251Views 0Comments
We all have hobbies and passions in our life. Some people love to dive into a good book, others work on cars or enjoy going to the gym. But maybe you’re still searching for an escape from reality. Well, you can find your next hobby right outside your window.
Home gardening has amazing benefits for our everyday life. Plus, it’s a hobby that produces tangible and rewarding results. So why should you start a home garden?
Saves Money On Groceries
Have you seen the prices at the grocery store lately? They are only getting higher. Starting a vegetable garden is a great way to cut down on your spending at the supermarket.
Washington State University Master Gardener Phyllis Pugnetti estimates that you can grow $600 worth of vegetables a year in a home garden. There will be some initial startup costs like seeds, soil, and gardening tools (and a little trial and error). But once you develop your green thumb, you could save hundreds of dollars a year on produce.
Leads To A Healthier Diet
You can’t get more farm-to-table than walking into your backyard and picking the vegetables you’ll be eating for dinner. Home gardening allows you to know exactly what is going into the fruits and vegetables you eat. You can avoid using pesticides and grow organic food. Plus, growing vegetables will hopefully inspire you to use them in everyday cooking, leading to healthier diet choices.
Reduces Stress Levels
If you want a hobby that helps you relax, gardening is a perfect way to find your center. Countless studies have shown that gardening helps reduce stress, anxiety, and depression while increasing life satisfaction, vigor, and cognitive function.
A Great Way To Get Active
As good as gardening is for your mental health, it’s great for your physical health too. Tending to a garden requires a lot of exercise. For example, you’ll be digging to create beds, squatting to pick weeds, and carrying bags of soil. You’ll be unknowingly getting a great workout in while doing something you love.
Connection To Nature
Here’s one you may not have thought about, yet it’s arguably the biggest reason to start gardening. A survey study done by the National Library of Medicine (Jan. 2022) found that 89% of respondents valued a connection to nature as the most important benefit to gardening, followed by relaxation and stress-relief (87%) and outdoor physical activity (78%). But they all work in conjunction together, being outside with nature promotes an overall positive wellbeing.