This craze was seeded on social media, and the cottagecore aesthetic became a natural extension. Thanks to people like Erin Benzakein of Floret, cut flowers have blossomed all over her aspirational Pinterest boards. “It's the picture of arms full of flowers that everyone wants,” Cameron laughs. Think serotonin-boosting snaps of Jeremy Allen White holding giant tulips, protea spools and statice from the farmers market.
We've been watching Oprah and Martha harvest impressive baskets of produce for years, but lately a number of new players have stepped into the raised beds, like Pamela Anderson. She often shares photos of herself tending to her Vancouver Island property in her rain boots and sun hat.
Just looking at it is relaxing, but actually driving stakes into the ground and weaving tomatoes is a challenge for someone like me who is on a mission to free an afternoon from the rat race and its noise. It’s a welcome break and a practice of mindfulness.
A burst of color in Baron's Garden.
Ashley Barron, an illustrator and avid gardener, says, “I can usually reach a wonderful flow state where I move from one task to another and become completely absorbed in what I'm doing.” say.
She loses track of time as she prunes raspberry trees, weeds salad beds, and harvests bunches of kale at Leslie Street Allotment Gardens in Toronto. Even as the sun begins to set, a few mosquito bites bring her out of her blissful space.
This opportunity to connect with nature and nurture the land around us is especially calming in the face of climate change anxiety. “I think when we're caught up in very real and overwhelming news about the state of our planet, we look for individual actions we can take,” Cameron says. First, growing your own food eliminates the need for shipping and plastic packaging. “It's a way to feel empowered and a way to feel less hopeless.”
They are also encouraged to view the environment from outside the human lens. As you grow your garden, you begin to notice all the different layers of its ecosystem. These include the soil and the organisms that benefit from it, the plants that photosynthesize and provide food for wildlife, and the insects that attract flocks of birds. “Sometimes we look at these animals and think they are pests, but we live in their homes and they have the same right to access food as we do.” Ghafari says.
Baron gets his hands dirty.
In fact, this is one of Barron's favorite aspects of gardening. Because it's so close to Leslie Street Spit Nature Park, she always has binoculars on hand to spot the songbirds, swallows, hawks, butterflies, bees, rabbits, voles, groundhogs, frogs, and snakes that call the city garden home. I carry it with me.
Gardening gives us permission to play, get our hands dirty and experiment, says Cameron. Last year I tried growing beets but failed. However, the trial and error of gardening is one of the most rewarding. “If something doesn't go as planned this summer, you can always try again next summer,” Baron says. “It gives you hope and anticipation for the future.”
