Why Do We Garden - Research Paper Example

Why We Garden When we think of a garden, many ideas crop in our minds because we frequently interact with gardens in our lives. Indeed, a garden and gardening is a hobby or personal activity that involves people of all ages yet we do not give utmost concern towards understanding their meaning or their influence in our lives. Indeed, in America and by extension in the world, gardening is the most common hobby or personal activity. We can identify various gardens in America whose care is under people of distinct ages. In fact, it is amazing to realize that gardening is more popular than many major sporting activities in the U.S. Ideally, to get a clear understanding of gardening, it is necessary to study various books, follow given instructions, carryout research, and engage in practical gardening activities. Generally, gardening keeps our lives busy and satisfies our practical and emotional needs. However, the purpose of establishing a garden or gardening heavily relies on the gardener and most specifically their age. This paper defines a garden and establishes the fundamental reasons as to why we garden. In doing this, the paper addresses our need for botanical samples and defines the satisfaction we get from successful gardens and why we blame ourselves on failed gardens. In this context, the paper refers to English Garden, Organic Garden, and Zen Garden. Indeed, establishing a good garden is not an easy fete as there are numerous challenges relating to weeds among other factors. More so, the parents or guardians may tend to prevent their children from establishing gardens for fear of the health, physical, or even injurious risks involved. Notably, a garden may be a representation of our lives. Indeed, our lives may have several dimensions that define our mode of living depicting the several gardens that reflect our lives. Firstly, one of the gardens in our lives may involve our minds, which form part of our personal lives where we grow our aspirations, desires, and dreams. More so, the society may form a garden where the community grows and derives humanity. In addition, we can refer to our homes as another garden where we grow up and bring up our children. As such, a garden symbolizes a place of growing things and the art of growing things refer to gardening. However, in this context, we will address a garden and gardening within the realms of agriculture and plants. We therefore focus on where we grow, what we grow, and how we grow it. Notably, there is a big difference between the traditional and modern gardens and ways of gardening. Indeed, in the traditional set up, gardening involved following wandering cow paths. We can actually trace the history of ornamental gardens to the Egyptian paintings of 1500 BCE, which manifested lotus ponds and rows of cultivated acacias and palms. However, this has changed over time and within cultures from Zen gardens to beautiful rose gardens, from the elegant English gardens to the rock gardens (Pollan 1-2) and from the greenhouse/organic gardens to the rudimentary cactus gardens located within a high building. As such, we can establish significant differences from traditional gardening and modern gardening. However, in most cases, a garden is generally in a secluded place, and its main purpose is to derive pleasure and beauty. Ideally, gardens are synonymous in our lives and you can identify their uniqueness in appearance everywhere you go. Actually, different gardens bear unique characteristics, adopt distinct gardening techniques, and serve different purposes. Most, assuredly, the purposes of gardening are as unique as the gardener or the physical appearance of various gardens in the world. Furthermore, there is available information relating to gardens and gardening in various books and web sources. These sources enable different people in establishing successful gardens and carrying out gardening activities. A garden generally refers to an enclosed and privileged space out of doors where people of different ages grow various plants that relate to their purpose of gardening (Nollman 2-8). Indeed, children establish their own gardens to grow plants that entice them while adults may establish gardens to suit diverse purposes that may include health, pleasure among other reasons. Quite notable is the fact that their no standards measure for a garden and all factors withheld, the gardener reserves the right for determining the required size. More so, there is significant attachment between the gardener and the garden regardless of their age. In most cases, children establish their gardens in the backyards of the family house without informing their parents or guardians. They tend to use the unplanted ground between the hedge and the fence to establish a garden where they can find solace from the range of the adults. Notably, gardens established by children are significantly small and lack a defined plan. At the same time, adults can establish a rose garden, which is usually longer than that established by the children. The main aim of such a garden is to derive pleasure and requires ultimate care. A rose garde4n has beautiful flowers that derive beauty and a sweet scented atmosphere. More so, we have seen grandparents establish vegetable gardens to suit their health needs (Godman Web). Indeed, the aged derive a lot of pleasure (Nollman 2-8) from these vegetable gardens and they seemingly devote themselves to such gardens, as they grow older. A vegetable gardener has different vegetables that not only benefit the gardener but also the entire community. Furthermore, the gardeners take care of the ornamental gardens. The ornamental gardens derive pleasure to the gardener. On the other hand, we can refer to a Zen garden as a small piece of art representing a garden that we can keep peacefully inside the house. Notably, children are the most dominant users of a Zen garden. Moreover, we have an organic garden, which simply refers to the modern way of gardening that relies on the use of gardening or farming techniques that conserve the environment (Hamilton 1-6). The need for organic gardening came about because of increased challenges in the use of chemical pesticides, environmental pollution, and the resultant adverse effects on plants and animals cohabitating in the polluted environment. As such, organic gardening involves soil management, water management, and plant health including organic control of diseases (Hamilton 1-6). Indeed, the modern society and gardeners embraced organic methods in gardening where they apply them universally in establishing ornamental gardens, the wildlife gardens, vegetable gardens, the kitchen garden, or the rose gardens. Most assuredly, there have been numerous debates as to why we establish gardens and more so take part in gardening. However, it is quite clear that just like the garden and the gardener is unique in appearance so are the purposes for gardening. In fact, we can deduce that gardening enables us to reflect and consult with our inner selves by giving us a free opportunity to explore, discover, and express ourselves. This significantly helps us to gather inner peace and focus on the future with a fresh mind (Cock Web). At the same time, gardening emanates from our concern for the environment where many gardeners view their gardens as part of the ecosystem that we must conserve (Nollman 2-8). In this case, they establish gardens and take part in gardening for purposes of conserving the environment (Pollan 1-2). Fortunately, gardening is a practical activity that anybody in the family can enjoy regardless of their age. To the children and young adults, gardening is significant in teaching them noble skills that can boost their self-esteem. Naturally, being in a garden enables the gardener to develop positive feelings that would motivate their lives and derive future expectations (Cock Web). Furthermore, we engage in gardening for budgetary concerns where we seek to reduce the costs on buying foods or treating pollutants by conserving the environment through gardening (“Media Group” 1-5). Most importantly, we establish gardens and take part in gardening for our health concerns. This is because gardening promotes our health in diverse ways that may include lowering blood pressure, lowering cholesterol, and relieving stress. This we can derive from the vegetable gardens and other gardens that supply food to the community. Indeed, on consistent and frequent gardening, we can acquire a healthy living condition (Godman Web) by curbing health problems and providing significant physical exercises. More so, gardening helps us to deal with depression as it provides an environment that harbors positive feelings while allowing free expressions of our inner feelings. In addition, gardening is a physical endeavor that requires us to use muscles and resultant energy thus activating our bodies and encouraging metabolism, which promotes flexibility, growth, weight loss, burning of calories, and reducing muscle strains. At the same time, we derive a lot of motivation from the gardens as the sounds from the gardens, the sweet smell, and beautiful sights stimulate our moods and entice our emotions. Indeed, the gardens entice all our senses and thus motivate us to live (Cock Web). More so, by establishing gardens and engaging in gardening helps us to connect with the nature thus creating a natural feeling, which is very positive in our lives. Actually, in most cases, gardening reinstates forgotten memories due to the self-reflection (Pollan 1-2) it creates and equally reduces unwanted stress. However, many adults engage in gardening for purposes of gaining knowledge. This comes from the fact that gardeners tend to learn more for the gardening and equally crave to learn more from the gardening books and practical experiences. As such, gardens and gardening ultimately lead to discoveries and acquisition of knowledge. Indeed, the need to acquire knowledge and discover new benefits from gardening makes us want to gather botanical samples from other parts of the world. More so, a successful garden derives a lot of satisfaction as it generates a lot of pleasure, relieves stress, creates a positive feeling, and leads to a free self-reflection. As such, when plants die because of our negligence or inexperience, we take offense since the decision and urge to establish a garden and engage in gardening is unique and personal. Indeed, we are only finding it satisfying to harness that small slice of nature that a garden symbolizes, molding it into something that is born of our creative minds and industrious inclinations. Therefore, we can deduce that in establishing gardens and practicing gardening, we are looking for pleasure and the satisfaction in the sanctuary of gardening. More so, we can deduce that establishing a garden and the practical gardening is fundamental in our modern lives. However, it is quite challenging to carry out the research on why we garden. This is so because anybody regardless of age can establish a garden thus complicating the dynamics of the research. Indeed, the reasons for establishing a garden vary across all ages and thus there are no universal reasons that support the establishment of a garden. Moreover, the development in technology, which has led to changes in gardening, equally influences the research on gardens and gardening. In addition, the existence of different forms of gardens jeopardizes the study on gardens. As such, it is difficult to do a research on why we garden. Works Cited “Media Group.” Top 2011 Garden Trends: Gardening with a Purpose. 2011. Web. 21 May 2013. < http://www.virginiagardening.com/documents/GMGtrends11.pdf> Cock, Peter. Gardening: Good for our Soul. 2003. 21 May 2013. Godman, Heidi. Backyard gardening: grow your own food, improve your health. 9 June 2012. Web. 21 May 2013. < http://www.health.harvard.edu/blog/backyard-gardening-grow-your-own-food-improve-your-health-201206294984> Hamilton, Nick. Organic gardening techniques. New York: New Holland Publishers, 2009. Print. Nollman, Jim.Why We Garden: Cultivating A Sense Of Place. London: Sentient Publications, 2005. Print. Pollan, Michael. Second Nature: A Gardener's Education. New York: Grove Press, 2007. Print. Read More