Horticultural Therapy Veterans Greenhouse The Veterans Greenhouse is located at 151 Knollcroft Road, Building 47, Basking Ridge, (Lyons) NJ, 07939 The Veterans Greenhouse can be contacted at (973) 270-4795
Gardening is well-known to be able to keep you in shape, but is often overlooked for its abilities to keep your brain in shape. Gardening alleviates severe mental disorders such as posttraumatic stress disorder. Such a hobby can be appealing for various reasons such as harvesting your own meals to simply socializing with others who enjoy the same activity. Horticultural therapy is a practice that has been around for ages but has finally started to grow in popularity after World War II, when used as part of the rehabilitation for war veterans. Gardening provides veterans and their families with the opportunity to take part in a peaceful activity and focus on stress relief. Mental health benefits of horticultural therapy include a reduction of anxiety and an increased sense of
community, alertness, and cognitive abilities. In nature, those who are working toward recovery, are able to have time for reflection in a soothing environment, which is much different from a traditional therapy environment such as an office or hospital. Those who go into gardening are able to provide their own fruits and vegetables, which helps to provide a sense of accomplishment. At the Veterans Greenhouse, our combat veterans are a part of a work restoration effort and employment service managed by MTI Integrated Business Development Inc. MTI is a nonprofit organization whose purpose is to create business opportunities for veterans with barriers to employment that stem from military trauma.