliar:
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Square_foot_gardening
I do my own take on this in my containers. It's less rigidly defined, but it's the same basic idea.
I remember watching a TED talk by Dan Gilbert in which he claimed that there was research showing that tending houseplants improved mood (and extended lifespans, I think?) for elderly nursing home residents, but also that the longevity benefits were reversed after the houseplants were taken away?
I'm very fuzzy on the details, but in retrospect, it sounds like a bit of a cruel experiment to conduct.
You're getting it twice there, because repetitive tasks can have their own soothing effect, especially on people whose minds tend to 'race'.
Weeding, pruning, harvesting become a meditation, after a fashion. That's probably what Grandpa was doing out there futzing with the lawn every weekend. I never got that knack with lawncare, but flowerbeds, sure.
Totally agree. My business partner started gardening from her balcony and blogging about the challenges, which then got several of us into it as well. I now have five raised beds, more than a dozen pots, some vertical planters made from eaves, and a good plant that feels like something out of Little Shop of Horrors.
It's such a connective thing for me now. Stress relief, feeling control over my food source, talking to neighbours more often, and thinking about food sources. Highly recommended gardening to anyone looking for a great and fairly easy hobby.
Well put! I really like the streamlining/automation aspect of the gardening too (drip lines, etc), and the journaling/tracking year over year.
Factorio is next in my queue. Cities: Skylines is my current go to.
Drip lines are cool and helpful when you aren't there all the time. But getting your hands dirty and watering yourself is some kinds of meditation. I feel so relaxing and refreshing when holding garden hose pouring water for all the plants in the weekend.
That's what I like about gardening. You can approach it as an exercise in automation, or not. Both are available and widely supported. Whatever works for you!
My balcony becomes an urban farm every summer complete with custom PCB giving me moisture monitoring and individual watering of 8 plants. Not necessary but definitely calming.
Can you suggest the best resources you've found for learning about gardening?
Start with a small plot and grow some peas or beans. They are easy to plant and grow, and usually produce a ton of food.
I LOVE "Food Grown Right, In Your Backyard: A Beginner's Guide to Growing Crops at Home". It's approachable, it talks about growing vegetables primarily, but it also talks about how to set up a bed, how to fertilize, etc. It's aimed at beginners and it is full of pictures.
The important part is that you can basically experiment with a small plot one year, and see what you like. I built one raised bed. Then the year later, I added two more. Now I have 6 raised beds plus a whole bunch of beds on the ground. I started with carrots and peas. Now I grow basically all the fruits and veggies. :D
After I got comfortable with my veggies, I started looking into French potager gardens and companion planting flowers in my vegetables. I pawed through a bunch of books and didn't find one I loved, but found a lot of blogs and things to search through.
If you're in the SF bay area, I strongly recommend Golden Gate Gardening [https://www.amazon.com/Golden-Gate-Gardening-3rd-Year-Round/...] because it's approachable if you read it from the beginning, but comprehensive and highly detailed in the various aspects of this diverse region. Nothing more frustrating than growing a mandarin tree only to find out that the fruit will likely not be too sweet!
agreed, no time crunch, lots of problems to solve/create, it is a wonderful thing
Not only that but horticulture is prime for automation. It's a lot of fun.
Check out https://github.com/OpenSprinkler/OpenSprinkler-Firmware which you can easily run off an RPi Zero W and a cheap 5v relay.
My favorite is plant propagation which is especially fun and challenging to scale in a small indoor space.
I've had a theory for some time now based on my own observations:
A big part of why nature is so calming is the absence of repeating patterns. In our artificial life everything follows standardized forms and patterns. It's a sterile world. The most obvious example being rectangles and perfect 90 degree angles everywhere. But I would also count things like uniform colors, evenly spread (artificial) light, predictable sounds etc.
That makes me think that somehow something like this absence of patterns - and the knowledge/assumption for our brain that they are not to be expected in nature - helps us.
The beauty in this is that nature _is_ full of patterns. But on a different level, no two patterns are ever the same. When you look at a green tree you simply won't assume to find two leaves with the same color and shape. That's the difference.
Some years ago I got myself an empty canvas frame and put natural linen fabric (https://www.fabric.com/buy/ff-357/kaufman-antwerp-linen-natu...) on it. No painting, just the linen. For the same reason: It's calming to look at
Or maybe I'm just weird :)
Nature provides "soft fascination" that stimulates you without burning you out. Many countries are learning this: https://www.nationalgeographic.com/magazine/2016/01/call-to-...
I feel like this would be up your alley: http://nautil.us/issue/47/consciousness/is-consciousness-fra...
Points toward volatile systems (e.g. cells and animals and humans and cultures and all forms of life) preferring a certain degree of fractal dimension and self-similarity, which to me hints at the right balance of chaos and order that is conducive to life and many self-sustaining systems. And so we intuitively "choose" and have preference for a certain fractal dimension range, which nature also happens to prefer at all sorts of different scales.
If this sort of thinking appeals to you, I also highly recommend looking into complexity science :)
EDIT: fwiw, the gist of this article REALLY struck me when I was in the Juifen market in Taiwan [1] (which the anime Spirited Away was inspired by) -- the chaos of the layered canopy covers and random infrastructural protrusions from the lack of central planning -- it immediately felt comforting, like walking into a shaded forest trail, despite being surrounded by a vibrant economy and commerce! (which I would normally kinda HATE)
[1]: https://www.edreams.com/blog/wp-content/uploads/sites/3/2019...
Sort of off topic: One of the more frustrating things about going out in nature where I live at least, is seeing the pattern of invasive plants over and over again. I can identify every plant in my area, an area that would have been full of thousands of different trees and bushes now has repeating landscape of about two dozen different plants.
At some point in time, every plant was invasive.
No, invasiveness is a quantitative measure. A plant can force other plants out, or it can coexist. The amount of net pressure on other species dictates whether a plant is invasive. A Eucalyptus and a Live Oak will both use the same sunlight but the Eucalyptus will lol everything underneath it.
Also, it is true that sunlight is a fixed resource, but the earth is not 100% covered, even in mature forests. There are disturbances everywhere that can be moved into and stengthening the ecosystem.
There are also resources which are not sunlight. The resource competition is so multidimensional and open that you cannot conceive of life as a zero sum game. Not yet anyway. Maybe in another billion years of evolution we will be at the point where every movement is an invasion.
You might be interested in looking at and reading parts of The Grammar of Ornament. In particular some of the “principles” he spells out. I’ll link that page below.
“True beauty results from that repose which the mind feels when the eye, the intellect, and the affections, are satisfied from the absence of any want.”
https://archive.org/details/grammarornament00Jone/page/n13
The book’s evaluation of leaves and nature at the end is also relevant.
What you say regarding patterns is true compared to human-made thubgs, but I'm not sure that is what is the root attraction.
For me it's the practically endless possibility that I will see or hear (or even smell) something new if I'm using my senses (instead of busy thinking about human problems).
There's little difference betweey explanation and yours, but I selfishly think it's all about our experience.
I have no idea what a "thubgs" is, but I suspect it's a garden. Phone typing is clearly an art that not all possess.
U next to I. B next to n. "Things" is my guess.
I feel like walls should be covered in green/blue stochastically transforming patterns meant to elicit the same response that nature does, ideally with feedback from an EEG headset that picks up on what patterns are most calming for a given person.
Of all the plants, trees by far give me the most pleasure. A suburb with trees is a thousand times better than one without. The shade of a tree is completely transformative. It gives me a fuzzy warm feeling inside.
It’s concerning to me that such an important aesthetic component is so transient and difficult to control. When you build a house, you control every aspect of its design. It’s materials are tough and long lasting. But the trees around the house are prone to dying. They get too old or they get sick or whatever. And when they do, you can’t really replace them. I’ve seen tons of houses where they had great atmosphere but then one of their large trees died and the feeling of the house is totally ruined. I’m not sure if you can order a grown tree and have it implanted but it’s probably really expensive. We need artificial trees that last longer and are easy to replace.
Humans are drawn to vistas. Standing on the top of a hill and looking at the vista is something everyone agrees is beautiful and feels good. I think it might be because our ancestors were tree-dwelling monkeys. The higher in the tree you climb, the better the view, the safer you are from predators. If we are drawn to views then we would likely spend more time high up in the tree. Maybe that’s also why we find trees themselves so appealing. Ancient wiring.
I am fortunate to have a house on a larger plot of land considering it's in a dense urban environment, and on the land are very impressive trees such as an oak, a maple, a few birch, and a black cherry. Regrettably the birch are short lived, and while they still produce leaves they are getting weak and I will need to bring them down in a few years. The cherry still produces leaves and may even flower this year, but its wood is very brittle and it will probably come down this fall. It truly is sad as their loss will definitely impact why I moved into the house.
Before we had kids, my wife and I would work in the garden almost every weekend. After spending a week dealing with servers on fire, doing mindless repetitive work was exactly what I needed to rest my mind.
At one point I dug out a garden that was 37’ x 14’ and over a foot deep. I did the math once and figured out that I moved more than 2000 lbs of dirt (a literal ton) and then I moved a literal ton of bricks to the back yard to build the retaining walls.
Measuring your accomplishments in tonnage is very satisfying.
"Before we had kids"
Why did you stop? Personally I make an extra effort to get them outside, for young kids theres so much to learn in a garden, or out for a walk.
The garden is too dangerous for the kids because there are a lot of sharp things around. :) I didn't build it with kids in mind, so for example all the wire fencing is just cut with no ends. We'll get out there with them in a few years. My daughter helps with the front yard sometimes.
Fair enough.
Its all rusty barbed wire fence by us, so rationally it doesn't make a difference, wouldn't want my kids injuring themselves on something like that in the garden though.
>I cannot say exactly how nature exerts its calming and organizing effects on our brains, but I have seen in my patients the restorative and healing powers of nature and gardens, even for those who are deeply disabled neurologically. In many cases, gardens and nature are more powerful than any medication. ---
I have witnessed this with my wife who's neurological disorder causes her to be in a "fright or flight" state virtually all day every day.
When she is either planning the garden, tending to the garden or just enjoying the garden I can see a reduced level of stress and increased ability to focus and multitask. All things which are very difficult outside of the garden.
That's great to hear. I think being in a place where you can see seasonal change also has a calming and humbling effect. The wisteria in the springtime, the beautiful colors of the leaves in autumn - being around those changes in your natural habitat can be destressing and comforting, as they show that life and the natural world still goes on around you.
Not only is it visually pleasing, as an escape fro our usual concrete-filled world (probably because we evolved living in nature), but without doing any research to look up studies I feel like the reduced stress might also come from the smell (pheromones).
It goes deep in our psyche. In 101 Principles Of Design they mention a hospital that put up photos of bamboo trees in their hallways, so that it feels like you’re walking through a forest, because of the calming effect it has on patients. Photos of trees, not even real trees.
Very likely.
As well I think it empowers her and gives her some semblance of control.
Combined with the satisfaction of taking an idea and seeing it through, and then having that idea grow beyond what you originally intended.
We are planning our new home around the ability to construct and maintain a years-long garden project.
That sounds like you'd need a portable garden. (Whether that still works is another question.)
I've seen people talk about car plants, which would be a similar idea. (The feasibility depends a lot on climate of course.) And then of course there are many houseplants enthusiasts, it seems easy to develop some kind of addiction when stressed or mentally not well. Plants everywhere!
One of the gardens pictured in the article, Elizabeth Street Garden, is a great spot in the middle of retail chaos in New York. Sadly a real estate development filed a lawsuit this month in hopes of destroying it: https://static1.squarespace.com/static/581fb257b8a79bf741c67...
We are, despite our pretenses, also products of the natural world, and do well to reside amongst our kind.
As Emerson put it, "the mind loves its old home". (http://transcendentalism-legacy.tamu.edu/authors/emerson/ess...)
There's something about this I read on Slate Star Codex that I found entertaining and insightful. It's easy to forget that we needed to be in a fertile place in the past, and for the most part we don't need to now, except for emotional reasons.
"Most people are happier when they’re in at least some Nature, whether this means a grand national park or just a leafy suburb with lots of chirping birds. The average person would consider a concrete lot full of Brutalist apartments a little soul-crushing. This probably comes from an evolutionary heuristic in favor of fertile areas and against barren ones; the closest chimpanzee-parseable equivalent to a concrete lot would be a desert or lava flow, where food and shelter are scarce. But nowadays we can order takeout, and the Brutalist apartment buildings provide all the shelter we need. This is probably another obsolete evolutionary relic, but it’s a very persistent one."
https://slatestarcodex.com/2018/07/24/value-differences-as-d...
I find the idea of “except for emotional reasons,” as if they are not Facts and Needs like any either, to be a good representation of the pretenses mentioned in my original comment.
I'd think it'd be well to also note, aside a evolutionary analysis based on the past, in the present, plants take in carbon dioxide and release oxygen.
We also need plants to eat. We don't need direct access to the plants to eat them, nor do we need direct access to plants to benefit from carbon dioxide to oxygen conversion. I'm not aware of where the plants I eat come from, most of the time. I'm not saying I don't need plants, I just don't necessarily need to live among them, but I like being able to see plants frequently. I have no desire to have my own garden though, I would rather appreciate nature in a public place where everyone can enjoy them, such as parks and along streets.
I'm (hopefully) on the tail-end of dealing with mental health issues. I was dealing with burnout, depression, substance abuse, trauma, psychosis, and severe anxiety. Right about then I started this backyard project to create a chemical-free, sustainable, and diverse "forest garden". Currently, about two years later that Eco-system is starting to explode with more bugs, fungus, and birds.
I found solitude, peace, and healing in the process of working with nature. I worked hard to revitalize the natural environment around me, and through that process I want to believe that nature found a way to heal me too.
Also, I had a therapist and a supporting partner who helped me through the tough times.
Anyways, I can't recommend enough getting your hands in the dirt, appreciating all forms of nature, and learning about the various Eco-systems that are needed for nature to thrive.
I miss Oliver Sacks. To see that there are still some writings by him to discover is a treat.
My wife and I have been gardening for around 15 years.
We spent a couple of years, maybe 5 or 7 years ago, trying straw bale gardens.
It was quite interesting. I would recommend giving it a try some time. You can do it even with just one bale. We did it with about 10-12 bales of oat straw from a farm we knew.
E.g., https://www.amazon.com/Straw-Bale-Gardens-Complete-Karsten/d... was the author of the book we used, though this seems to be an updated version to the one we used.
I prefer raised soil beds, but this straw bale style was quite enjoyable.
Does anyone recommend a particular guide for getting started in gardening?
Square Foot Gardening is a great introduction; an retired aerospace engineer finds the world of gardening full of contradictions and myths.
He boils it all down to fundamentals that are easy to apply.
Given the author's observations, I would draw a different conclusion. I would conclude it isn't so much that gardens are good for you but that urban living, surrounding yourself with noise, strangers, glass, and concrete is bad for you.
Oddly, I have never felt the allure of gardens, I don't have any plants myself, and if I'd have to choose between a city environment and nature, I'd in most cases choose the city (and not because of its parks). Both when I am happy and when I am sad. I like a good sunset but that's it. I'm clearly in a minority with this, it seems.
I am actively working on a startup to encourage gardening for all the mentioned benefits. If someone wants to chat about it please reach out. Email in profile.
Gardens and other natural spaces absolutely affect social and mental wellbeing.
An interesting piece of research into the effects of greenery and nature on wellbeing was conducted back in 2001 by Ming Kuo and William Sullivan [0]. I love referencing it in discussions like these as it's a rather opportunistic experimental setting that might have otherwise never occurred, and gives us some pretty great data to recount when we only otherwise have anecdotes.
In Chicago there was a set of high-rise public-housing buildings. The residents of these buildings had been assigned randomly by the public housing system. Attrition over time had left some buildings surrounded by only concrete and asphalt and others with pockets of green. Kuo and Sullivan were able to compare levels of aggression of 145 residents. They found higher levels of aggression and familial conflict recalled by those living less close to nature. They backed up this data by looking at similar low-rise developments [1]. Controlling for other factors, they compared crime rates of inhabitants who experienced less natural proximity to those with more. They found that roughly 7% of the variation in crime that couldn't be accounted for by other factors could be accounted for by the amount of trees.
Ming Kuo has gone on to research the link between nature and school performance, one of her recent studies concluding that "greening has the potential to mitigate academic underachievement in high-poverty urban schools."[2] In another fascinating piece of research she has also found that "Children with ADHD have fewer symptoms after outdoor activities in lush environments."[3]
Many of this research matches our collective anecdotes. We know that we are somehow hard-wired for nature. Yet we keep ourselves locked away in buildings for hours on end with little of it except corporate potted plants (often fake) and the odd photo or poster on the wall. To pile on with another opinion... I think there's something about 'wild' greenery that is distinctly effective versus manicured greenery. Its chaos and growth somehow synchronise with the minds' inherent nature. In an incredibly fundamental way, we are supposed to be amongst that wildness.
[0] https://www.researchgate.net/publication/245234610_Aggressio...
[1] https://www.researchgate.net/publication/249624302_Environme...
[2] https://www.researchgate.net/publication/327876862_Might_Sch...
[3] https://www.researchgate.net/publication/23192434_Children_W...
I hate having to pay for an article, can this be stopped from promotions on HN?
> It's ok to post stories from sites with paywalls that have workarounds. In comments, it's ok to ask how to read an article and to help other users do so. But please don't post complaints about paywalls. Those are off topic.
https://news.ycombinator.com/newsfaq.html
I hate having to pay for food
Doesn't mean people shouldn't recommend restaurants to me