Benefits

GARDENING CAN BE THERAPUTIC!  Any avid gardener will share with you the therapeutic benefits of gardening. Everyone's Garden strives to take it a step further... to impact the social, educational, psychological and physical well being of every participant and visitor.  How can an inclusive garden like ours have such an impact?

• Cognitive Development:
• Working with plants teaches new skills & language, increases attention spans, raises concentration levels, develops problem solving skills, and the ability to work flexibly- independently and/or cooperatively.
• Social Growth:
• Gardening as part of a group encourages communication, cooperation & positive social interactions as well as the opportunity to experience working towards a common goal.
• Psychological Development:
• Our sense of compassion and our instinct for nurturing are met through the care of something alive. A feeling of usefulness, a sense of responsibility, improved self-esteem and a sense of self-worth grow along with the plants in the garden.
• Physical Development:
• Gardening provides incentives to exercise both fine & gross motor skills and strengthen muscles. The activities involved in gardening can be adapted to an individuals abilities/limitations.
• Spiritual Awareness:
• Just being in the garden, interacting with the plants, provides a sense of peace & harmony... allowing us to discover the diversity and beauty all around us.

What Else?

• Empowerment!
• How can we empower others in the garden?  
• Allowing participants to make decisions about what is planted, harvested, etc. Making decisions is empowering!
• Creating opportunities to experience success- success with seeds that sprout, plants that bloom & produce fruit, vegetables to harvest, etc. Experiencing success is empowering!
• Showing participants how to care for and nurture plants in the garden. To nurture is empowering!
• Sharing responsibilities and obligations in the garden creates personal purpose.  It is empowering to feel a sense of purpose!
• Communicating & connecting with our neighbors and friends makes us feel valued and creates a sense of belonging.  Nothing is more empowering than that!
• Sensory Stimulation... and beyond!
• How can the garden stimulate the senses?
• Working in the garden allows us to stimulate our sense of sight, smell, touch, hearing and taste.  Individuals of all ability levels have the opportunity to experience sensory stimulation at their own pace and comfort level.
• And beyond our physical senses?
• Working in the garden can also stimulate our sense of wonder, joy, purpose, place and of course, our sense of COMMUNITY!
• Communication!
• How can the garden foster and encourage communication?
• There is so much to share at the garden! Participants are inclined to communicate about their experiences- and this can be through verbal or non-verbal, "traditional" or "non-traditional" forms of communication.

Come grow with us--- everyone is welcome!

Bruce, Hank & Tomi Jill Folk. Garden Projects for the Classroom & Special Learning Programs. Rio Rancho: Petals and Pages, 2004. Print.