Boost Your Health with Gardening: How This Simple Hobby Enhances Physical Fitness and Wellbeing
Gardening combines physical activity and mental engagement, making it a fantastic hobby that could benefit your health positively in a variety of ways.
Legal & General are providing insights into the benefits of gardening, and why this activity can be great to incorporate into your life.
When it comes to the physical benefits, there are several ways gardening can help:
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Burn Calories: An hour of weeding can burn between 200 and 400 calories. Digging, planting, weeding, and general garden tidying are rigorous activities. Engaging in these tasks for an hour can significantly improve your physical health.
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Weight loss. Gardening is a physical activity, and everything from turning compost to raking requires physical exertion. A 2020 study conducted by Oxford University suggested that gardening had a significantly positive effect on BMI reduction, pointing to the benefits of this activity.
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Lower blood pressure. Engaging in regular physical activity can help lower blood pressure. Spending just 30 minutes most days of the week doing moderate activities in the garden can be the lifestyle change needed to control high blood pressure and reduce the risk of hypertension.
In addition to this, there are some serious health benefits to adding gardening to your routine. For one, according to the British Medical Journal, gardening helps reduce the risk of heart attack or stroke among people over 60 by as much as 30%.
To add, the UK National Diet and Nutrition Survey states that 20% of us are vitamin D deficient, with the over 65s cited as one of the groups most at risk. Any activity that gets us outside can give us much needed sunlight.
Gardening can also allow you to grow your own food – and improve your diet as a result.
Furthermore, gardening can have several benefits to your overall wellbeing, such as a sense of purpose and a year-round routing of jobs to perform. Gardening also can open social opportunities, like joining local allotments.
Tips for getting the most out of gardening
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Understand Your Garden
Identify sunny and shady areas, noting changes throughout the day and seasons. Observe damp patches to select suitable plants.
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Test Your Soil
Determine soil pH to choose appropriate plants. Check what already grows well and use a pH test from a garden center.
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Plan Your Garden
Research before visiting the garden center. Consider plant heights, creeper locations, container placements, and focal points like ornaments or water features. Plan for year-round color.
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Prepare the Soil
Weed and dig out beds. Add mulch to retain moisture, prevent weeds, and improve soil health. Use raised beds if needed.
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Feed and Water Regularly
Water deeply once a week, focusing on root balls. Water in the evening during hot spells. Feed plants every fortnight in spring and summer, and more frequently for containers.
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Control Pests
Manage pests like aphids, slugs, and snails with pet- and child-friendly solutions. Use organic or environmentally safe products.
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Improve Soil Drainage
Enhance drainage in soggy areas with organic matter like compost or well-rotted manure to improve soil structure.
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Compost Waste
Compost kitchen scraps, eggshells, leaves, and paper. Learn composting guidelines and use matured compost as mulch.
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Prune Regularly
Prune to keep the garden tidy and encourage regrowth. Invest in quality secateurs and gloves. Research pruning times for different plants.
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Encourage Wildlife
Attract birds, bees, and butterflies with wild patches, ponds, bug hotels, and nectar-rich plants like Lavender, Fuchsia, Catmint, and Buddleia.
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Deadhead Spent Blooms
Remove withered blooms from perennials and annuals to promote new flower growth.
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Plant Spring Bulbs
Plant bulbs like daffodils, crocuses, tulips, and hyacinths before the first frost, at a depth of 2-3 times the bulb’s height.
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Create a Space for You
Design a personal spot to enjoy your garden. Choose areas with good lighting, plant visible borders, or hang a bird feeder to appreciate nature.
