I used to joke that gardening helped keep me out of trouble but, seriously, when its harvest time a couple of times a week and then pickling and preserving etc. Gardening can be a big time consuming job! That being said though I also believe it is one of the best of jobs. Its nourishing for every part of me just like this article says: Mind, body and soul! Having a garden might be a lot of work but the benefits are so many!

(This is a contributed post, for more information about my compensation please read my disclosure policy)

Do your mind, body, and soul ever feel like they need a break from the obligations, pressures, and strains of daily life? Hobbies are an excellent way to give yourself a well-deserved and highly enjoyable break, and when it comes to picking a great hobby, gardening has to be at or at least near the top of the list. Not only is it good for you, but it will make your home feel much more comfortable and look a lot more attractive too.  

Nowadays, life is hectic and stressful. It’s a good idea to start looking into hobbies when you need some leisure or self-care for your mental and emotional wellness. If you’ve arrived at this point, you may well be thinking of taking up gardening as a pastime, which is a fantastic decision. So, do you want to know whether gardening is a pastime that will bring value to your life? Continue reading to find out. 

Gardening Teaches Responsibility 

Plant care can be accurately characterized as ‘all-in’. Your garden plants are largely at your mercy, and therefore the plants in your garden need your full attention and care to develop and flourish. This is an excellent opportunity to learn more about duty and experience a feeling of responsibility for something besides family, house, or job. 

This is why, if you have a family and you want to help your children develop a responsible side, gardening could be something you all do together. Or perhaps you’re thinking of getting a pet, and you want to practice being responsible for something other than a living animal, just to make sure you truly understand what is required of you.  

Growing Produce Is Good For Your Health 

Buying veggies at the supermarket may not break the bank, but you never know whether you’re getting organic or unethically produced and manipulated goods. Adding a vegetable and herb garden, as well as potentially a fruit garden, into your backyard is a wonderful choice if you want the healthiest form of fruit and vegetables available. Many garden enthusiasts put their passion and expertise to good use by feeding their families. 

If you design custom plant tags for gardens, you will always know exactly what’s growing and when to harvest it. Being organized in the garden is important if you want to make the most of it.  

It’s Good For Your Fitness 

If you are not a fan of sports and physical exercise, gardening may benefit your health as an alternative way of getting and keeping fit. Gardening offers some forms of exercise and can help you maintain a healthy level of fitness.  

Walking, crouching, lifting, pushing wheelbarrows, digging, reaching, pulling, and other activities are all part of gardening. You can keep yourself looking and feeling fit and healthy by doing some gardening. Just an hour (or less if you really can’t spare the time) a day will be enough to help your health in many different ways.  

It’s Rewarding 

Nothing beats the satisfying sensation of seeing seeds or cuttings you’ve sown take off and begin to thrive. Seeing your garden take form will give you a great sense of accomplishment, and when things start to look nice, it will encourage you to keep working on it. 

Everyone needs to feel as though they are making a difference in their lives, either for themselves or for others (and ideally both). If you can see that a garden you’ve planted and kept neat and tidy and taken care of is growing and looking great, you’re sure to feel that you’ve done something good.  

Gardening Can Help With Mental Health 

An article on mental health published by The Guardian highlighted how ‘green therapy’ is being utilized successfully to rehabilitate and recover people suffering from depression. Depression often leaves people feeling hopeless, alone, and without a sense of purpose or direction.  

Gardening has been shown to produce endorphins, or feel-good chemicals, into the body, which can relieve the symptoms of depression. Gardening daily may help you overcome symptoms of depression and work toward building and creating something that makes you happy. 

 Of course, depression is a clinical issue as well as a mental health one, and gardening isn’t going to cure it – you will need to obtain professional help for your condition – but if it helps to reduce your symptoms, then it’s a very good thing to do.  

You’re Always Learning 

Even if you lead an active lifestyle, you could discover that your brain is no longer stimulated. Gardening as a pastime requires a significant amount of study, thinking, planning, and learning. There’s no denying that when gardening, your brain is always working. 

The more you can keep your brain active, the less bored you will be, and it will help reduce the likelihood of cognitive decline in later years, such as dementia or Alzheimer’s.  

You Can Relax and Unwind 

Garden enthusiasts are all in agreement on this particular benefit; creating a garden is about more than just the work, it’s also about the pleasure you receive from it later. 

Having a beautiful space that is calm and peaceful and where you can relax and unwind when you need to – and we all need to relax as much as possible in this busy world – will help you hugely in many different ways. So why not ensure that it’s your own garden? You won’t have to travel anywhere to find such a space, you can go there any time you want to, and you can change it to look like whatever you want it to.  

Increase Your Curb Appeal 

Gardening is a great pastime to have if you want to improve both your home’s beauty and value. A house with a lovely garden is always worth more than a home without a garden or with a neglected garden. 

This is because a great garden is always going to increase your curb appeal. Curb appeal is the look of your home from the outside, and it’s the first thing that any guest or visitor will see. So if you intend to sell your property, having good curb appeal is important. The images on any property website will entice people to book a viewing, and then when they get to your home, they won’t be disappointed, and they will be keen to get inside and see the rest.  

A Boost Of Vitamin D 

Maintaining your health is critical, and vitamin D is one of the most important vitamins you need. People can get depressed if they don’t get enough vitamin D. Without vitamin D, the body cannot absorb calcium efficiently, resulting in brittle bones, osteomalacia, and osteoporosis.  

You can obtain vitamin D by spending 15 to 30 minutes each day outside in the sun or by taking a supplement. Gardening will naturally help you raise your vitamin D levels if you want to take up a pastime that benefits your health. 

You Can Express Your Creativity 

Hobbies are often centered on producing something beautiful or useful. When you begin gardening as a pastime, you are given a blank canvas on which to really express yourself artistically. 

Whether you express yourself through color, variety, design, or anything else, you can enjoy complete control over your garden and set it up in any way you want to.  

You Can Earn Extra Cash 

You may sell the fruits of your garden in local markets or to your neighbors if you create a beautiful flower garden, vegetable garden, herb garden, or fruit garden. You can even turn your garden produce into items that you can sell online (think jam, sauces, pressed flower art, and more). 

Not all hobbies have to earn money, and not all should be monetized. However, if you have a glut of produce that would otherwise go to waste, and you know that people would make use of what you can offer, you could make a little cash.

(This is a contributed post, for more information about my compensation please read my disclosure policy)