 True story. For many years I hosted High School Seniors for a 6-week internship at the end of their senior year in my garden shop. During this time, I taught them a lot about horticulture and coordinated other opportunities for them to experience the world of gardening.
I was not naïve, the students who asked to do their senior internship were not necessarily interested in pursuing horticulture. In fact, many admitted they came to me because, “I heard you were nice”, it was local, and outside. Many other students opted for more corporate opportunities only to find they were relegated to filing and menial tasks. One of my favorite places to send the students for the day was to work with our local Garden Club. At the time, the club members were mainly senior women who had been gardening their whole life. They created gardens around our community. The students would return from a day of weeding, digging, planting, hauling, looking as if they were crossing the finish line of a marathon in last place. Their hair was meshed to their heads, sweat beading on their foreheads and they practically crawled to the desk to find their precious water bottles. “How did it go?” I would ask as they gulped the water down, not even turning in my direction to answer. I would wait for an answer and wait. Then I would say with a smile, “They beat your asses didn’t they?” Eventually, they would let the empty bottles fall to their laps and one by one answer, “Yeah! And they are all over eighty years old!” As it turns out, new research shows that gardening can enhance life satisfaction especially as we age. Ready to enhance your own satisfaction with life? If you aren’t already an avid gardener, maybe start with some simple, easy-to-grow plants this spring. I highly recommend creating a simple container filled with lettuce seeds. I also love planting snap peas, super easy, although they do need a trellis or something to grow up on. Looking for a pop of color? Pansies are plentiful this time of year and won’t die on you even if another dose of snow arrives or temperatures dip below freezing. As always, I encourage you to learn more from the many videos on The Nature Nurse™, PLLC youtube channel highlighting easy and inspiring ways to garden: Healthy Green Thumbs Playlist Create Your Own Cutting Garden Playlist So don’t be like Mick Jagger. Start gardening and get some satisfaction. Want to learn more about how connecting with nature can enhance your holistic health, and the health of our planet? Subscribe to our seasonal e-newsletter now on the homepage.
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 Ahh, Spring. The birds are singing their favorite songs, daylight is more plentiful, neighbors are coming out of the woodwork, and outdoor festivals are posting their upcoming events; there is so much new life!
As a kid, summer was my favorite season, as it is for many kids. No school, playing outside until late into the evening, ice cream trucks, long days at the pool or beach, hanging out with friends. As an adult, I have come to better appreciate and revere each season for what it brings, but Spring has definitely become my new favorite season. I love the vibrant energy, watching the plant life emerge from the earth, and being in awe of the magnificent way Mother Nature paints the landscape with various colors and shapes. I invite you to tap into this joy by enrolling in the Morning Nature Walk Program. While any day is a good day to begin the healthy practice of walking, Spring is a prime time. Some reasons are obvious, the weather is better, maybe we want to prepare for feeling better in lighter clothes or a bathing suit. The best reason, in my opinion, and the reason why this walking program is like no other is that in this program I outline, in detail how you can walk WITH Mother Nature, not just IN nature. Connecting with nature has so many holistic health benefits not only for us; but for our planet. The research is now flowing with support for this practice. Would you like to enhance your joy, improve your immune system, feel calmer, sleep better, be more creative, better able to focus, and more? Did you know that a recent study from Cambridge University found that taking an 11-minute brisk walk every day, or walking 75 minutes per week, will lower your risk of stroke, heart disease, and a number of cancers? Are you one of the many people who have awakened to the fact that we need to each take agency of our own health? There is no pill to magically fix many of the health problems that we can prevent in the first place. Spring into action now and enroll in the Morning Nature Walk Program: LINK You deserve to feel better in your own body.  We live in such a one-and-done disposable culture that even living plants have become disposable items. But, did you know that with proper care blooming plants will not only bloom again, but they will also bloom even more profusely as they age? By now, many people who purchased amaryllis bulbs and plants for the holiday season may find the flowers at the end of their bloom cycle. Here are some easy tips to help nurture them until next year so you can enjoy their flower show again!
Caring for plants that have completed their bloom cycle is another way to connect with our natural world. With a little patience, orchids, amaryllis, African violets, and many other plants can become part of the family. Here are some examples of my amaryllis bulb collection, some of which I have had for many years. Do you have a blooming plant that you would like to share? Post a picture on social media and tag @TheNatureNurse so I can share it. Have questions or comments? Please post those in the comment section below. Want to learn more about how you can enhance your relationship with our natural surroundings to optimize your whole being and become a more sustainable citizen? Sign up our seasonal newsletter on the homepage: www.TheNatureNurse.com.
 January is just around the corner and we all know what that means-time to decide on a New Year’s Resolution. Millions will flock to join a gym, enroll in a weight loss program, pledge to eat more vegetables, and have other health-related changes they want to make as they strive to be healthier. What if I told you there is one resolution that will help you enhance your whole being? Nature Connection. Yup, nature is the central pillar of health that not only impacts our holistic health, but the health of our planet. Setting an intention to connect deeper with our natural world will result in an astonishing number of benefits. What exactly does connecting with nature mean? It can be as simple as taking time to just go outside every day. On average Americans spend nearly 90% of their time indoors. Going outdoors and simply breathing in some fresh air, or gazing at the clouds passing by above you, can promote calmness, elevate joy, improve our ability to concentrate, help us sleep better, and combat loneliness, just to name a few benefits. You may be saying to yourself, wow that is awesome! Or perhaps you are more of a doubter and saying, it can’t do all that. The only way to know for sure is to try it and see if it works for you. This is why The Nature Nurse™, PLLC has created self-guided online programs to facilitate your deepening relationship with Mother Nature. My company also is now hosting in-person nature attunement retreats for women. These nature connection programs will teach you the latest research supporting that nature connection is an essential part of a healthy lifestyle. You’ll learn how to create a sustainable nature connection practice, as well as tips and resources to make this a New Year’s resolution you will be adhering to all year. Best of all, you will have the opportunity to experience for yourself a wide variety of ways to attune to nature so that you can decide for yourself which evidence-based practices work best for you. Ready to get started? Check out various online programs and the upcoming Women’s Vitamin Sea Retreat now. You may find that you don’t want to wait until 2023 to get started! Be sure to subscribe to the seasonal e-newsletter sent out by The Nature Nurse™, PLLC to learn more about ways to optimize your whole being with nature. Go to www.TheNatureNurse.com and enter your email at the bottom of the homepage.  |
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