Plants, Projects and Stress During Social Isolation

It has been a long hard Winter for some of my houseplants.

Winnipeg still has snow on the ground, and we are stuck at home during "Social Distancing," but that doesn't stop the local Garden centers from sending out tempting ads. I want to grow more plants!  In sad times like this, we feel such an urge to surround ourselves with living, growing things. It gives us hope.

I love doing lots of little plant and garden-based projects, such as wreaths, cute plant pots, pressed flowers, and especially photographing plants and nature. This time of year, every container that I really should throw into recycling is getting scrutinized to decide if maybe a plant or seeds would love to have it as a new home. I start looking for any seeds left over from last year and can't walk or scroll past seed displays without looking to see what is new.

Gardening is a stress reliever,

• The physical activity of gardening is a good exercise for your body and great for your mental health.
• You can grow healthy vegetables that are nutritious and yummy
• Sunshine, while working in a garden, can provide us with all the vitamin D our body needs.
• Working with plants promotes mindfulness and encourages mental focus.
• You can find the enjoyment of personal creativity in a garden.
• You can relax and find pleasure with the beauty of your plants.

 The truth is that I am not a great gardener, but I don't give up easily, so I learn by trial and error and with a little help from my friends and Pinterest. Plants seem to have a way of surviving despite my tendency to overwater and then underwater them. My home is filled with indoor plants, and the yard has at least a few successes each year. We are fortunate to have a cottage surrounded by an abundance of beautiful plants and flowers and creatures growing naturally around us.


 Last week my husband Bob and I decided that some of the houseplants had reached the point where we needed to give them new soil and bigger pots or they wouldn't survive. One particular stumbling block has been the Christmas Cactuses. I have four that have been around for a long time and not grown very much, and two were still in the same growers' pots we got them in three years ago. We had fertilized them and watered sparingly but never given them
new real soil.  In February, the little ones both produced 1 flower each. I kind of thought it was one last attempt to get our attention. Finally, I looked it up and found the recommended soil was a cactus blend that had been kicking around our garage for a year. Once we got started, we had a great time. We found two larger pots out in our garage and mover the largest plants over, thereby freeing up their pots for the two little ones. Yes, I made a mess and had mud everywhere, but we got it done, and I keep smiling at the plants.


I also really enjoy running group programs with plants.

 I think the first organized plant program I ever did was with a group of 5-year-old Girl Guides a long time ago. We planted marigold seeds in some styrofoam cups that the girls had decorated with markers. It was going to be a surprise for Mother's Day. There was potting soil everywhere. The girls loved it and were so gentle, tucking their little seeds into the soil and giving them a drink of water. I then started to pray that it would really grow for the girls Sure enough, in the next couple of weeks, we had baby plants. During the meeting before Mother Day, we took colourful squares of tissue paper and the girls placed their little cups in the center. We pulled the tissue up and tied it with a piece of yarn so it would be a surprise. That was the power of living things; exploration and art and gift-giving all tied up in one fantastic package and held by smiling little 5 year old girls in pink shirts.

If you are lucky enough to be out in your garden this spring or like myself, you have a houseplant or two that need some love, I hope you take the time to focus, breathe and enjoy the moment.