Several years ago, I was having lunch with my sister-in-law. Somehow the subject of gardening came up, and I casually mentioned that I talk to my plants when I’m gardening. I confessed to saying things like, “You’ll feel better now that you’ve had a haircut,” or “You needed a new home, didn’t you?”
She looked at me as if I had just sprouted feathers. “But they’re just plants!” she said, disapprovingly. “Yes, but they’re my plants,” I responded. “I take care of them, they’re like friends.” Our discussion of gardening had reached a dead end, and we moved on to something less contentious, probably politics.
I was reminded of this conversation recently by an article in The New York Times about the increasing demand among “wellness-minded” millennials for greenery in their living and working spaces. I love taking care of my garden, but I hadn’t thought so much about the flip side of this relationship.
Plants, unlike books, do more than simply furnish a room. The Times article featured a woman (aptly named Summer Raynes Oakes), who began collecting plants in her Brooklyn apartment when she felt lonely after her roommate moved out. What started as a single fiddle leaf ficus in her spare bedroom has grown into a veritable forest of roommates. “I saw how much energy and life the plants brought to the space,” she said. And they don’t leave dirty dishes in the sink!
Oakes built a greenery wall in her bedroom that is like a planter turned on its side. In her living room, she has a hanging garden with Mason jars fastened to boards by hose clamps. She transformed a closet into a kitchen garden filled with edible plants including salad greens, pineapple plants and curry leaves.
Oakes’ indoor gardens are irrigated by 150 feet of hose that runs from pipes under her kitchen sink. To avoid leaking water into the apartment below, she fortified her bedroom wall and installed gutters to collect excess water. She spends about 30 minutes a day taking care of her indoor arboretum.
Studies have shown that indoor plants provide more than aesthetic benefits. According to Greenery NYC’s founder, Rebecca Bullene, who spoke with the Times, plants make indoor spaces healthier to inhabit. They reduce stress by boosting serotonin levels. And they purify the air by dissolving volatile airborne chemicals.
Employers are also catching on to this trend, adding greenery to workspaces to attract and retain young employees. One 20-something-year-old woman who works in a plant-filled office, told the Times, “I love that when I look up from my work, all I see is green. I feel happier just looking at them.” I certainly feel happier looking out at my perennial borders, no matter how bedraggled they might appear.
People want more nature in their lives. It’s tough for people who don’t have the great outdoors at their doorsteps. I’m sure my readers are tired of me saying how fortunate we are to live in the Pioneer Valley, where we are surrounded by nature every day. This year, I am going to pay more attention to the enormous gifts that my plants give to me. It’s a matter of asking not only what you can do for your plants, but what they can do for you.
On March 31, 10 a.m. to 1 p.m. at Tower Hill Botanic Garden in Boylston, Christie Higginbottom will give a presentation on seed starting techniques and which plants will most benefit from a head start indoors. Participants will sow two flats to take home. Cost: Members: $35/nonmembers: $45 For more information and to register, go to towerhillbg.org.
On March 31, 10 a.m. to noon at Berkshire Botanical Garden in Stockbridge, join Massachusetts state Beekeeper Ken Warchol for an in-depth lecture on spring management of honey bee hives. This lecture will focus on how to manage spring hive population build-up, feeding, dividing, pest monitoring and protection and, most importantly, how to prevent swarming. For beekeepers, this program will provide critical information and timing of important management techniques to get the honey season off to a positive start. Following this class, participants are welcome to stay to meet and discuss beekeeping with others. Warchol is a 6th-generation beekeeper and former teacher whose lectures are enjoyed by expert and novice beekeepers alike. He has previously served as a Massachusetts State Bee Inspector.
We depend on local populations of insect pollinators for most seed and fruit production in agriculture, horticulture and plants in the wild. Come learn about the diversity of plant species that appeal to these important insects throughout the growing season. The Hitchcock Center for the Environment in Amherst is hosting a two-part workshop on attracting pollinators to the garden. On April 5, 6:30 to 8:30 p.m., Tom Sullivan of Pollinators Welcome of Montague will give a lecture about garden design with pollinators in mind. Sullivan will focus on the most attractive pollinator-friendly plants and where they grow best in the landscape. He will follow up with links to key information to further your research and pollinator attracting success.
On April 7, 9:30 a.m. to 12:30 p.m., Sullivan will lead a design planning meeting for the new Hitchcock Center gardens. Participants will learn about and inspect the site, refer to what was discussed in the pollinator-friendly plants presentation, and then try their hands at designing bee and butterfly meadow gardens that complement the building. Cost for lecture: Members $10/Non-members $15: Cost for the garden planning meeting: Members $15/Non-members $20
Speaking of contemplative gardening, Berkshire Botanical Garden and Kripalu Center for Yoga & Health are offering a five-day exploration of the intersection of gardening activities and mindfulness practice April 22-26. The program will include daily workshops on basic gardening skills, walking tours of the Kripalu campus and Berkshire Botanical Garden, meditation classes focused on mindfulness practices and gentle group yoga and movement sessions.
The program will take place at Kripalu in Stockbridge. Cost: $349. For more information and to register, go to: Kripalu.org.
Mickey Rathbun can be reached at mickey.rathbun@gmail.com.