HOW DOES DIGGING IN A GARDEN BEAT ANY DIRT FOUND ON SOCIAL MEDIA?

For starters, mindless scrolling grows drama and stress, not dinner. Sowed seeds improve our soul and view, unlike sifting through someone else’s mud online. And growing our own food has no weird ingredients—except for a few bugs one can simply rinse away or feed to the chickens.

According to a Stanford study, negative posts go viral fastest (and so do the bad vibes). We know screens are here to stay, but spend too long online and you’re apt to grow anxiety, depression and loneliness instead of tasty tomatoes and positivity.

Ever hear anyone say “My favorite part of curated perfection and endless loops is… ?” Me neither. But I’ve had plenty of chats about how gardening engages the senses. For me, it’s the smell of baked pumpkin pie and citrus blossoms scenting the air, paintable fruit the color of sunshine, and hens greeting me at dawn with the same enthusiasm as my seven-pound terrier. Plus, my birds lay gorgeous blue eggs and happily devour kitchen scraps—charm and compost all in one.

BENEFITS FROM NATURE

Time spent outside is truly music to our ears. Researchers at King’s College London found that birdsong can lower cortisol levels and boost mental health for up to eight hours. Caretaking and maintaining a garden or a few potted plants also offers high rewards—like dopamine from any successes and serotonin from touching soil. Plants even purify the air. As an antidote to screens that can overload or dull our senses, disrupt melatonin and strain our eyes, natural light exposure increases vitamin D, which has been shown to support sleep and regulate our circadian rhythm.

Some doctors in Canada and New Zealand even prescribe time in nature. Following 2020 lockdowns, many folks put their hands in the earth and found calm, purpose and joy. Gardeners may even live longer, according to Dutch, Australian and Scottish studies. Gardening contributes to physical and mental health—both factors in longevity. And gratitude for a garden’s bounty can nourish us spiritually, as the human desire to connect to nature and the divine seems to be innate.

Gardening gets us moving too. It provides a free full-body workout with walking, digging, bending and lifting. Pushing wheelbarrows, moving pots or hefting bags of dirt improves arm, leg and core strength, flexibility and heart health.

COMPUTER BUGS VS. GARDEN BUGS

While I wonder if aphids are better or worse than computer trouble, ladybugs sure love ’em. However, in full transparency, frustration that involves both infested computers and crops destroyed by uninvited critters is possible. This topic may deserve a separate article and is perhaps unsolvable by garden therapy.

Here in Ventura County, the subtle shift of the season to winter brings fewer bugs, more humidity and less scorching heat. We notice crisp leaves, rain and less traffic on the way to the garden store for new gloves. With fewer seeds to plant and less produce to harvest we can pause to trust slow growth and unseen magic happening beneath the surface.

COMMUNITY THROUGH THE GARDEN

If we reject the chaos of online trolls more, time lingers. We listen to each other over abundant winter greens and local cheeses in hearty meals, sprinkling them with new memories. Winter’s nostalgic rhythm reminds us to gather over games nights, old photos, school calendars and growing families. Cover crops are a blanket for our gardens that hold next summer’s promise.

Have you ever bartered jalapeños for lemons or swapped herb bundles for treasured avocados? I relish rooted connection: drip lines gone rogue, soil woes and snap pea success. What’s better than cozy conversations that stretch like long shadows across the shorter days?

LESSONS LEARNED IN THE GARDEN

Countless garden lessons begin with patience: Both plants and people need time to grow and flourish. Yet sometimes, they don’t. Some thrive; others wither. Nature doesn’t rush. We learn to appreciate its unpredictability.

Planning meals around what’s available, we let go and uproot what is no longer useful. If we can keep our sense of humor, we’re amused that sometimes the squirrels have the last laugh. Whether we grow just a few string beans or enough for a holiday cornucopia, wisdom is gained as we acquire skills that shape us in ways screens can’t. Yes, technology is handy to look up recipes or fun craft ideas with homegrown ingredients.

Google is convenient to learn with a click of a button how to create a trellis or build a coop. But it’s the actual doing that changes us for the better, right?

Neither food nor ideas ripen on a strict schedule but hopefully, they’re ready at just the right time.

Whether an artichoke with tough layers and spiky fur to remove before we reach the tender heart, or olives that aren’t edible until they survive a pickling, each reminds us to savor the journey.

Lastly, for those of you who don’t carrot a fig about gardening and would rather purchase your produce, I send love from my head to-ma-toes and suggest your local farmers’ market. I’m putting my screens away now to pull some weeds and search for peas and quiet.