Love your garden more – Stay sane in a mad world!

Why love your garden more? Here’s the inside track…

The news is absolutely terrible. Climate change is here, happening faster than scientists predicted. Politics is more mental than ever. There’s a war just over the water in Europe. Russia has lost the plot. Trump is still at liberty. There’s an energy crisis looming. Inflation is running away with us. Help… how do we take it all calmly, balance our emotional selves in a healthy way, and remain sane despite the madness?

Spending time in the garden, amongst the green stuff and fresh air, might not seem particularly powerful. But it’s amazing how much better we feel when we’re in natural surroundings. Whatever your culture, upbringing or taste, whether you live in a town, suburb or city, village, on agricultural land or in the countryside, nature calms us down with a deeply satisfying kind of happiness.

Being outdoors soothes the soul. It gives us an essential connection to nature. If your heart lifts at the sound of a blackbird, a thrush, or a gang of cheeping sparrows, you’re not alone. It’s part of what makes us human. Nature brings us back to our best selves. So let’s take a look at the reasons why we feel so good outdoors, and why you need to love your garden more. This is a science thing, and it’s fascinating.

Why is it so good for us to be outdoors?

Look back just a couple of generations and life was very different. We walked more and drove less. There were fewer of us. Fewer cars meant more space for people, and the chance for kids to play safely outdoors. In the 1970s we played out in the streets. We ran wild. It was pure magic.

These days people spend less time outside, and we’re poorer for it. No wonder so many of us feel the urge to get back to nature. It’s no surprise we’re mad-keen to spend more time in our gardens thanks to covid. It has been a nightmare. We want to unplug from the modern world and experience the benefits of the great outdoors.

The natural power of forest bathing

Japan has put forest bathing on its national health program. It’s all about completely immersing yourself in a natural environment. The idea is to reintroduce people to the healing powers of nature, well worthwhile when science proves the health and wellbeing benefits of green places. They’re doing it in the USA too, forest bathing in the woods, national parks, and urban woodlands. And it is catching on in the UK.

Love your garden more – Nature is the ultimate stress-buster

Being in nature relieves stress, something millions of us find hard to handle. Stress affects our minds and immune systems, leading to depression, obesity, and high blood pressure. Spending time in nature relieves stress in every age group. It quickly reduces the stress hormone cortisol, and the reduction can stick around for days. How’s that for an instant feel-good factor?

Being in nature makes us happier at work. Give us a window to look out of in the office or wherever and we’re a lot less stressed, as well as more satisfied with our jobs. A hospital room with a window overlooking green space heals us better than one without. It’s exciting to know that something as basic as a painting or photo of woodland on a hospital room wall makes a difference to the way we feel.

Immerse yourself in nature for a better immune system

Your immune system does a great job when it has to work for a living. If you’re indoors all the time, you lose. Regular doses of nature help prepare our bodies to fight. In 2010 scientists studied the effect of forest bathing on the human immune system. A 3 day forest trip turned out to boost people’s white blood cells, and keep them boosted for as long as 30 days.

Enjoy better eyesight spending time outside

Two thousand Australian children who spent more time playing outdoors had a much lower risk of becoming near-sighted. Kids playing indoor sports didn’t get the same effect. Dim indoor lighting makes it hard to see clearly, so we squint, and that’s not good. Outdoor light is a lot better for our eyes and particularly important for children, whose eyes are still developing.

Nature boosts health whatever our age

Research shows our attention gets better when we’re in nature. A study from 2009 showed being outdoors helps kids with ADHD. It inspires kids to explore more, play, and discover new things. What a good reason to enjoy your garden more. Author Richard Louv says children who spend too much time indoors can get Nature Deficit Disorder. It puts young people at more risk of chronic health problems like diabetes, high blood pressure, obesity, and depression.

The same goes for being creative. Our creative problem solving skills are about 50% better after a few days spent outdoors. No wonder wilderness retreats, wild camping, glamping and hiking are so popular. We mightn’t know exactly why we feel good, we may not understand the science, but we definitely feel it!

Being in the green stuff helps us chill

Doctors and therapists say regular exercise outdoors is one of the best things you can do for your self, inside and out. It eases emotional pain and improves our mood. Just being outside cuts blood pressure and lowers the heart rate, which slows us down to bring lovely feelings of peace and calm. It can even improve our self-esteem.

Nature improves our memory

Strange but true – there’s a lot of evidence showing benefits to people’s short term and working memory. Here’s a dramatic example. Two groups of US students took a memory test. Half walked down a city street after the test. The other half walked through a garden. A second memory test showed the garden walkers had a 20% better memory score than the street walkers, to whom the exercise made no difference. The garden did the magic.

Nature lovers have longer, happier lives

A 2015 study followed 108,630 American women to see if there was a relationship between nature and a long life. Women who spent time in parks and around lawns, trees and forests lived a lot longer than those who spent no time in nature, whether they lived in the country or city.

Good air quality helps us live longer. The more vegetation there is, the better the quality of the air. Being outdoors makes us feel more like exercising, and we exercise more when we’re outdoors – a nice virtuous circle. It improves our social engagement and mental health. We don’t just love longer, either. We live happier, too.

Love your garden more with our fantastic garden leisure products

Feel the force of nature. Love life more. Be sharper and clearer. Be together more, and be more together. Spending time in your garden at home is really good for your health and the way you feel. It makes us feel better in so many ways. So get out there, make yourself a comfortable entertainment area, and dive right in. Add more plants. Let some of it go wild for the wildlife and your own wellbeing. Grab a garden heater to keep things snug. Cook your way to heavenly BBQs. Socialise with people you love…

PS. You might enjoy our Garden Furniture Buying Guide, handy when you want to make the most of your outdoor space and make it great for entertainment. It’ll give you even more insight into how to love your garden more.