Healing with Plants The Wonders of Horticultural Therapy

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In recent years, gardening has been identified as the number one outside leisure activity in the country. Unlike in the past when people were dependent upon growing food or plants for survival, people are now using horticulture for personal satisfaction and enjoyment.

Horticultural Therapy, a therapeutic gardening program, is an active treatment tool at Friends Hospital. It is also being used at a variety of facilities including psychiatric hospitals, physical rehabilitation hospitals, nursing homes, prisons, programs for the developmentally disabled, vocational training and substance abuse programs. Many patients, both with emotional and physical disabilities, have been taking part in this powerful form of therapy that involves working with plants to stimulate recovery.

For years it was thought that gardening was a powerful form of therapy for patients, yet it was not until the 1940s that horticulture became a well-known therapeutic program. In the 1940s, the Federal Government established veteran hospitals in which horticultural therapy was used to care for wounded servicemen. Since then, the quantity and quality of training programs in Horticultural Therapy has grown. Today, many colleges and universities have surpassed offering courses and programs and have begun offering degrees in Horticultural Therapy.

Friends Hospital, founded by Quakers in 1813, has used horticultural therapy from its beginning. Since Friends was originally designed to be self-sufficient, it included 30 cultivated acres of grass, corn, potatoes, and wheat. Meat and butter were supplied by dairy cows, and a kitchen garden produced the vegetables. Medicinal plants and "salutary" herbs were also cultivated. Large areas of grass and quiet forest paths were left for recreational use. Friends provided a serene atmosphere where patients could feel safe.

Today, Friends Hospital uses horticultural therapy as an "active" treatment. The resources at Friends include a large potting shed with space for storage, a modern greenhouse, a drying garden, a cut flower garden, plant materials for pressing, and herbs for potpourri. Friends has also made changes to its 100 acres of land. For example, the Borgeest Garden, built in 1991, was designed specifically for Alzheimer’s patients – a "safe garden" where patients can wander without getting lost or injuring themselves.

"Horticultural Therapy has continued to be an important part of patients’ treatment because it improves body, mind, spirit and the quality of life," said Mona Gold, Horticultural Therapist at Friends Hospital. Horticultural therapy is unique because it involves "working with something that is living, a plant, that needs to be cared for, and that does not discriminate." There are four basic areas in which horticultural therapy can be beneficial: cognitive, social, psychological, and physical development.

Cognitive benefits involve learning new skills and language. Through Horticultural Therapy, patients may improve their decision-making and problem-solving skills, as well as learn to follow complex instructions. They are able to work independently while at the same time increasing their awareness of the world around them.

Social benefits are derived from working within a group-learning to share, to relate, to compromise and to work towards a common goal. The social interaction by working in a group provides helps patients to feel better about themselves.

Psychological development includes an improvement of self-esteem and self-confidence. Working with living plants allows the patient to feel a sense of responsibility. Knowing that they must nourish and care for this living plant helps patients feel more productive and motivated. According to Gold, "patients feel that Horticultural Therapy is peaceful and tranquil. This atmosphere allows the patients to relax and become more open to talking about their problems." Thus, patients feel a greater sense of self-worth.

Physical improvements result from patients working in the fresh air, moving their bodies and adapting to physical changes in a non-threatening environment. Horticultural Therapy can stimulate both gross and fine motor activities for those who need to retrain their muscles. In order to help patients regain their sense of color, texture, shape and smell, therapists can use the plants and flowers.

 The Hospital has plants in all stages so that the patients can see the cycle of life. "Even with a few sessions, the patient will feel better," said Gold.