40 St John Street Perth PH 1 5

40 St John Street, Perth PH 1 5 SP M 01738 624348 T 07770 724399 info@trellisscotland. org. uk www. trellisscotland. org. uk

Trellis Network -Pins show the geographical spread of the Trellis network of therapeutic gardening projects: -276 projects (Mar 2015) -Each helps ave 25 people/wk Trellis can help with • Exchanging knowledge, skills & good practice via network • Adaptive, accessible design/methods • Training, profile raising ©Trellis , Web shot of Trellis Projects Map at 21. 1. 10, 11. 30 GMT http: //trellisscotland. org. uk/projects

Reaching the groups that other activities can’t…

Couch Potatoes & Vitamin D • Scotland’s ‘sick man of Europe’ status: poor diet, sedentary population: 39% active • Vitamin D: in northern latitudes, cloud cover – daylight reduced. Deficiency implicated in most common health threats, e. g. depression • WHO predicts depression = 2 nd largest single cause of ill health by 2020 • Gardening – the antidote?

• Low self esteem/confidence • Lethargy, no motivation – reduced physical activity – cycle? • Anxious, tense, fearful? • Negative, pessimistic • Sleepy or unable to sleep • No appetite or comfort eat • Uninspired • Need treats – sugary or salty food? • No will to cook - Fast food? • Feel the world’s against me • Low desire to go outside? How do you feel when you’re at a low ebb? • Lose confidence in cooking • Go out for supplies less often • Isolate self from others? • Perhaps use addictive substances/medications that interfere with eating habits • Medication may alter sleepwake cycle, tastes or appetite and skin sensitivity to light • Guilt, self-loathing following lapses of will power or loss of routine e. g. over eating or failure to attend appointment • Money worries – affect what you can buy, food, transport etc

Health benefits of therapeutic gardening ‘I love it out here’ • Reduces stress - antidote to ‘speed’ culture • Outdoor green space exercise = sustainable • Solitude vs social • Literacy/numeracy improvements • Reminiscence work • Nurturing role – empowers? • Self esteem: plants respond, meaningful produce & being seen to be useful/contribute • Pride, creative • Flow activity • Daylight – vit D, serontonin, weight control • Fresh produce – incentive to healthy eating. • Focus on things bigger than/outside selves • Cycle of renewal – hope? • Cardio vascular work out with purpose

Research Evidence • Health effects of gardens valued in history: Egypt-court gardens for mental ill health, Japan, Monasteries for ill patients, 19 th century hospitals • Looking at plants: Flowering plants promote relaxation (EEG & EMG) Yamano et al 2004; Viewing plants reduces BP & HR Son et al 2004; Viewing plants improves EEG in schizophrenia Son et al 2004; Gardening reduces stress Unruh 2004. • Viewing nature scenes In few minutes: reduces emotion/psychological stress, fear, anger, sadness, BP, muscle tension, (Japan). • Gardens in hospitals: Improve mood, Reduce stress in patients, families & staff, Place of escape, Increase satisfaction - patients, families, staff. Biodiversity important. Concrete gardens don’t do this! Roger Ulrich, 2002 • Ornamental indoor plants: 270 patients randomised - Surgical recovery rooms: 8 species of plants during recovery. Reduced - use of analgesics, pain, anxiety, fatigue. Improved-physiology satisfaction with rooms SH Park, 2002, MD Kansas

Fruit – easy peasy lemon squeezy Advantages: • Easy to grow – seeds, cuttings • Forgiving – can provide a harvest in poor conditions • Sweet but not too sweet • No/little dirt factor • No/easy processing • Healthy sweet fix –snack sized portions produced when needed over a period • Most people like some fruit • Nostalgic for many. Connections to happy times – summer holidays or berry picking • Flexible levels – simple/low maintenance e. g. strawb/rasp/ blueberry, grafting for the brave!

Harmful Ideation/obsessions • Food as poison? • Eating disorders – need professional help • Politics – GM, big business: good/bad Turning this around: • Fruit carving arts – beauty/celebration of food, learning projects: study food industry - more rounded political awareness/ tempering extremes • Modelling healthy eating attitudes • Focus on growing – pride/ curiosity may do the rest

No Hidden Ingredients • Complete control, transparency • Demystifying food production, group exploration of processes • Education potential – botany, cultivation techniques, environmental cycles, industry, soil science, mycology/ compost • Choice/control over what you put into your crops • Reasons for additives – informed choice/balance • Comparative culture – mini trial plots? • Competition vs buddying/plot sharing – what works for you?

Speedy Crops for Motivation #1: Rocket, the clue’s in the name

More Speedy Crops • Radish – one 18 day variety • Peas esp for tips, beans too • Sunflower sprouts – before real leaves appear, let a few grow to bloom • Spicy saladini – mix mustards, pak choi, mizuna, mibuna – long season • Spring onions • First early potatoes • Micro herbs/greens • Baby spinach, chard, amaranth, sorrel • Trays of salad leaves from store

Soil-free sowing • • • Growing cress in a bag –botany in slo-mo Sprouting other species: jar/saucer or kit Rooting cuttings in a jar or in sand Avocado stone over a jar of water Epiphytes, orchids or air plants (not mostly edible but may trigger a passion for growing) • Mushroom logs • Ginger root sprouts

IN SUMMARY • Don’t assume people know how to sprout things: cover the basics in the nicest possible way. • Start small • Use fast-return crops for motivation • Don’t expect people to share your love of gardening, but use hooks (e. g. food, football colours, favourite landscapes/smells to entice others to join in. ) • Focus on group effort but ensure space/activity plan leaves space for solitary time. Tips from projects in our network • Exercise – plan a month of activities (e. g. 2 sessions a week) based on growing/tending. • Plan for bad weather contingencies and also alternatives for those who really don’t want to do the planned session. Plan the tools and supplies you’ll need. • Consider access and adaptations for those with bad back etc. • Be ready to throw it all away as your planning should be done with your group. Making this plan, however, should be a good exercise in preparing for any growing programme.

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Ninewells Community Garden

Don’t be a Stranger! Contact the Trellis office: 40 St John Street Perth PH 1 5 SP 01738 624348 www. trellisscotland. org. uk info@trellisscotland. org. uk Use the Trellis query service, follow us on Twitter, FB, Pinterest, Linked. In

Activity Ideas • Deconstruct a favourite food e. g. baked beans; investigate ingredient/recipe origins & cultivation. • Comfort & convenience foods – can we grow it better/tastier/cheaper? • Square foot gardening • Study wildlife contribution pollination, pest control • Surprising foods & different plant parts e. g. flowers in salad, seeds, roots, tips. • Team growing e. g. Each - different element for a dish – herbs, tomatoes for sauce, beans. • Alternatives & new tastes e. g. Sweet cicely for sugar, bitter leaves.

Garlic & other subterranean species • Easy to handle, can be planted on a tabletop, grown/started on windowsill, patio, back doorstep, in shopping bag • Ramsoms, foraging • Tubers - potatoes, beets and carrots, salsify, scorzonera. • Idea of discovery – hidden treasure • Conversation points – potato famine, pommes de terre, saffron crocuses.

Easy/cheap ways to grow your own • Newspaper pots, toilet roll inners, old food containers, plastic spoons & strips from yogurt pots as labels. • Saving seed from fruit/veg – goji berries, apples • Foraging? For seed as well as produce • Free compost – council sites/make your own • Windowsill plantations • Sprouting pulses from the food cupboard – chick peas • Share allotments/community garden plots • Plant in an eggshell • Plant in an old tattie sack/Ikea bag/oil or soup tin • Trade with neighbours • Save your own seed • Seed Swaps – community events and online

Therapeutic Gardening Settings • • • dedicated therapeutic garden projects hospitals , GP’s surgeries nursing homes/residential homes /day centres Schools, FE colleges, Churches secure settings skills centres, community centres community land/allotment sites/public parks Private homes, Housing associations Farms, smallholdings Residential communities

Trellis Quiz How would you adapt. . . • Planting a container – for a person in a wheelchair? • Watering - for a person with poor upper body strength? • Pruning – for someone with arthritis in the hands?