the fixer
Illustrated card created by Jess Harwood. © Jess Harwood.
You like to see the direct result of your own hands. a garden bed that's clearer than an hour ago, a patch of bush a little less choked with weeds, and you don't need an audience to feel satisfied.
A bacterium found in ordinary soil, Mycobacterium vaccae, was shown to activate the same serotonin-producing brain cells that some antidepressants target — worth knowing before you assume digging in the dirt does nothing for you (the finding is from a mouse study, not people gardening, but it's the reason "the antidepressant in soil" headlines exist). Source: Lowry et al., 2007, Neuroscience.
Worth Knowing:
"Dad created a beautiful city farm in the backyard, grew vegetables, fruit trees, all that sort of stuff. And the chooks, the making the sauce, the passata, the making wine."
- carmelina, xage, from victoria
Here's how to find your own way back outdoors:
local working bees
Hands-on group sessions such as clean ups, weeding, planting, general upkeep that usually take a couple of hours with tools provided.
grow from home
Grow seedlings for local landholders from your own backyard, if getting your hands dirty at home appeals more than heading out to a site.
make something
One-off workshops — like building a bee hotel or bird bath — for a satisfying afternoon project with something to show for it.
The research above is general, not advice about you specifically. It's here to show why time in nature is worth taking seriously, not to tell you what your body or mind needs. If you're managing a physical or mental health condition, it's worth checking with your doctor or care team before changing your routine — they know your situation, this page doesn't.