The French are gardening more and more
Gardening is an increasingly popular hobby. Indeed, beyond the production of fruits and vegetables, gardening also makes it possible to create a space of life and personal expression. This is because of the health and well-being benefits of gardening. Gardening, a therapy that reactivates the senses and the imagination. To create a green space is to go to a place conducive to personal development. A place of harmony and well-being. Gardening is practiced in joy, friendship, and sharing.
Gardening also offers the opportunity to get involved as an active citizen in order to participate in environmental protection. For example, by reducing food waste, avoiding overexploitation of natural resources and reducing waste-related nuisances. Gardening, a citizen approach.
Considered a wellness activity, gardening also brings a number of health benefits:
Physical activity at a pace appropriate to the physical and mental abilities of the elderly.
A space of conviviality where mutual aid and exchanges are source of improvement of social relations.
A place conducive to personal development.
An activity that stimulates the brain and promotes memory.
A beneficial practice against stress
A public health action.
You will find that the benefits of gardening are not limited to mental and physical health, but also to the quality of the living environment. Seniors who are gardeners feel they are useful and recognized. They also feel that they are contributing to the realization of a common good because they know that their children and grandchildren will be able to enjoy this oasis of greenery. Gardening also helps build self-esteem.
Gardening also brings environmental benefits:
Reduction of pollution due to transport (no long-distance transport for gardening products)
Decrease in dependence on food industry
Reducing food waste
Improved soil quality once plants have been removed and waste has been landfilled or composted
Reduced environmental impact of intensive agriculture on land.
Biodiversity, a public good
Maintaining a garden is a unique opportunity to help safeguard biodiversity. Cultivated plants are often very varied and representative of a great genetic diversity. Most of the cultivated plants have disappeared from nature and survive only thanks to human intervention.
In the garden, plants can support practices that we can no longer impose on them in nature: seeding in series, regular maintenance, etc. They are therefore particularly important for the preservation of biodiversity.
Urban agriculture (and peri-urban?)
Family gardens represent urban agriculture, which preserves biodiversity and allows people to live from their work outside today’s capitalist system. This urban and peri-urban agriculture represents one of the points of decline in which we want to engage.
Family gardens are also a source of income for families who benefit from them. When they grow their gardens, they don’t have to pay as much for the food they eat. The production of fruits and vegetables, aromatic herbs, flowers and medicinal plants is also a supplement to the income from their activities in the city.
If family gardens could be expanded to include more urban agriculture, they could be the basis for healthy, quality food for all. This urban agriculture would also be a source of income for many people and would allow a wide variety of people to live from their work in the city.
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