I live in a climate where I garden year round. This can be both exhausting and rewarding so my trusty Felcos never get a rest! Someone recently asked me why I love gardening so much and I had to stop and think about the answer(s) for a bit. So, after some musings, I came up with not 1 but 10 reasons as to why I love gardening.
1) I was born into it. I’ve been gardening a very long time – over half a century to be exact. My dad & grandmother were avid gardeners so it’s in my blood. We had a huge vegetable garden and my dad started almost everything from seed in our greenhouse. In the warmers months, flowers filled many of the beds surrounding our house.
2) It’s great hand eye co-ordination. This definitely needs to be in sync when gardening so those important messages can be sent can to the brain.
3) I get exercise. Up, down, back, forth – I’m constantly moving my body.
4) I love the great outdoors. Enough said about that.
I’m in my garden explaining those 10 reasons:
5) It’s a way to commune with nature. Birds, bees & butterflies still delight me.
6) It’s so satisfying to see something grow. Whether it’s ornamental or food, it’s so satisfying to watch what you planted take off.
7) It’s can be downright meditative. Gardening is food for the soul.
8) It’s an escape. If something’s bugging me, I simply grab the pruners.
9) It makes my world beautiful. I look at or am in my garden every day. I get to share it with friends & neighbors.
10) I enjoy it! I really do …
I’ve been gardening since I was knee high to a grasshopper. It’s second nature to me – I just do it without even thinking about it. Why do you love gardening???
By the way, here are my 5 Must Haves For Gardening.
Check out the 411 on me Here – just scroll down the page a bit & you’ll see me on the farm on a tractor at 2 months old.
I agree with most of your reasons. I have another… A gardener and her family get to enjoy fresh food right from their own soil – healthy, fresh, nutritious!
Joanie – Thank you for adding that in – so true! I grew up on a farm in New England where my dad had a huge vegetable garden. We started a lot from seed which is so rewarding. In Santa Barbara I have an herb garden as well as orange, lemon & avocado trees. And, to share it with your family & teaching kids to grow things is yet another reason. Happy gardening! Nell
My name is Fon. I am thai.I also love Gardening. When I am outside I feel happy .My beautiful flowers cheer me up when I am tired from work.
That is a wonderful reason Fon, thank you for sharing! Our gardens become our refuge & our happy place – I love being in mine. Nell
I love gardening because it calms me and gives me a sense of security. I feel safe in my garden and I leave bad thoughts behind which, for me, is a big enough reason to never stop doing it. I even started working as a professional gardener in London for this company http://www.gardenersserviceslondon.co.uk, as I found life is too short to not do what I truly love.
Hi Audrey – Yes, gardening is indeed soothing. For me, as I said, it’s a form of meditation. I was a professional gardener for years & loved it. It’s always good for reducing our stress levels to do what we love! All the best, Nell
I just stumbled upon this site. I am expecting to enjoy it. I love gardening. I haven’t been able to do to do too much due to having bilateral hip replacement surgery. But I think about it all the time. I’ll be looking for ideas here. Glad I found you.
Glad you found us too Dee! Gardening is very physical so hip replacement surgery would certainly limit what you could do. I hope we virtually satisfy your gardening bug! All the best, Nell
Oh yeah, gardening is such a pleasure for our souls and minds. Every time I see a new planted tree has grown, though a little bit, I feel like on the cloud nine. I do like gardening, ’cause of all that stuff like small colored rakes, spades. All my relatives know what to give me for my B’day, that’s fantastic) When my son brought me that colored bucket http://apromera.com/, at first a thought…Do I need this? But it was so colorful, that I just took it and went outside, just to start using it) We are a bit crazy getting older)).
Hi Diana – Yes, gardening is good for our minds & our souls … whether we’re old or young! Nell
I love gardening for all the reasons mentioned above in this beautiful article, as well within comments. And for another reason—it blends well with Yoga. I do Yoga stretches and meditate— breath into propagating my succulents, weeding, watering, harvesting, and just being. And my garden comes with a spectacular view of the Golden Gate Bridge and panoramic sights beyond! What’s not to love about that?
That’s a lovely reason too Teri. Gardens are such a wonderful refuge; especially in a busy urban area. I lived in San Francisco for 20 years & so remember the views of the Golden Gate Bridge. Magical! Nell
The first of every day, I do a walk around in my gardens. It’s the perfect way to start my day. I live in Ontario (north, but not the farthest north). I think one of my blue hydrangeas didn’t overwinter and that makes me sad….like a lost a friend. I got thinking that most people wouldn’t feel that way about a plant dying so I googled “why do people love gardening” and I got here. Enjoyed reading answers to my question.
I glad you found the post Jane! Since I’ve moved to Arizona I now have a smaller & much different garden than my last one. I still love it just as much & look at it with new eyes every day. Here’s a post about leaving a garden you love which I think you’ll relate to: https://www.joyusgarden.com/leaving-garden-youve-created-love/ Nell