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Plant Psychology and Botanical Benefits

In a growing, urbanist society, something I have noticed is that plants are becoming less

and less common. With the twenty-five different classes out of the four years I have been in High

school, I have only seen five of them of any sort of plant in the classroom. And each of those

really only had, at best, one plant anywhere in the room. It really shows the lack of greenery that

comes with living in an urban environment. With every new building that is built, there is a large

space of greenery that is replaced to make room for that building. With every new road or lane

on the highway that is paved, the plants that once grew there are replaced with asphalt. But many

people are already aware that plants are vital to our ecosystem, and that every creature on Earth

would die off if they did not exist. And while that is one very important reason to let plants grow,

not many people seem to think about the other ways plants are important to us. Specifically, how

plants affect the mind. The human brain is the part of the body most susceptible to influence

from outside sources. It receives every feeling, sight, sound, taste, and smell that we take in. And

the brain reacts to these things in many different ways, depending on what information it gathers

with the senses. And with that logic, it is safe to assume that plants, in one way or another, affect

the human mind. Whether it is growing them or adding them as decorative foliage to your

workspace, as long as they are in your vicinity plants will have some sort of effect on your brain.

There are a multitude of studies that back up this theory, and each of them have concluded

different results. But not many people are aware of these effects in the modern environment.

People who live in an urban area often rarely see many plants in their daily commute, so they

would have no idea that plants had any affect on their psyche. And with so little greenery in

those people’s lives, they are potentially missing out on a very special stimulant that could have

some interesting effects on their mental state. So what are these psychological effects that urban-

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living people are not experiencing due to the lack of greenery? How does growing plants

compare to living in proximity to them? And how can this information be used to benefit

people’s lives? And to answer these questions, the first thing that needs to be asked is: “What are

the psychological impacts of growing plants?”

Even simply being in proximity to plants improves one’s mood. Plants have been found

to have positive effects on the human mind. Some studies conducted in the past have concluded

that humans that work in proximity to plants have shown improvements in their “psychological

well-being”. Taking a look at an experiment conducted in 1984 by a researcher that went by the

name Hiroshi Matsumoto. In this experiment, the research was conducted on an office space over

the course of two weeks. One week had the office completely devoid of plants, while the other

week had the office filled with plants. Both weeks, researchers compared the office workers’

productivity and psychological reactions to working in both environments. And the researchers

found during the week with plants in the office, “compared with the case without plants, the

workers’ evaluation of the indoor air environment improved, the subjective symptoms

significantly improved, [and] the work efficiency increase rate prediction was improved by

3.4%” (Genjo). Effectively, this all means that workers found a working environment with plants

was a more desirable situation compared to an office space without plants. One thing to note is

how the results had employees note the air quality was better in office spaces with plants. It can

rightfully be inferred the plants had improved the air quality of the office, as plants generate a

circulation of air flow. They do this by converting the carbon dioxide humans produce when

breathing and convert it into oxygen through photosynthesis. Because plants produce fresh

oxygen, it makes it an important aspect to employee comfort which affects employee mood. A

bad work environment will negatively affect a worker’s mood, while a good work environment

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will positively affect it. Additionally, note the work efficiency increase. Research from Oxford

university has concluded that “when workers are happier, they work faster” (Oxford). That is to

say, when something in a person’s work environment makes them feel better psychologically,

their work productivity is better. So because Masamuto’s research showed productivity increased

in offices with plants, it can be concluded that the plants were the cause. Which means that those

same plants also improved the moods of workers in the office space. And while experiments

such as this yield such results, there are some much more intriguing results coming from studies

that had people growing plants themselves.

Growing plants is able to reduce stress in people’s minds. For starters, the act of

gardening is a great way to relieve a person’s mind. Working with plants and helping them grow

gives a person time to ignore outside stress and responsibility and focus on the flowers or

vegetables that are growing right in front of them. The environment of a garden or greenhouse

has a lot of soothing properties to it, too, according to studies. In fact, those “studies show that

the sights, sounds, smells and textures associated with gardening can reduce anxiety, decrease

muscle tension, [and] increase productivity” (Durrie). The sensations of gardening have an

especially strong effect on the human mind. Being in such close proximity to flowers, soil, and

greenery present these senses that give off a calming effect to a person which provides multiple

beneficial effects. And the main cause for this is because the person is tending to the plants

themselves. When a person is taking care of a plant, it provides an isolated space that pushes

away outside thoughts. It allows them to focus on taking care of plants and helps a person forget

about outside stress by grounding themselves in the moment. And by doing this, it helps take the

brain away from focusing on worrying thoughts which make a person stressed. I spoke with

Paige Miller, a local florist who grows their own flowers, about the topic and she added “it’s the

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nurturing effect, anything that you do from infancy onward brings joy… You nurture it, you take

care of it”. And this idea of a “nurturing effect” is an actual concept in psychology. Studies have

shown that when a person is feeling stressed out, they can improve their mood after offering help

to someone else. This effect can also be applied to taking care of plants. By having a person look

after and nurture a plant in order to help it grow, it promotes psychological effects that correlate

with reducing stress and promoting happiness. This is due to the fact that helping something else

gives a person a sense of accomplishment and self-esteem. By receiving these positive emotions

about oneself, it reduces stress in the mind. With all this in mind, some may say that gardening

seems to be like a type of therapy. And they’d be right. Some scientists have concluded that “the

response of human beings to nature finds an emerging application in urban agriculture and

community gardening for therapeutic purposes” (Spano). Gardening has shown that it can

improve the mood of people who take part in it. And it’s also shown to help reduce stress. So

considering these aspects, it would be smart to use gardening as a type of therapy for people

around the world. And in recent years, it has been used as such. Gardening has become so

recognized as a viable source of therapy that it even has an official name. And that’s

“Horticulture therapy”.

Horticulture therapy is a growing therapy industry that focuses on therapy through

growing plants. Horticulture itself is a branch of agricultural research that focuses on the science

and intricacies of plant cultivation. In other words, it is the study of growing plants. And

horticulture therapy uses the idea of horticulture and applies it in a therapeutic way. What

hospitals do is they give patients a plant or gardening area where they are to look after plants

hospitals give them. The therapy has been around for centuries, with multiple documentations of

ancient cultures using nature as a therapeutic resource. However, these documentations never

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listed them as “therapy”. Parents nowadays will tell their children to go outside and enjoy the

fresh air because they’re concerned their kids spend too much time indoors on electronic devices.

But does anyone stop to think the benefits going outside actually brings? These recorded ancient

cultures seemed to have known the benefits, according to Megan Alexia Hickley, a researcher

from the Alliant International University. She states that “historically, contact with nature was

utilized by ancient cultures to promote psychological well-being and healing”. Additionally, the

supposed first report demonstrating the psychological benefits was actually reported back in the

19th century by Doctor Benjamin Rush. His report documented the “positive effect working in

the garden had on individuals with mental illness” (American Horticulture). However, it was not

widely accepted as a therapy method until around the 1940’s and 1950’s. During this time, the

therapy was used to rehabilitate war veterans who suffered from trauma. The history of

horticulture therapy is not a long one, but it’s certainly interesting to understand. But more

importantly is how horticulture therapy is used in a therapeutic way.

Horticulture is a great way to calm the brain for many different medical patients. For one,

it is great for patients with mental illnesses as it’s a great way to have a patient relax and open up

to doctors or other patients. As a journal entry by medical official Deborah J. Smith says: “Its use

can be the first step in assisting a client to recover social and personal skills lost or

underdeveloped due to the onset of debilitating mental illness”. Most patients with mental issues

often have a difficult time with social and personal skills due to their illnesses, which would

make it hard for them to socially interact with others. Horticulture is a great way to relax the

patients and calm their nerves. This allows for the patient to focus better on improving the social

and personal skills they lack due to their illness. It gives them a way to release tension and stress

through a safe and calming activity. And by letting them relax, it gives the patients a way to

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communicate better with doctors to work through their issues. Additionally, it also gives them a

way to talk with other patients to build social skills that they lack or even lost due to their illness.

In fact, gardens are a great way for mental patients to socialize with other patients. Providing a

common activity for patients gives them a common interest and allows for conversation between

them. It’s even become a practice for doctors to use gardens as a social place for patients. A

doctor’s report from a psychiatric rehabilitation journal says that “a gardening project can

generate pride and opportunities for sharing at many levels, while [patients] plant seeds that will

reap a harvest of goodwill and friendships” (Myers). This is because a garden can become a

social environment for patients. It gives patients a place to come together for a common interest

and allows interaction between patients. This is because the patients share common interests in

gardening and, thus, can get them talking with each other about the plants they’re taking care of.

And by allowing patients to talk with others, those actions are what improve the social skills of

said patients. Additionally, horticulture therapy is also effective for people with Alzheimer's

disease. Alzheimer’s is a type of dementia, which is a mental illness that covers memory loss,

language difficulty, and cognitive thinking issues. Alzheimer’s is a much more severe version of

dementia, so much so they actively hinder affected persons’ daily tasks. The disease also greatly

affects the inflicted person’s mental state, making them feel negative emotions or even act

irrationally. This can result in these patients causing serious harm to themselves or even others.

It’s because of this most patients with Alzheimer’s disease require a large amount of care and

attention. However, doctors have recently been using horticulture therapy to help prevent these

symptoms of Alzheimer’s. They believe that “disturbances in mood and behaviour often plague

patients with Alzheimer disease. A tranquil garden can calm their emotions, while the simple

activity of caring for plants may alleviate depression and soothe negative feelings” (Weidner).

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By utilizing horticulture therapy, doctors have found it to alleviate the negative impacts of

Alzheimer’s disease in patients. By placing patients in a garden, the air that the garden provides

and the peace of being around nature calms them down. This helps prevent the patient from

lashing out irrationally and harming others and themselves. And by having patients participate in

plant care activities, it gives the patients something to do and feel needed. This, in turn, reduces

any depressive or negative feelings that could cause them to act irrationally or cause harm to

themselves. By having them participate in regular gardening, it provides a way to keep patients

calm and happy, even with their mental problems. And horticulture therapy isn’t just for patients

with mental issues. There’s evidence to prove that horticulture therapy can benefit patients with

physical injuries as well. Take Al Rosati’s story, for example. He was a man from New Jersey

who was unfortunately paralyzed from the neck down in an automobile accident in 1984. But

through horticulture therapy, he was able to meet with other adults who suffered physical injuries

at Magee Rehabilitation Hospital and spend their time growing plants instead of wallowing in

their pain. A doctor from the hospital reports, saying “They have more time on their hands and

because of injuries, they can't do what they did before. Horticulture lets them work with living

and growing things. It improves strength, coordination and spirit” (Strauss). The loss of bodily

function, like in Rosati’s case, or the loss of a limb is a very disheartening experience that can

leave many people depressed. By providing these people with a simple and relaxing activity,

such as gardening, it gives them something to take their mind off their pain, both physical and

mental. Giving the injured a task that they’re able to accomplish, even with their disabilities,

gives them peace and helps calm their mind from the trauma they’ve experienced. Becoming

disabled can make it seem like there’s not much a person can do. But, by having them work with

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plants and showing them they can do something, it helps the patient recover from the shock of

the loss.

To some, plants are seen as nothing more than the living things that provide oxygen to

humans and the vegetables that can be used to eat. But studies are showing the world that plants

have much more use than to look pretty on your windowsill or be a fancy gift to your significant

other. Plants can help the mind and improve people’s mood significantly, simply by being added

to their daily lives. Growing plants can help a person destress and relax themselves if they’re

overly nervous or panicked. And most importantly, gardening can be used to help the mentally

sick and physically injured heal through horticulture therapy. Plants have multiple therapeutic

benefits in multiple different fields that can benefit a large number of people. And yet,

horticulture therapy and its benefits are not talked about enough. Even with the evidence I

amassed, it was very difficult to find many articles on the psychological benefits of plants

outside medicinal and consumable plants like marajuana. The industry of working with plants to

improve one’s psychological strength is overall underutilized. Growing plants could be used so

much more to a lot of people’s benefits. Urban areas often lack a large amount of greenery that

could provide these benefits, and there’s minimal loss to provide more ways for these urban

areas to supply ways for citizens to grow their own plants. Hospitals can also benefit from

utilizing horticulture therapy more. Mental illnesses are becoming easier to detect and doctors

are able to spot people who are suffering from them. Horticulture therapy can be used to help

treat these people in tandem with already utilized therapy and treatment methods. And all for

very little cost for upkeep. Growing plants is an incredibly useful, cheap, and relaxing activity

that can benefit people in the modern world. Even benefitting the planet by recycling carbon

dioxide in the atmosphere turning it into oxygen. So the world should plant more plants, and

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everyone should enjoy the fresh air. Add more green to everyone’s life and make yourself better

while doing so.