“We know gardening keeps us active and therefore digging and planting can help with physical health, but can gardening actually improve mental wellbeing? Gardens and landscapes have long been used as sanctuaries to escape from the stresses of life and It turns out there are a number of reasons why gardening can help us to feel happier. It bears little surprise really, especially when you consider the amount of time that many people will spend in their gardens – especially those with garden buildings such as sheds.

Lowering stress-hormones and providing us with a sense of reward, are just two of the ways gardening can be good for our mental well-being. We spoke to charities who use gardening to help people with mental health problems and asked them what the direct effects of gardening had on their mental health, the responses were positive and inspiring!”