Gardening for Everyone
Gardening doesn’t have to be a full-time job, and in fact, it can be one of the most grounding and restorative things especially for busy parents and people juggling work, home, and life.
Gardening for Busy Lives: How to Grow a Little Peace
Life can get hectic. Between work, family, emails, dinner, laundry, and that mysterious pile of things you were supposed to deal with two weeks ago, gardening might feel like a luxury you just don’t have time for.
I really get it. I’ve been there too. But I promise you gardening doesn’t have to be another chore. It can actually be your escape from all of that. Even five minutes a day of tending to something green can calm your nervous system, clear your head and make you feel more rooted.
If you’ve got a full calendar and little people who need snacks every 10 minutes, the key is to keep your gardening small, visible, and easy.
Here are some ideas that I imagine would work for busy people
A pot of herbs by the kitchen windowsill or in a container pot in the garden
A salad bowl garden – One big container with lettuce, rocket, and a few edible flowers. Snip what you need, let it grow back
Strawberries in hanging baskets – No bending, no weeding. There’s nothing like picking fresh strawberries
A few cherry tomatoes on the balcony – Let the kids pick them right off the vine as snacks. (Trust me, they will.)
Planting easy to grow flowers or lavender either in a pot or into the ground
Easy to grow Marigold flowers, they flower for months and give so much joy
One little wildflower patch by your fence
Even if you only grow one plant this season, let that be enough. That one plant can be your daily reminder that beauty and peace don’t need hours of spare time or a perfect schedule. They just need a tiny bit of intention and love - and a bit of sunshine.
Gardening for Self Care
We hear a lot about Self-care these days — bubble baths, journaling, yoga apps, affirmations, visualisation - and those are all great. But there’s something uniquely soothing about gardening. You don’t need words. You don’t need screens. Just your hands in the soil and a few minutes of stillness.
Even if it’s just watering a plant after the school run, or deadheading flowers while your tea cools down, or planting a few seeds every now and then.
It’s all a quiet reminder to slow down, breathe, and reconnect - not just with NATURE, but with YOURSELF.
You don’t need a big garden to feel like a gardener. You just need to care - even a little - and show up when you can. Don’t wait until life is less busy. (it probably won’t be)
Instead, start where you are. Grow something small.
And know that even in the middle of the chaos, your garden can be your quiet, living refuge - always ready, always waiting, always patiently welcoming you.