Similar to Nature + Animal Therapy, our Horticulture Therapy program emphasizes the benefits of nature specifically through gardening.
Horticulture Therapy provides individuals the opportunity to interact with and observe the beauty of life's ups and downs - how nature can heal itself and continue on, despite whatever setbacks may have been encountered. Horticulture Therapy has been proven to reduce stress, improve memory and cognitive abilities, improve social skills, increase independence, develop positive self-esteem, increase management of difficult emotions, develop a stronger sense of purpose, increase observation skills, and encourage creativity.
In addition to the numerous therapeutic benefits, Horticulture Therapy also emphasizes valuable life skills: the importance of commitment to a living organism, the ability to cope with successes and failure, and the capacity to develop problem-solving skills in the midst of many choices.
While Horticulture Therapy is time intensive, nothing compares to the immense gratification that comes from seeing creations grow and even having the ability to harvest and eat what's been planted!
Our Horticulture Therapy activities include: designing a garden plot, digging soil, planting seedlings, weeding garden beds, watering plants, trimming leaves, and harvesting herbs, vegetables, and flowers.