The garden is a safe place, a benevolent setting where everyone is welcome. Plants are non-judgmental, non-threatening and non-discriminating. They respond to the care given. It doesn’t matter whether one is black or white, been to kindergarten or college, is poor or wealthy, healthy or ill, been a victim of abuse or an abuser, is handicapped or blind, can call a plant by name or only caress the leaves with arthritic hands (adapted from Green Nature, Human Nature by Charles Lewis).
Welcome to my garden
Here you will find plants, people and words growing with reckless abandon. In the field of horticultural therapy we use plants and the companionship with plants to soothe, heal and help each other cope with the difficulties that we all encounter.
We say we use plants as healing tools, but the reality is that the people growing in the garden are instruments of healing too. I have never met a person I couldn’t learn from, no matter what the stage of life, the education, the conditions. This is why it is important to listen as well as speak.
In my garden there are no weeds. Although many of the plants, and people, growing there are wild, free spirits.
I confess, my favorite plant is the dandelion. Such a beautiful reflection of the sun itself, who can not appreciate the beauty of this soft and gentle flower? The dandelion is one of the most recognized flowers in the world. We have been taught to disparage it, declare war on it, view its beauty with hatred and loathing. Why do we despise it so? Is it because it’s common, because it wants to grow where we have other plans, because it smiles at all diversity? Regardless, it has a tenacity that's an example to us who tend the garden of life. In childhood the dandelion is the universal toy, safe and colorful, free and always there for us. It can be the source of food and drink. Have you ever made dandelion ice cream? It’s never too late to try. Ask me for the recipe. We even make soup from tumbleweed.
Too often we view the garden as work, and we focus on our failures in the garden. The garden is a place to relax, a place to play, a place to share. The garden is a living organism that each day gives us surprises and discoveries. It tickles our senses, triggers our memories and nurtures our joy.
As a writer, I must confess that I am addicted to words. What most fascinates me is that the garden communicates quite well without words. There is a spiritual connection with the life found in the plants and animals, nature and the people. In the garden, in nature, or with the plants on a windowsill, we become a part of something far greater than ourselves. In the garden we become a part of the universe. In the pages that follow we discuss some of the ways the people-plant connection functions. I welcome your thoughts and experiences, ideas and questions as you stroll through my garden.
Peace, Hank
The People Plant Connection
Every people, culture & community, even families, have traditional bonds with the plants with which we share this planet. This people-plant connection is a part of each of us; physically, mentally, emotionally and spiritually. This relationship defines the way we live.Plants are food, whether it be the grains in a box of cereal, the produce found in the farmer’s market, the harvest from our own gardens or the wild discoveries in the noble tradition of all gatherers in all people’s traditions. Even the meat and poultry on the dinner table wouldn’t be there without the plants that were the diet of these animals.
Plants and the air we breathe.
The plants around us are constantly absorbing CO2 and replenishing the oxygen in the air we breathe. Plants in the building not only increase the oxygen in the air we breathe, they filter out dust and atmospheric pollution. Plants make great 100% organic, eco-friendly air conditioners. Plants make our environment livable.
In the urban landscape, either natural or planned and planted, plants cool the buildings where we live, work, learn, play, heal or shop. This combination of trees, shrubs, flowers and turf also helps to control the noise level and reduce our stress. It is this passive interaction that instinctively provides a sense of well being and defines the comforting sense of place. Cities have had parks for thousands of years because the people need them to live well. Plants improve the livability of our home and neighborhoods, improving property values, both financially and aesthetically.
This people-plant connection goes beyond our homes and communities to the wilderness landscape. Here the plants of forest and field, meadow and mountainside prevent soil erosion, filter the water as it flows into streams and rivers, reduces the CO2 in the atmosphere and helps to control the weather and make possible the diversity of life that we are a part of.They are also beautiful.
In the form of trees, delicate flowers with their alluring scents and dramatic colors, the plants speak to us in a language that doesn’t need words. The beauty may be found in the diverse textures that comfort, warn us away or invite us to touch. The beauty can be in a vase, a pot, a garden or a meadow, stream side, forest, mountaintop or desert. The beauty speaks to us, and connects with our physical senses, and the emotional senses such as the sense of place, purpose, comfort, safety and even the sense of humor.Healing is also a gift.
The use of plants as medicine is as old as the history of all people, possibly older. We now know that many animals use a wide range of plants to heal injuries, dispel pests, and correct nutritional deficiencies. This is knowledge that western science is just discovering, but it is also wisdom that indigenous peoples have known beyond time we can count. But beyond this, herbal medicine is the healing value of being with plants. The healing garden of hospitals provides opportunities for both passive and an active healing experiences.
Plants and the air we breathe.
The plants around us are constantly absorbing CO2 and replenishing the oxygen in the air we breathe. Plants in the building not only increase the oxygen in the air we breathe, they filter out dust and atmospheric pollution. Plants make great 100% organic, eco-friendly air conditioners. Plants make our environment livable.
In the urban landscape, either natural or planned and planted, plants cool the buildings where we live, work, learn, play, heal or shop. This combination of trees, shrubs, flowers and turf also helps to control the noise level and reduce our stress. It is this passive interaction that instinctively provides a sense of well being and defines the comforting sense of place. Cities have had parks for thousands of years because the people need them to live well. Plants improve the livability of our home and neighborhoods, improving property values, both financially and aesthetically.
This people-plant connection goes beyond our homes and communities to the wilderness landscape. Here the plants of forest and field, meadow and mountainside prevent soil erosion, filter the water as it flows into streams and rivers, reduces the CO2 in the atmosphere and helps to control the weather and make possible the diversity of life that we are a part of.They are also beautiful.
In the form of trees, delicate flowers with their alluring scents and dramatic colors, the plants speak to us in a language that doesn’t need words. The beauty may be found in the diverse textures that comfort, warn us away or invite us to touch. The beauty can be in a vase, a pot, a garden or a meadow, stream side, forest, mountaintop or desert. The beauty speaks to us, and connects with our physical senses, and the emotional senses such as the sense of place, purpose, comfort, safety and even the sense of humor.Healing is also a gift.
The use of plants as medicine is as old as the history of all people, possibly older. We now know that many animals use a wide range of plants to heal injuries, dispel pests, and correct nutritional deficiencies. This is knowledge that western science is just discovering, but it is also wisdom that indigenous peoples have known beyond time we can count. But beyond this, herbal medicine is the healing value of being with plants. The healing garden of hospitals provides opportunities for both passive and an active healing experiences.
Who can benefit from horticutural therapy?
It is simply using the garden and gardening activities as therapeutic tools.
Horticultural therapy can improve the social, educational, psychological and physical adjustment of people.
This can nurture the body, mind and spirit while improving the quality of life. It can be active or passive.
Horticultural therapy has proven to be beneficial for: people who are physically disabled, mentally ill, developmentally disabled, the elderly, substance abusers, public offenders, at risk children, all students, the socially disadvantaged, victims of abuse, victims of disease, vision impaired, victims of AIDS, Alzheimer’s disease, cardiac patients, cancer patients, and those suffering from depression.
For all or us who suffer the burden of stress from everyday living, those who are family caregivers, those who are undergoing the trauma of life change (death of a loved one, loss of job, divorce, etc.), and those whose work demands too much of them, gardening can be a retreat, a haven, a source of comfort and renewal.
For people and patients whose physical or mental condition renders them passive and dependent, having living plants to nurture creates a role reversal. Caring for plants, horticultural therapy, puts the individual in a care giving role. This can not only bring pleasure, it can build confidence and a sense of purpose. The growth of the plants under one’s care gives the gift of hope and a reason to look forward to tomorrow.
It is often the case that the mentally and physically handicapped and the elderly suffer from low self esteem and depression. Working with plants gives them a chance to be successful, to feel that they too have value. Horticultural therapy can also provide social interaction, topics for conversation, learning opportunities and valuable exercise at a self directed pace.
The physical activity of horticultural therapy helps patients who have undergone surgery or treatments heal better, lowers blood pressure and stimulates the senses. Today many hospitals have garden courtyards where patients and families can stroll or sit and reflect in the midst of beautiful flowers and foliage, sharing the life giving rays of the sun, breathing the oxygen enriched air and enjoying the companionship of green friends.
Horticultural therapy programs have proven beneficial in senior care communities, assisted living facilities, schools, substance abuse centers, prisons and juvenile detention centers, senior citizen’s centers and homeless shelters. Health care organizations, hospice programs, social service organizations, welfare agencies, churches schools and many others have been able to improve the quality of life for those in their care through the use of gardening as therapy.
Horticultural therapy can improve the social, educational, psychological and physical adjustment of people.
This can nurture the body, mind and spirit while improving the quality of life. It can be active or passive.
Horticultural therapy has proven to be beneficial for: people who are physically disabled, mentally ill, developmentally disabled, the elderly, substance abusers, public offenders, at risk children, all students, the socially disadvantaged, victims of abuse, victims of disease, vision impaired, victims of AIDS, Alzheimer’s disease, cardiac patients, cancer patients, and those suffering from depression.
For all or us who suffer the burden of stress from everyday living, those who are family caregivers, those who are undergoing the trauma of life change (death of a loved one, loss of job, divorce, etc.), and those whose work demands too much of them, gardening can be a retreat, a haven, a source of comfort and renewal.
For people and patients whose physical or mental condition renders them passive and dependent, having living plants to nurture creates a role reversal. Caring for plants, horticultural therapy, puts the individual in a care giving role. This can not only bring pleasure, it can build confidence and a sense of purpose. The growth of the plants under one’s care gives the gift of hope and a reason to look forward to tomorrow.
It is often the case that the mentally and physically handicapped and the elderly suffer from low self esteem and depression. Working with plants gives them a chance to be successful, to feel that they too have value. Horticultural therapy can also provide social interaction, topics for conversation, learning opportunities and valuable exercise at a self directed pace.
The physical activity of horticultural therapy helps patients who have undergone surgery or treatments heal better, lowers blood pressure and stimulates the senses. Today many hospitals have garden courtyards where patients and families can stroll or sit and reflect in the midst of beautiful flowers and foliage, sharing the life giving rays of the sun, breathing the oxygen enriched air and enjoying the companionship of green friends.
Horticultural therapy programs have proven beneficial in senior care communities, assisted living facilities, schools, substance abuse centers, prisons and juvenile detention centers, senior citizen’s centers and homeless shelters. Health care organizations, hospice programs, social service organizations, welfare agencies, churches schools and many others have been able to improve the quality of life for those in their care through the use of gardening as therapy.
Hank's Bio
Hank Bruce is a simply a gardening addict. He's also a writer, horticultural therapist, hunger activist, teacher and speaker. He is the former president of the Florida Chapter of the American Horticultural Therapy Association. Hank has conducted programs on the use of plants and gardening activities as therapeutic tools with stroke and Alzheimer's patients, children with special needs, drug & alcohol treatment programs and victims of violence and trauma,making the workplace less stressful & more productive, and the value of gardening in the building of healthy communities.
In April 2007 he was presented the Lifetime Achievement Award by the Florida Chapter of the American Horticultural Therapy Association, and in 2001 he was given the Humanitarian of the Year Award by the American Horticultural Therapy Association. In 2007 Hank and his wife Tomi Jill Folk were honored with a Community Service award by the Northern California Council of Activity Coordinators for their work nationally in service to senior citizens in the field of horticultural therapy.
Hank and his wife Tomi have also done research on accessible, micro-intensive vegetable gardening systems that can be adaptable for use by gardeners with limitations, and for those living where there is limited water, space, soil or other resources.
Together they have over 25 books in print. See the complete list on the Petals & Pages Press website http://petalsandpagespress.weebly.com
In April 2007 he was presented the Lifetime Achievement Award by the Florida Chapter of the American Horticultural Therapy Association, and in 2001 he was given the Humanitarian of the Year Award by the American Horticultural Therapy Association. In 2007 Hank and his wife Tomi Jill Folk were honored with a Community Service award by the Northern California Council of Activity Coordinators for their work nationally in service to senior citizens in the field of horticultural therapy.
Hank and his wife Tomi have also done research on accessible, micro-intensive vegetable gardening systems that can be adaptable for use by gardeners with limitations, and for those living where there is limited water, space, soil or other resources.
Together they have over 25 books in print. See the complete list on the Petals & Pages Press website http://petalsandpagespress.weebly.com