Got an aging relative in an assisted-living or long-term care facility? The best thing you can bring on your next visit might well be a houseplant. And a watering can. And a little extra potting soil.

In a study reported this week in the journal HortTechnology, 18 eighteen elderly residents in a nursing home were given weekly horticulture classes and a choice of houseplants to take home and care for. Researchers Claudia C. Collins and Angela M. O’Callaghan report that the 4-week program brought about a dramatic improvement in the participants’ demeanors and in scores of happiness as well as the sense of being in control–key measures of healthy aging. Most went from feeling passive and lonely to being much more active and socially connected.

Indeed, for many of the elderly gardeners, houseplants provided crucial companionship. Some even reported singing and talking to their new leafy green friends. Caring for plants gave the residents a sense of being needed and capable. And as the researchers reported, “the overall energy was positive and electric as everone involved could not wait to see how their plants would fare.” Just as important, the volunteers “got dirty hands, dirt on their clothes, and felt competent.”

That sense of competence inspired new excitement about planning for the future–in particular, starting an outdoor community garden. The benefits seen in this small study, in other words, promise to keep on growing.

© 2009 PDQhealth

Tags: aging, gardening, health, house plants