New research connects daily gardening habits with reduced anxiety and physical limitations

A survey of individuals between 30 and 98 years in Sengkang, Singapore, found that engaging in daily gardening was associated with better health, defined as low anxiety and no health limitations. “Happiness or satisfaction” was the top reason for gardening, while “insufficient time” was the most often listed reason for not engaging in gardening. The paper was published in Scientific Reports.

Gardening is the practice of cultivating plants such as flowers, vegetables, fruits, or herbs for food, aesthetic enjoyment, or recreation. It involves physical activities like digging, planting, watering, and pruning, which effectively constitute a regular exercise of moderate intensity. Gardening has been shown to improve physical health by supporting cardiovascular fitness, muscle strength, and flexibility. Exposure to sunlight during gardening helps regulate circadian rhythms and supports vitamin D production.

Psychologically, gardening is associated with reduced stress, anxiety, and depressive symptoms. It can promote relaxation by providing a calming, nature-focused activity that draws attention away from daily worries. Gardening also enhances mood and emotional well-being through a sense of accomplishment and nurturing living things. For many people, it fosters mindfulness and sustained attention, supporting cognitive restoration. Social gardening activities, such as community gardens, can strengthen social connections and reduce feelings of loneliness.

Study author Amir Chwa and his colleagues wanted to explore the association between daily gardening and health in Singapore, particularly among community-dwelling older adults. They decided to take into account two aspects of health—physical health, represented by the presence of any health limitations, and mental health, represented by participants’ level of anxiety.

Eligible study participants were individuals between the ages of 30 and 98, living in Sengkang, a town in the northeastern region of Singapore, for more than 6 months in the past year. In this geographical area, there were 4,023 eligible households. Study authors sent them letters of invitation to participate in the survey two weeks before the survey. At the time of data collection, study authors knocked on 2,576 doors. 410 doors were opened, and 386 participants completed the survey.

The survey asked participants if they garden and the reason for their choice. Those who stated that they garden were further asked about the type of gardening activities and the number of days each week they spend gardening.

Based on this, they were classified into two groups for analysis: daily gardeners and non-daily gardeners (a group that included both non-gardeners and occasional gardeners). Health limitations were assessed by asking participants, “How much does your health limit you in walking several blocks or carrying groceries?”. Anxiety was assessed using the Generalized Anxiety Disorder 7-item scale.

Results showed that individuals who reported gardening daily had 43% lower odds of developing poor health (defined as having anxiety, health limitations, or both) compared to the group of non-daily gardeners, when controlling for chronic diseases, smoking, alcohol, income, education, age, gender, and a number of other characteristics.

The most often listed reasons for engaging in gardening were “happiness and satisfaction” and “relaxation.” The most often listed reasons for not gardening were “insufficient time” and “no interest in gardening.”

“Overall, this study shows that gardening daily was associated with better health outcomes, reducing anxiety and health limitations. This supports the promotion of gardening as an activity for healthy ageing,” study authors conclude.

The study contributes to the scientific understanding of health correlates of gardening activities. However, it should be noted that the design of this study does not allow any causal inferences to be derived from the results. While it is possible that gardening contributes to health, engaging in gardening requires a certain level of physical and mental fitness, and this likely contributed to the observed associations. Additionally, all the data were self-reported, leaving room for reporting bias to have affected the results.

The paper, “The association of daily gardening and healthy ageing in Singapore,” was authored by Amir Chwa, Adithi Vasudevan, Stella Kai Min Chan, Yunru Chen, Clement Wei Jian Chia, Darius Soh, Donovan Lim, Eliza Khoo, Ernest Soh, Jayden Lew, Lara Loh, Omkar Mahadevan, Sarah Goh, Jing Xuan Tan, Xinyun Wang, Ngan Phoon Fong, and Cynthia Chen.