How Gardening Nurtures The Soul
People either love gardening or they hate it, so often people tell me that they don’t know where to start or that they want to like gardening but they just don’t have the time, which is quite understandable when life itself is so busy. It is hard to find the time for ourselves never mind a hobby.
Gardening for me is more than a hobby, it’s an act of self-care. If I am feeling overwhelmed, anxious or I just need to clear my head, I go into the garden and my thoughts either quieten or completely disappear. So many studies have shown that gardening is meditative, it can relieve stress, and help with immune regulation and depression.
An increasing number of GPs are prescribing gardening not only for rehabilitation but also as a preventative mechanism. In London, 13 GPs have opened community gardens with positive effects. I won’t bore you with statistics but there is a lot of data there if you wish to read more about it.
As a mum of 2 small children, I use gardening as a way of dealing with overwhelm, it's amazing what a walk barefoot on the grass or just digging in dirt does to a child, it immediately calms and distracts, it is powerful.
For those who don’t know where to start, there is no right or wrong. Grow some sunflowers with your kids, tomatoes on your windowsill or start with your favourite flower. Start slowly, be kind to yourself. It won’t work if expectations are too high and you go in guns blazing. It should be fun and rewarding.
My grandma was the one who started me on my gardening journey, it hurts me now to say it but we would pull all the heads off her beautiful roses to make ‘perfume’ she never once told us not too or complained, that was the type of woman she was. She would have done anything for her grandchildren, even sacrifice her prized roses!
When I got my first house, I built a small veg patch in the back garden and then never looked back. It’s always been a part of my life, sometimes a smaller part but it’s always been there.
My friend Charlotte and I, decided last year to start Bloom. We instantly bonded years ago over our love of flowers and the rest was history.
We weren’t quite sure what or where Bloom would take us, but we had (and still have) lots of passion and ideas and thankfully Bloom is doing really well, the support of our amazing customers has been amazing.
Online we now have a growing stock of bulbs, loose roots and plants as well as some gardening accessories. We have also been helping clients with garden planting and building custom planters for retail units. It’s been busy and an awful lot of fun. I feel very grateful to be able to do something that I truly love doing.
Kirsty is the co-owner of Bloom Plant Collective, she has a passion for gardening and all things wellness and lives in Aberdeenshire, Scotland.
Kirsty & Charlotte
Co-Owners of Bloom Plant Collective