Try my fun quiz!
- Do you think winter should end December 26th?
- Do you live in a place where winter ends June 1 (maybe)?
- Do you start looking at seed packets and garden magazines when there’s still snow on the ground?
- Does growing things give you a rush like a whole cup of sugar?
- Do you feel peaceful in a garden, especially if you don’t have to plant or maintain it?
- Are you feeling smug because you live where flowers are blooming in March?
No matter what your answers, there are few people who don’t enjoy a garden in some form. If you’re like me, you like nothing better than dirty knees and hands (I will not wear gloves) and participating in the experience of growing things. Others just like to smell the roses.
The benefits of some form of horticulture therapy are impressive.
Really? Prove it! If you’re a doubter, read the attached link, which substantiates all the facts.
My mom, an avid gardener, used to quote this to me ⇢
all the time. The theology is shaky, but the sentiment is clear. Gardens are good for you!
So how do we make use of this knowledge with elders?
Gardening
The most obvious answer, this works for the more physically able who enjoy it. If they were gardeners in their earlier years, they may long for the house they left with the gorgeous plants, flowering trees and summer vegetables. If you have a space, these elders will not only help you plant, but sit with seed catalogues and dream, and go to the garden centre and want to buy everything they see. They will weed and water and feel incredible purpose doing so.
Container Gardening
When I first moved to my townhouse 36 years ago (gasp!) I called myself a frustrated gardener, because townhouse gardens rival the size of postage stamps. Since then, container gardening has changed the landscape. You can double or triple or more the size of your garden with containers. However, for those of us in the north, container gardening brings our love of growing things indoors when the outdoors is frozen and white. Try planting just about anything in a pot with elders with limited function. An amaryllis grows almost before your eyes in the winter and flowers with extravagant colour. Buy several when they are available and plant them one at a time. Start seeds together. Put together a terrarium with succulents. Be creative.
Flower arranging
Although she had dementia, Rita remembered that she didn’t “do” gardens. Truth be told, she was a bit of a snob about the whole thing. She’d travelled, had a business, socialized. The clear message her north-pointed nose gave was that she felt above gardening. Way above. So when invited to join a group of ladies flower arranging, she made her feeling clear. Humph!
After several minutes, Rita appeared and pulled up a chair. Her frown spoke volumes, but she said nothing. Then the lady beside her made a weak attempt to arrange the flowers in the vase in front of her. Rita leaned forward and began to make suggestions. In a few minutes, they were working together, and the flowers weren’t the only things arranged. Rita’s face and a friendship were also in better shape.
Time in the Garden/Park/Patio
For elders at any stage of function, time spent outside when the weather is pleasant is beneficial. Fresh air, growing things and a chance to socialize benefit everyone. People sleep better and feel more positive. It’s a win-win-win.
No matter what you answered to the quiz, look for ways to introduce some form of gardening into your elder’s life. They may not thank you, but they may start arranging the flowers. 😀
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