GARDENING AS STRESS BOOSTER –

From my personal experience I want to share that gardening is really a very good habit. It helps us calm our mind during our hectic schedule. Sometimes due to certain reasons I kind of feel really anxious and get disconnected from the outside world . I get so restless that I can't concentrate and get frustrated by all the negative news I hear. At that time I want a kind of mental shift. So, what I did was I used to spend some time in the company of my beloved plants and started identifying them. Once I am in that atmosphere I have no sense of time. I love the fragrance of the flowers and their soft colours that transport me into another world.. When I touch the branches and leaves of the plants their softness makes me feel overjoyed. My fingers love those sweet sensation. When I see young leaves sprouting I feel thrilled. This is actually a message of love and friendship from innocent plants. Also to see birds flying from tree to tree fills my inner self to ecstacy. T his whole atmosphere is a complete world of perfect relaxation and peace of mind. Seeing them as soon as I wake up in the morning makes me feel refreshing . So, I have been wondering what’s the deal with the plants what’s going on in my body why do I feel so better when I am around them. Right from my childhood I have been very much interested in gardening. But the hectic schedule didn’t let me do that. During lock down I was actually able to resume my passion of gardening. Initially I didn't know much about gardening but later on I got acquainted with the gardening techniques. Like choosing of the plants, preparation of soil for different flowers, removing weeds, quantity of water they need etc. I also do grafting and cutting of the undesired branches. I actually find great pleasure in these works. ‌There are many benefits we can get from gardening--- ‌GARDENING CAN GIVE US A BOOST OF VITAMIN D- Whenever we are Gardening we are exposing ourselves to sunlight. As we know sunlight helps us in producing vitamin D in our body which provides us immunity against the host of different ailments like heart diseases, cancer, oesteoporosis and others. ‌GARDENING CAN RELIEF STRESS- Gardening can help reduce symptoms of depression and anxiety by giving us a chance to focus on something and put our mind to work with a goal and task in mind. ‌ USING FLOWERS TO ATTRACT POLLINATORS -Most flowers attract helpful pollinators such as bees butterflies , moths and other pollinators which are necessary for our survival. ‌PLANTING FLOWERS FOR CLEANER AIR-whenever we are gardening we are inhaling a lot of freshly produced obstacles especially in the morning. Not only that studies have shown that there is a special kind of bacteria in soil known as n Vakeel and whenever we are gardening we area enhaling that bacteria. It actually helps us relax to a great extent. ‌PLANTING FLOWERS AS EXCERCISE- Gardening is an effective workout that uses many different muscle groups while increasing flexibility. Digging and planting burns calories and uses muscles, while reaching and bending stretches the body to increase elasticity in those muscles Hence, Gardening isn’t just about making our house look good but also it can do wonders for our own wellbeing and mental health. Protiva Bismith 1st Semester DCJ GU