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The grounded gardeners

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24.01.2022 In honour of mental illness health week, here is some virtual #ecotherapy - some photos, mostly of flowers! I have collected over the last 12 months or so. Looking at images of nature, or even green painted walls, is still said to have calming effects on the mind. I certainly felt a lot calmer after scrolling through my millions of plant photos :D

22.01.2022 My client’s dog Bobby has an awesome approach to gardening - dozing in the dappled shade of a mandarin tree while the gardening work goes on around him.

22.01.2022 I like zooming in on plants. Not seeing them as plants but instead looking at the rich patterns they create. Any guesses as to what plants are in the photos?

22.01.2022 My darlings before being planted out in a client's garden. 1 x plumeria rubra (frangipani), 4 x strelitzia reginae, 4 x pepperomia obtusifolia, 4 x nandina domestica 'lemon lime', 5 x carissa grandiflora

20.01.2022 Health warning: the activities described in this post are highly addictive. Proceed with caution and a high degree of self awareness. With spring pretty much having arrived here in the subtropics I have the spent the last several weeks pruning to get things in shape. I LOVE PRUNING. I find it very relaxing and extremely satisfying. And there is a type of pruning for every mood. Angry, frustrated and over it: get out the electric hedger and cut something right back, like an ov...ergrown jasmine vine. You could also try a pruning saw on some overgrown viburnums or tibuchinas. Anxious or stressed: prune some hydrangeas. You need to cut every branch to just above the first set of matching nodes. In a slump or a bit down: grab the shears and and trim a round topiary back into shape. The work isn't too physical, the shears make a lovely clipping sound and round things always lift my spirits. Cheerful and breezy: tip pruning - gaily snip the tops off your murrayas or durantas to promote bushier growth. Even writing about pruning makes me feel good. "Pruning your way to better health" pretty catchy name for a book right? Remember you read it here first.

18.01.2022 I've lost another few days of my life down the rabbit hole which is Website Design! But I am much happier with this iteration. So I may not have many clients ... but I have a zippy looking webpage which is surely more than halfway to success. Right? Check me out at www.thegroundedgardeners.com

18.01.2022 Let’s do the thyme walk again Did you know there are over 300 varieties of thyme! I thought I was pretty sophisticated when I added lemon thyme to my herb plot. But it seems I have a little way to go. Imagine an old country lane, gently curving and swaying, widening and then narrowing, before widening again. It’s a dirt path, a bit muddy at the moment, with heavy stone pavers of all different shapes and sizes pressed into the mud. And there are over 12 varieties of thyme th...at have sprung up between the pavers, that have crept in from the meadow on the side of the path. The thyme crawls as far as it can over the pavers. You take your shoes off and walk along the thyme path. Your feet crunch on the carpet of thyme and releases a variety of earthly scents from lemon to lavender to a nutty smell. Thyme walks are a beautiful example of a potential feature in contemplative gardens. I only learnt about them recently when reading about Prince Charles’ rather spectacular gardens at Highgrove. The photo is of the thyme walk at Highgrove (photo sourced from https://www.highgrovegardens.com/pages/thyme-walk) it’s a little more lavish than what I described to you, but gives you an idea :)

16.01.2022 I've fallen in love with Calendulas (calendula officinalis, also known as marigold, although perhaps not the variety you're familiar with). They are such a happy and easy-going plant. Their flowers re-open each day, unfurling further as the sun rises higher in the sky. I pick the fully bloomed flowers at around 330pm each day and lay them out in my butler's pantry to dry. Calendula is known for relieving cuts, grazes and minor wounds, treating skin conditions and improving the digestive system. Once dried I will use them in teas and home-made skin products. Given the calendulas have completely taken over my 'vegetable' patch, and I am getting at least 15 flowers per plant, I think I will be drinking calendula tea for years to come.

16.01.2022 I’m in good company when the ABC is also introducing Therapeutic Horticulture! Seems Lamb’s ears are the way to go

15.01.2022 I've been listening to a lot of American-based podcasts lately. Lots of them talk about what "season" of life you're in. I generally roll my eyes and think it's an annoying, too-American, new-age, self-help phrase. But with Spring just a few days away I actually started thinking about seasons. Spring in the garden is a time of transformation and rejuvenation, colour and freshness. Trees which have been dormant during winter stretch their spindly branches towards the sun. Tin...y, green buds are blooming on stems, twigs and branches. Each afternoon I check the buds on my orchids to see how much they've grown during the day. I wonder what lessons I can take from nature to apply to my own life for the start of Spring. How can I rejuvenate and transform my life and experiences? Maybe I should enrol in dance or art classes to shrug off some of the deflation that has crept in over the winter? Or maybe I should read more widely to stretch my thoughts and aspirations towards the light? Or maybe I shouldn't write any lists, nor make any plans and leave my body and mind to its natural rhythms, having he patience to simply observe, and not control, the changes. Much like I do with my orchid.

11.01.2022 Possums: 2, Me: 0 Pre-possums these were violas, geraniums and dill. Post-possums they are sad little green stalks, if that.

10.01.2022 I've spent the last couple of hours fiddling with this business page - changing profile pictures, updating cover photos etc as I prepare to properly launch the grounded gardeners as a business. I was so excited to have come up with a concept I was passionate about, and what I considered a pretty cool business name. But I had underestimated what it takes to get a business off the ground. So this is mach 2. Wish me luck! And after this much time fiddling on fb I am in desperate need of time in the garden or nature. I am aware of the irony of using social media to promote a business which is all about getting away from social media! So stop reading this post and get outside.

09.01.2022 So, what exactly does this whole Horticultural Therapy business mean? We've just got on top of Mindfulness and now we are reading about healing gardens, horticultural therapy, green prescriptions and forest bathing. Lucky you have me to explain it all (or at least some of it) so you can impress all your friends at your next cocktail party. This is likely to go over a few posts as I realise a single textbook monologue on the therapeutic benefits of gardens does not make for th...e most engaging of fb posts ... Like Mindfulness (and the health benefits of turmeric ...) Therapeutic Horticulture is not new. We did not invent the concept. And it is not complex. The Old Testament talks about pleasure gardens (the Persians nailed this style). Monks in the Middle Ages created monastic gardens with herbs and vegetables as places of productivity and relaxation. My view of Therapeutic Horticulture has three arms; 1. Contemplative Gardens - spaces designed to make you feel relaxed and calm. Engages all the senses 2. Medicinal / Healing Gardens - gardens that grow medicinal herbs and vegetables from Chinese Medicine, Ayurverda, Homeopathy, Naturopathy, Essential Oils 3. Gardening - the act of gardening itself which encourages exercise and builds social connections and communities. Tune in next week for Part II of this very informative and engaging series! :)

08.01.2022 What images come to your mind when you hear the phrase "Forest Bathing"? For me, this phrase is incredibly visually emotive. I imagine ancient, gnarled tree trunks soaring intho the sky, moss covered rocks, damp leaves underfoot and lush, green fern fronds covering the forest floor. Forest Bathing is a translation of the Japanese word (of course!) shinrin-yoku. The concept is gaining a lot of popularity as a way to help people cope better with the mounting pressures and stre...sses of life. The UK has recently introduced green prescriptions where doctors can prescribe that patients spend time in nature for x amount of hours over x amount of days. Green prescriptions are based on the ever growing body of studies showing the healing effects of nature for health concerns such as chronic pain, depression, PTSD. I found myself in need of some forest bathing the other week so I headed out for a hike in Mt Mee. I let the forest absorb my questions and doubts. I looked intently at the intricate details of the golden banksia flower and rubbed my hands over the blanket of ferns. I'm a big fan of forest-bathing and need to prescribe myself some more of it.

03.01.2022 Hehehe - pretty cute.

02.01.2022 What a cliff-hanger I left you with! I tease you with a tantalisingly short introduction to Therapeutic Horticulture and then I don’t post anything for two weeks! But rejoice and be glad, for I am back with Part II of this saucy tale. My last post introduced the three arms of Therapeutic Horticulture. Today I will explain in more detail what the first arm, Contemplative Gardens, are all about. Contemplative gardens are spaces which have been designed to make you feel restful,... content and at peace. Below are just a few of the principles that should be included when designing and constructing Contemplative Gardens. They should include elements which appeal to all of the five senses; sound, taste, sight, touch and smell. Examples are: For sound: running water or wind chimes for sound For taste: vegetables you can pick and eat straight away such as cherry tomatoes or green beans For touch: include plants with a rich texture such as Lamb’s Ear (Stachys byzantina) or geraniums (pelargonium spp). Also think of touch underfoot such as pebble paths, wooden planks or fresh grass. For smell: the possibilities are endless! frangipanis, roses, magnolias, mint, rosemary, jasmine, murraya I have to stop myself now And nearly every garden, good or bad, engages the sense of sight. Obviously with contemplative gardens we are striving for good gardens! Paths should be wide enough for two people, in a wheelchair, to travel side-by-side. We want our contemplative gardens to foster companionship and community. If laying stone pavers carefully consider the spacing. Pavers closer together force people to slow down their pace. Pavers close together can be very frustrating when you are in a hurry, but why are you in a hurry in my Contemplative Garden? There should be several benches or chairs, with shade, to act as resting spots. Have some solo seats, so people can be by themselves and soak in the surrounds in their own time. And have other seats in groups so friends, or strangers, can gather and chat. Avoid fences and barriers discouraging people from engaging with your garden. You want to encourage a sense of freedom and exploration in your Contemplative Gardens. I feel relaxed already :) The photos are: close pavers in a residential garden in Brisbane, Lamb’s Ear plant and a peek at Elizabeth and Nona Evan’s Restorative Garden in Cleveland, USA.

01.01.2022 It took me over 12 months to convince my parents that therapeutic horticulture is not about growing marijuana. Or not for the most part anyway. But growing plants with medicinal or healing properties is definitely an element of therapeutic horticulture. Modern western society doesn’t have a great deal of knowledge or familiarity on using nature to heal but ancient traditional medicines such as Chinese Herbal Medicine, Ayurverda and Shamanic Healing (just naming the ones I am ...personally more aware of) have centuries of knowledge of the medicinal properties of wide range of plants. I am always keen to learn new things and I became very interested in learning a lot more about herbal medicines. I was in a second-hand bookshop and like a moth to a naked flame I was drawn to the beautiful hardcover book titled An introduction to Chinese Herbal Medicine. It was over 1,000 pages. And it was volume 1 of 10. I put the book back. It’s then that I decided I don’t need to have all the knowledge about medicinal plants. But I would love one day to work with some people who do and create a plant-based pharmacy open to the whole community. Photo 1: Calendula known for its anti-inflammatory properties. I mix dried calendula petals with olive oil and brown sugar to use as a face and body exfoliant. I also sprinkled it over the cream cheese frosting on a carrot cake. It looked fantastic, and may have had anti inflammatory properties for the gut! Photo 2: Feeling a little tender in the gut I went to my garden to see what I could brew. I put the sage leaves, lime peel and grated ginger into my teapot and poured over some boiling water.