Planting to rebuild oneself or the restorative power of plants
Gardening as a tool for psychological recovery
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Bereavement, illness, burnout, a major life transition… we are often faced with situations that involve rebuilding ourselves, re-grounding, a renewed sense of purpose in life. In this process and search, there is a highly symbolic place: the garden. Gardening, planting, sowing, propagating and maintenance are not merely hobbies or subsistence activities. Planting is engaging with nature; it is rebuilding oneself mentally and emotionally. The earth symbolises our own capacity to be reborn.
Therapeutic gardening, a recognised discipline
The restorative power of living things, embodied in the garden, is so strong that it has given rise to a recognised discipline: therapeutic gardening, or hortitherapy. A discipline defined as ‘the integration of horticultural and gardening activities, within a process of care, education, and the fight against illness or exclusion’. Beyond a mere pastime or the need to eat healthily, this approach uses interaction with plants and gardening activities to promote physical, psychological and social well-being.
Historically, the idea that agriculture and contact with nature harbour curative virtues dates back to Antiquity, but it was formalised in the 19th century, particularly in the United States and Europe. Gardens were created in psychiatric hospitals. The observation was straightforward: patients engaged in horticultural tasks showed noticeable improvements in mood, mobility and sociability.
Therapeutic gardening fits within a process of care and well-being
Today, therapeutic gardening is applied to numerous situations, ranging from physical rehabilitation after a stroke, to treatment of post-traumatic stress, through support for people with Alzheimer’s disease or anxiety disorders. The garden offers a safe and stimulating environment where failure is never definitive. If a plant doesn’t take, one can resow. In the garden, mistakes are tolerated. Gardening teaches patience and resilience without judgement or performance pressure.
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10 good reasons to plant a treePlanting to re-establish roots
One of the most essential contributions of horticultural therapy lies in the act of planting to re-establish roots and to regain inner grounding. Periods of crisis or suffering are often accompanied by an acute sense of uprooting, a loss of inner bearings. Reconnecting with the soil, in the literal sense, helps to regain this fundamental grounding. The act of kneeling, feeling the texture of the soil between one’s fingers, working the soil and burying one’s hands in it is an ancient and deeply reassuring gesture. It reminds us that we are an integral part of the physical world. Planting thus becomes a powerful antidote to the feeling of isolation or disconnection. This act helps reconnect with oneself after a difficult period.
In reconnecting with the earth, the individual inevitably reconnects with the cycle of life. Watching the germination of a tiny seed, the emergence of young shoots in spring, the blooming of a flower, or that same flower wilting offers a perspective on one’s own existence. Our lives are made up of seasons: winters, periods of dormancy and losses, but inevitably spring returns and the sun shines again.
Working the soil and burying one’s hands in it is an ancient and deeply reassuring gesture.
This unchanging cycle becomes a powerful metaphor. It demystifies difficult times by placing them within a larger, timeless movement. The garden thus becomes a place where one can lay aside one’s pain and inner distress, for it shows us, day after day, that life always finds a way. By tending a plot of soil, one learns to care for oneself.
Plant to regain momentum
The act of planting is an extraordinary lever for regaining a fresh impetus. Gardening, by its very nature, is a projection into the future. Sowing a seed, propagating a stem, plant a tree, is betting on the future and looking ahead to tomorrow.
After a period of stoppage, illness or trauma, the ability to project oneself forward is often difficult. Life is lived day by day, in urgency or waiting. The act of planting breaks with this short-term tempo. To obtain a flower, a fruit or a harvest, one must accept waiting, watching over and regular upkeep. This patience is a therapeutic virtue. It forces the mind to slow down, to shed immediacy and to appreciate the beauty of the slow process.
Caring for a plant is literally giving life back to nature as well as to oneself
Caring for a plant is literally giving life back to nature as well as to oneself. When the gardener sees the result of their work (the little tomato turning red, the cutting taking root, the flower opening), they don’t merely observe a natural phenomenon. They realise their own effectiveness. In moments of weakness, the sense of powerlessness can be overwhelming. The garden offers proof of their own ability to act, a form of self-worth. “It was I who watered, it was I who fed, it was I who weeded!” Gardening becomes a formidable source of gratification and a powerful engine for regaining confidence. It restores self-esteem by validating the value of simple actions and the importance of perseverance.
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Petrichor, you say? But what is it?Planting for gentle healing
This reconstruction proceeds gently, because planting and gardening are healing without violence. The garden provides a salutary retreat from the din of the world. Its pace is slow, dictated by the elements, a world away from the pace of urban and digital life. This slow pace allows the body and mind to synchronise with something more peaceful and ancient. The simple, repetitive actions, such as digging, raking, and watering, act as a physical mantra. They foster a state of calm and concentration. The mind is not drawn to abstract problems or anxious ruminations, but entirely captivated by the immediate task: how to uproot this weed without damaging neighbouring roots? How much water does this plant need today?
This total attention to the present plant life fosters emotional resilience. The gardener is constantly interacting with the unexpected: a late frost, a parasitic attack, a sudden drought. He learns to accept what cannot be controlled and to adapt. It’s a miniature training in life’s uncertainties. Each small failure, each dead plant, each failed harvest is a lesson in letting go. The gardener does not collapse; he cleans up, prepares the soil for the next season, and perseveres. This ability to recover, to view failure as an inherent part of the growth process, lies at the heart of emotional resilience.
The garden is also a space for creativity and freedom where one can express one’s individuality without risk. Choosing colours, creating a space, experimenting with new plant combinations, all of this contributes to reclaiming one’s creative power. After a period when one may have felt passive or a victim of circumstances, becoming the architect of one’s own garden, even a modest one, is priceless.
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