Journal of Therapeutic Horticulture 34.1 - 2024

Abstracts

Exploring the Impact of Therapeutic Horticulture in Gynecologic Oncology Patients: A Pilot Study

Vasanti Jhaveri, Elizabeth Diehl, Sydney Cabana, Kristin Drew,Alexis Jennings-Coulibaly, Merry J. Markham, Patricia During, and Alice Rhoton-Vlasak

Women who are diagnosed with gynecologic cancer experience a significant level of distress and symptoms that impact their quality of life. Non-pharmacological interventions such as therapeutic horticulture (TH) have been linked with enriching individual lives. The purpose of this study is two-fold: 1) to determine the impact of TH on the quality of life and anxiety for gynecologic oncology patients and 2) to test the feasibility and acceptability of implementing a pilot TH program for this specific patient population at an academic institution. The intervention included attending eight 1-hour group-based TH sessions that were led by a professionally registered horticultural therapist at Wilmot Botanical Gardens. Over one month, there were a total of 42 patients who were given our initial recruitment questionnaire at the gynecologic oncology clinic. In summary, 7 patients were able to participate in the study. 3 participants were able to complete the study in its entirety by attending 8 out of the 12 sessions. 4 participants were unable to complete at least 8 sessions due to scheduling conflicts: 1 participant completed 7 sessions and 3 participants completed less than 5 sessions. Given the small number of participants, quantitative, statistical analysis of questionnaire results was not undertaken. However, the STAI and FACT-G results qualitatively reflected a decrease in both current and general anxiety and an increase in health-related quality of life from pre- to post-TH. While our participant accrual was limited, there were lessons learned about implementing a TH study in a gynecologic oncology patient population.

Why People Love Trees: A Hermeneutic Analysis of Themes Found on Social Media

Brendan Yukins, LSW

Humans are inherently draw to trees. Biophilia theory (Wilson, 1984) asserts that we are drawn towards Nature as a whole, but does not specify about our attraction towards trees. Interaction with trees has been proven to reduce general anxiety and lower blood pressure (Ideno,2017). Despite this history, contemporary research has not yet asserted a reason for why we are attracted to trees specifically. Using a combined process of thematic analysis and hermeneutic investigation, I analyzed posts from social media Nature groups to find the trends in numinous experiences people have with trees. These are experiences Facebook authors describe with trees that changed them spiritually or psychologically. Through the Hermeneutic Circle, I discerned the most commonly occurring meanings that people ascribed to these experiences with trees. This two-stage analysis resulted in a hermeneutic “true meaning” that people are attracted to trees because the tree’s beauty is synonymous with the tree’s old age. Instead of youth, trees are considered beautiful and praised because they have lived long and endured many experiences. This analysis holds clinical implications for mental health practitioners who use trees in horticultural therapy, forest therapy,shinrin-yoku, ecotherapy, transpersonal psychologists, ecopsychologists, therapeutic horticulture, wilderness therapy, adventure therapy, garden design, and civics.

Evaluation of a Horticultural Therapy Program for Care Home Residents with Mental Illness

Andrew M.H. Siu, PhD, MCounseling, MSc PDOT, Benson W.M. Lau, BSc (Hon), MMedSc, MPhil, PhD

Horticulture has long been used as a leisure or social activity in care homes, but there were few evaluation studies of Horticultural Therapy (HT) for care homes residents with mental illness. This study examined the process and outcomes of a standardized horticultural therapy program for care home residents with severe mental illness. Fifty participants were randomly assigned to an 8-session HT group and a comparison group (n = 25 for each group). The process and outcomes of the program, including stress and anxiety, mental well-being, and degree of engagement in meaningful activities were obtained through self-completed questionnaires and observational ratings of participants during the group sessions. The results supported that HT significantly promoted participants’ mental well-being, engagement, and sense of meaningfulness and achievement. The evidence provides support on the effectiveness of HT for care home residents with long-termmental illnesses.

COVID-19 and Horticulture for Health: Positive Impacts on Gardening, Urban Agriculture,Food Security, GreenSpace, Plant Trends and Horticultural Therapy

Lesley Fleming MA, HTR

Examining the health impacts from COVID-19 where horticulture played a role reveals positive outcomes across therapeutic, nutrition, landscape, and horticulture sectors validated by research. While COVID-19 was responsible for devastating loss of human life it has also generated better understanding of human health and responses to pandemics. Examining the literature from the lens of the horticulture for health domains (Fleming, 2021) allows for a multi-faceted review that also identifies inter-related effects from the COVID-19-horticulture relationships where food security, production and consumption, role of gardens and green spaces, health interventions like horticultural therapy, and consumer trends for plants intersect. The impact across sectors reflects the complexities of life during and after COVID-19, and a new paradigm of research, one that underscores connections between horticulture and health, these continuing to broaden in modern day life.

Therapeutic Horticulture and Therapeutic Goals: Expanding the Scope and Practice Through the Therapeutic Horticulture Activities Database and Its Use of Health Domain-Specific Goals

Lesley Fleming, MA, HTR, Elizabeth Diehl, HTM, RLA, Kathryn Grimes, HTR, MAT

Therapeutic goals are foundational in the practice of horticultural therapy. They are integral to the therapeutic process for both the clinical modality of horticultural therapy and the less formalized practice of therapeutic horticulture. Expanding the scope and understanding of therapeutic goals across health domains can provide practitioners, allied health professionals, and clients with a more thorough framework and result in stronger health outcomes. Developments within the field are propelling a renewed focus on therapeutic goals and how they are used by practitioners. This is timely given the American Horticultural Therapy’s Association’s new professional designation of Therapeutic Horticulture Practitioner. The launch of the Therapeutic Horticulture Activities Database in early 2024 and its inclusion for each activity of therapeutic goals in the five primary health domains has helped to expand the awareness of therapeutic goals that are applicable to the practice of horticultural therapy, and specifically for therapeutic horticulture.

Rest, Reconnect, Restore; A Hypothesis Towards A Theory Of How Pleasurable Biological Nature May Restore The Human Condition Of Loneliness.

Robert Hoover, MLA

Scientists have been studying nature and its connection with human restoration and well-being for at least the past four decades and have discovered evidence that strongly supports nature as being an effective, non- pharmacological resource for improving wellbeing (McMahan, 2015) (Beil, 2021). However, while most of the research has focused on the empirical world of science, such as improved cognition, decreased stress, lower blood pressure, increased self-esteem, and less pain medication, few studies have focused on nature’s relationship with the non-science, non-empirical world of Originating Life, and the role it plays in the restoration of human beings. The primary objectives of this hypothesis “Rest,Reconnect, Restore,” are threefold. First, to put forth the RRR hypothesis that pleasurable biological nature restores human well-being, specifically loneliness, via unconditional love. Second, to present a case for the need to include the non-empirical, spiritual world, alongside the empirical world of science when examining and evaluating how nature may restore human beings. Third, to put forth a framework which could lead towards a theory around which to encourage and guide future scientific research.