Start gardening and build a life of self-sufficiency, sustainability, empowerment, and healthier eating habits.
Ah, gardening — the art of coaxing stubborn little seeds to life. If you've ever found solace in soil-covered hands and the sweet scent of blooming success (or near-success), you're not alone. In this article, we’ll explore the wonderful world of gardening, where veggies, fruits, and weeds unite to provide nutrition, food security, and some occasional frustration.
If you’re looking for a home gardening introduction, or information on growing your own food for beginners, make sure you check out our guide to gardening.
And now, let’s look at those gardening benefits.
What are the benefits of gardening?
Let’s dive right in — 20 advantages of home gardening.
1. Improved nutrition
When you grow your own food, you can choose to eliminate GMOs, toxic chemical sprays, and synthetic fertilizers. Home-grown organic produce has higher nutritional content, tastes better, and reduces exposure to harmful chemicals.
2. Self sufficiency
Grow your own food regardless of supply chain issues and other industrial farm hiccoughs — and reduce your reliance on external food sources as you foster a self-sufficient lifestyle.
3. Farm-to-table meals
Upgrade all your meals when a variety of fresh produce is available for the picking just outside your door.
4. Bartering
Trade fresh produce with your gardening neighbors to increase the variety of food you have available. In really hard times, trade home grown veggies for other staples you need — people who haven’t taken time to put in a garden will be grateful for the fresh food.
5. Sustainable living
Gardeners typically recycle and reuse in a lot of ways that others don’t. Food waste and paper are composted, and other “useless” items are often turned into raised garden beds or water capture systems.
See how sustainable gardening can be in Huw Richards’ book, Grow Food for Free.
6. Preparedness
This goes right along with self sufficiency. Cultivating a garden hones your survival skills, preparing you for unexpected scenarios where food scarcity could be a real concern.
7. Income
Many gardeners sell off their excess. Fresh produce can be sold from home, at farmer’s markets, or in little roadside stands. Some people make a solid income by selling produce while others only make a bit of side income. You decide how far you want to take it.
8. Food security
Home gardening and food security go hand in hand. What is food security? It’s the ability to access enough healthy food — reliably. It also takes into account affordability. Gardens can be grown consistently and for very little money, making it ideal to improve food security.
9. Food storage
When you harvest your garden, you have access to nutritious food that can be stored for later use. You can try drying some of your fruits and veggies, canning them, or freeze-drying (if you have access to a freeze dryer). You can also turn them into soups or stews and can them as ready-to-eat meals. For a great resource on canning, check out the Ball Complete Book of Home Preserving.
10. Empowerment
Successfully turning a few seeds into a full garden salad is empowering, not only because you’ve been able to see the plant grow, but because now you know you can feed yourself and reduce or eliminate your need for supermarket produce.
11. Seed sharing
Harvest your own seeds and share them or trade them with other gardeners in your area. Some people even make a business of this by selling harvested seeds online.
12. Savings
When you can grow enough of your own food, not only do you decrease your dependence on commercial foods, you’re also able to cut back on the money you spend on commercially produced food.
13. Natural medicine
Grow your own medicine (chamomile, mint, echinacea, calendula, and ginger) and treat everything from sleep issues to digestive problems while protecting against illness in the form of immune support.
Learn more about natural medicine with The Herbal Medic by Sam Coffman and The Good Living Guide to Natural and Herbal Remedies by Katolyn Yardley.
14. Problem solving skills
Dealing with garden pests, diseases, and struggling plants challenges your problem-solving skills — and fosters resilience and adaptability.
15. Aromatherapy
Grow the right plants (lavender, mint, rosemary, and thyme) and you can enjoy a variety of healing and relaxing benefits.
If you’re interested in learning more about aromatherapy gardening, check out Essential Aromatherapy Garden: Growing and Using Scented Plants and Herbs by Julia Lawless.
16. Stress relief
Beyond aromatherapy, there’s something about connecting with the soil that naturally reduces stress — look up “grounding.” This is especially important to remember when society collapses and stress reaches an all-time high.
17. Fresh air and sunshine
We’re talking vitamin D and good, clean H2O. You know, the essentials for maintaining your health. Gardening can help remind you to step outside and get your daily dose.
18. Physical activity
A sedentary lifestyle is key to disease and illness. Improve your physical activity and experience the joys of raising that plump watermelon from a single black seed.
19. Education
Gardening is a continual learning opportunity. This education includes soil economics, weather predictions, dealing with temperamental plants, and planning meals around crop failures or successes. Knowledge is the most important thing you can stock up on for emergencies.
20. Heart health
Keep a healthy heart when you’re active and working in the soil. Robert Hutchins, MD, MPH explains that gardening is good for your heart. “There are physical benefits from doing the manual labor of gardening. It’s hard work to garden, and it provides some cardiovascular benefit.”
Why is gardening a beneficial hobby?
First off, we don’t necessarily see gardening as a simple “hobby.” And though we’ve already covered many benefits, let’s break it down into a few simple statements:
Gardening fosters stress relief, offers physical activity and exercise, and provides a creative outlet.
Growing your own produce promotes self-sufficiency, sustainability, and healthier eating habits.
Engaging with nature enhances mental well-being and learning opportunities about ecosystems.
Gardens beautify spaces, attract wildlife, and contribute to biodiversity.
Gardening encourages problem-solving skills when dealing with pests and diseases.
Ultimately, gardening nurtures a sense of accomplishment, connecting individuals to the cycles of growth and life while fostering a deeper appreciation for the environment and the power of nurturing life.
Start planning out your home garden, and check out these books. We’ve found them to be invaluable references!
