National Allotment Week happens every year from the second Monday of August onwards and celebrates a different aspect of gardening and tending allotments. Allotments came into being largely Queen Victoria’s reign, when it was written into English law in 1887 that the council should provide green spaces for people to tend, grow food and help feed themselves. They grew in prominence during the First and Second World Wars, when home produced food from an allotment was a welcome addition to the limited foods available through rationing.
Allotments continue to provide many benefits around food production. However, they are also excellent spaces for growing flowers, getting outdoors, making new friends, strengthening mental health and keeping fit. While your care home residents may not be able to – or may not want to –look after an allotment any more, the benefits of gardening and growing your own fruit, veg and flowers remain.
Care homes can cultivate their own areas in the grounds for residents to enjoy looking after plants at very little extra cost or effort, even without dedicated allotment space. Plants and tools can be planned and procured using Care Vision’s system. Gardening activities and events can also be staffed and behaviours and emotions related to exposure to gardening tracked on the versatile care planning software.
Here are some ways in which gardening can bring benefits and advantages to your care home community this summer – and for the rest of the year.
Mental stimulation
The multi-sensory nature of a garden means that working or relaxing in one can tap into several of our senses at once. There are the bright colours of summer flowers and autumnal trees. Herbs give off beautiful scents that can be detected from a long way away. Leaves and branches rustling in the breeze offer one of nature’s most relaxing sounds, while being able to eat fruits and vegetables that you and your fellow residents have grown makes for a very special meal. Getting your hands dirty in the soil, touching fruit as you pluck it from a tree or running your fingers through long grass are also wonderful ways to enjoy your hard work in the garden.
Physical health
The extent of how much and what type of gardening your residents are able to do will depend entirely on their physical health and general wellbeing. However, even the gentlest of activity, such as some weeding, deadheading or picking berries for a fruit crumble can keep people moving, help their joints remain flexible and prevent falls. For those who seek even more physical activity, digging over soil, cutting back branches or spreading mulch or compost can be a relaxing and physically beneficial way to enjoy the garden.
Emotional wellbeing
There can be very few people whose mental health and emotional wellbeing aren’t improved by being outside in lovely surroundings. The calm cycle of the seasons and steady pace of plant growth force us to slow down and appreciate the wonders of the natural world around us. Touching the soil can, quite literally ground us and help us feel connected to the wider world. Watching something flourish and grow that we have planted and tended is also great for boosting happiness and satisfaction. You can use Care Vision’s emotional and behavioural monitoring apps to see what differences you can spot before and after someone joins in with any gardening activities you have got planned. This feedback can inform ingoing care and treatment from carers and external medical professionals, who may prescribe even more time spent outside.
Social interaction
As with any clubs and group activities run by your care home, getting people together to enjoy gardening brings social benefits too People can chat while working and reminisce over gardens and allotment that they have enjoyed previously. Trips to the garden centre to pick up plants, or outings to see other gardens nearby for inspiration can also be a great way to encourage friendships and social connections. For residents who do not wish to join in with the actual gardening, the advantages of having well-tended, colourful, fragrant-smelling gardens to sit in, stroll around and talk about cannot be overestimated. When the weather is not nice enough to go outdoors, why not watch a gardening programme together on TV or research which seeds or bulbs you are going to plant next?