The surprising health benefits

The surprising health benefits of gardening

Whether you’re growing fruit and veggies, flowers or succulents, getting your green thumb on can have a surprising number of health benefits for you and your family.

Stay fit and active in the garden

Depending on the size of your garden, maintaining it can be also be a great way to be physically active. This could be as strenuous as mowing the lawn, or as gentle as getting a good stretch and practice stabilising yourself while kneeling, sitting or reaching. In fact, gardening is a recommended activity as it can encourage the use of many motor skills, improve endurance and strength and keep you moving.

Eat your greens

Do you have a picky eater at your dinner table? Kids who are picky eaters may be keener to try new foods that they’ve helped to grow. Watching the plants sprout and grow and waiting until fruit and veggies are ripe and ready to eat can help build their enthusiasm and excitement about healthy foods. The effect works on everyone, not just those with hardto-please tastes. Growing your own fruit, vegetables and herbs will encourage you to eat seasonally, add more variety to your diet, encourage you to prepare homemade healthy dishes and learn to appreciate fresh produce.

Understand seasonality

These days, we can buy pretty much any fruit and vegetable we want from the supermarket, at any time of year. But eating seasonally has important benefits for our bodies. Different fruits and vegetables are “in-season” at different times throughout the year. For example, asparagus and apricots grow in spring and summer, while Brussels sprouts get going in winter. Eating seasonally can keep healthy eating exciting by encouraging you to try new recipes using in-season produce. You will also get a wider variety of different coloured produce, providing nutritious vitamins and minerals in your diet throughout the year as the produce you eat changes with the seasons. Find out what’s in season at different times of the year in Queensland using the Healthier. Happier. Fruit and Veggie Seasonality Charts [PDF 369KB] and ask about the ideal planting times for your area at your local garden centre or nursery.

Relax and meditate

Gardening is also a great way to relax, providing opportunities to still the mind and get away from the busyness of everyday life. There is even evidence to suggest that gardening can help ease symptoms of mental illnesses like depression and anxiety. Whether you’re gardening by yourself, or getting the whole family involved, it’s a great way to spend some time outdoors, away from screens and to-do lists, and engage with nature. From repetitive tasks like weeding that provide opportunity for meditation, to practising patience while waiting for plants to grow, gardening is a great exercise for your mind as well as your body.

Breathe easier

Gardening doesn’t have to be an outdoor activity – there are many varieties of plants that can be grown inside, too. As well as making rooms look nice, indoor plants can help improve air quality in enclosed spaces. Some studies also suggest that indoor plants can boost the concentration and focus of office workers. Not all plants will grow well indoors, so you’ll need to research which varieties will grow well in the lighting and temperature of your room.

Things to keep in mind when starting out

Different fruits and vegetables grow best at different times of the year. The Healthier. Happier. website has articles on what plants to grow during different seasons and a guide to easy grow-your-own healthy foods. If you’re planting an edible garden, remember that not all plants are safe to eat. Make sure you plant non-toxic varieties, checking at your local garden store if you’re unsure. Don’t use chemical sprays or fertilisers on your edible garden. Always wear gloves when working with plant material, soil and fertilisers, and be sure to wash your hands when you’re finished. When working outside, remember to be safe in the sun by wearing a broad-brimmed hat and protective clothing, wearing sunglasses, using a broad spectrum SPF 30 or higher sunscreen, working in the shade when possible and drinking plenty of water. Some councils and community groups offer gardening workshops, or set up community gardening sites, to help locals learn about gardening and growing edible plants. You can also find more information about starting a garden on the Better Health website and from this list of links on the Healthier. Happier. website.

www.health.qld.gov.au

If there is a positive spin to additional lockdowns across the country due to COVID infections, it is the opportunity to spend more time in the garden. The past 18 months have reinforced the positive benefits that are gained from tending to plants, regardless of whether you have a few indoor plants on a balcony or care for a large garden. It’s a great time, heading into spring and summer, to revisit the health benefits of the garden.

www.seasol.com.au

Sunny days are beneficial to us and the garden. This is the time to find a warm spot in the sun, soak up some Vitamin D for a few minutes, enjoy the health benefits away from the stresses of life, and plan to get stuck into a few ‘pick me up’ projects, whether it’s for 5 to 10 minutes or an entire afternoon in the garden. There are many simple gardening tasks that can be completed in a short space of time. Consider sweeping paths, watering pot plants, deadheading flowers, pulling a few weeds or harvesting edible produce from the vegie patch. If you have the time and are looking for a project, consider brightening up an outdoor entertaining area with a few pots of colourful flowers or fragrant herbs. Petunias, snapdragons or marigolds add vibrant coolours and grow well in pots through the warm months of the year. For herbs, potted options include basil, mint, parsley, thyme or rosemary. When potting up plants use a good quality potting mix such as Seasol Advance Potting Mix and select containers with drainage holes in their base. Once the plants are in, water them in with Seasol then liquid feed every 2 to 4 weeks with PowerFeed All Purpose including Natives. To keep the flowers coming and the herbs growing, deadhead flowers and harvest herb foliage regularly while enjoying time in the garden.

Located at historic RAAF Base Point Cook, the birthplace of the Royal Australian Air Force, the RAAF Museum is home to an amazing range of beautifully preserved historic military aircraft.

Here you will find a treasure house of priceless artefacts and fascinating stories of past deeds, giving visitors an understanding of the rich history and traditions of this arm of the Australian Defence Force. Our Heritage Gallery incorporates multimedia technology and hands-on experiential activities to take the visitors through time from the Australian Flying Corps operating during World War l through to the RAAF’s peacekeeping and civil aid missions to the present day. The displays are augmented by a large variety of historic aircraft from the entire 99 year history of the RAAF. Additionally, visitors are also treated to an opportunity to see the Museum’s Restoration Hangar, where staff and volunteers are currently rebuilding a World War ll Mosquito reconnaissance aircraft and a DH60 Gypsy Moth training aircraft.

Models, books, patches, clothing and mementos can be purchased at the Museum shop.

Due to COVID-19, please check our website and Facebook page for reopening and booked attendance requirements.

Tel: (03) 8348 6040 Email: RAAF.MuseumInfo@defence.gov.au Web: www.airforce.gov.au/raafmuseum Facebook: www.facebook.com/RAAF.Museum