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Research · Daily life

Gardening

Meta-analyses of trials found gardening and horticultural activities reduced depressive symptoms, a moderate effect, and raised wellbeing, though one review in chronic illness found no significant change. In a randomized trial, a community garden plot slightly raised fiber intake and activity and eased stress. School gardens raised children's vegetable intake in most studies. Potting mix carries a Legionella risk.

Checked 2026-11-13
Status
A daily life factor, not a product. Horticultural therapy is gardening led by a trained practitioner, and its trials are included here where reviews pooled them with gardening.
Also called
gardening, community garden, community gardening, allotment, vegetable garden, growing your own food, school garden, horticulture, horticultural therapy, therapeutic horticulture, plant care, green fingers
Studied for
mood, depression, stress, anxiety, wellbeing, physical activity, eating more vegetables, children eating vegetables, weight control, staying active in older age

Strong several reviews agree · Moderate one review or consistent trials · Limited one or a few small studies · Untested no study in people, listed with what it rests on

Shown to help5

Reported risks2

What it was studied for, and what was found

Shown to help5

Strong

Depressive symptoms

Shown to reduce depressive symptoms with gardening and horticultural activities in two meta-analyses of trials, a moderate effect. A third found no significant mental health change in chronic illness.

Compared with comparison groups with no horticultural element [1]; control groups in randomized trials the abstract does not describe [2]; control groups in randomized and quasi-experimental studies [3]

The numbers and sources
Effect
Horticultural activities reduced depressive symptoms (SMD -0.67, 95% CI -0.86 to -0.47, I² 54%), with similar effects in younger and older adults, indoors and outdoors, and once or twice a week [1]. Group-based gardening may reduce depressive symptoms, with uncertainty from heterogeneity and unclear risk of bias [2]. In adults with chronic conditions, the pooled effect on mental health was not significant (SMD -0.31, 95% CI -0.97 to 0.34) [3].
Population
2,071 community-dwelling adults in 30 studies, 25 pooled [1]. 20 completed randomized trials [2]. 4,535 adults with chronic conditions in 23 studies, mean age 54.4 [3].
Sources
[1], [2], [3]
Caveats
Participants knew they were gardening, and most studies had a high risk of bias [1]. Programs often bundled gardening with group contact and time outdoors, so the share due to gardening is unknown.
Strong

Wellbeing and quality of life

Shown to raise wellbeing and other health measures with gardening in two meta-analyses, moderate effects, across trials and comparisons of gardeners with non-gardeners.

Compared with the same people before they began gardening, or non-gardeners [4]; comparison groups in the interventional and observational reviews it pooled [5]

The numbers and sources
Effect
Across 76 comparisons, gardening had a positive effect on health outcomes such as depression, anxiety, body mass index, life satisfaction, quality of life and sense of community (mean effect 0.42, 95% CI 0.36 to 0.48), which held after adjusting for publication bias [4]. Gardening and horticultural therapy raised wellbeing (effect size 0.55, 95% CI 0.23 to 0.87) [5].
Population
22 studies published after 2001, mostly from the US [4]. 40 reviews [5].
Sources
[4], [5]
Caveats
Heterogeneity was significant (I² 40.47%) and publication bias was present [4]. The umbrella review pooled earlier reviews that overlap, and its authors caution against clinical conclusions [5].
Moderate

Stress and anxiety

Shown to lower self-rated stress with horticultural therapy in one meta-analysis, without changing physiological measures. A community gardening trial found larger falls in stress and anxiety.

Compared with a control group the abstract does not describe [6]; a waiting list for a community garden plot [7]

The numbers and sources
Effect
Horticultural therapy improved psychological stress measures against control, with no significant effect on physiological measures. A total of 100 to 500 minutes gave larger effects [6]. People given a community garden plot had greater reductions in perceived stress and anxiety from spring to autumn than those kept on the waiting list [7].
Population
Trials of horticultural therapy in varied populations [6]. 291 adults new to gardening in Denver and Aurora, Colorado, 82% women [7].
Sources
[6], [7]
Caveats
The meta-analysis abstract gives no pooled sizes [6]. Stress and anxiety were secondary outcomes in the trial and were self-rated [7].
Limited

Physical activity

One randomized trial found a community garden plot added about 6 minutes a day of moderate to vigorous activity during the growing season, against a waiting list.

Compared with a waiting list for a community garden plot [7]

The numbers and sources
Effect
Moderate to vigorous physical activity showed a significant time-by-intervention effect (p = 0.012), with a mean between-group difference of 5.80 minutes a day (99.5% CI -4.44 to 16.05) by accelerometer. Sedentary time did not change [7]. Those who gardened the whole season reported a median 90 minutes a week at the garden [8].
Population
291 adults aged 18 and older who had not gardened in 2 years, 145 given a plot [7]. 145 people in the gardening group [8].
Sources
[7], [8]
Caveats
One trial, with a strict confidence interval that crosses zero at the second time point [7]. 67% of the gardening group gardened the whole season [8].
ModerateStudied in children

Fruit and vegetable intake in children

Shown to raise fruit and vegetable intake in children in most gardening programs, in two systematic reviews, a small effect in mostly small studies.

Compared with the same children before the program, and control groups in some studies [9]; intake before the program or in comparison schools, as each study measured it [10]

The numbers and sources
Effect
Ten of 14 studies found significant increases in fruit or vegetable intake after a gardening program, a small effect [9]. In elementary schools, 68% of programs raised fruit and vegetable intake and 62% raised preference, and gardening-only programs gave significant findings slightly more often (89%) than combined cooking and gardening programs (84%) [10].
Population
Children aged 2 to 15 in 14 studies [9]. 36 elementary school programs in 14 countries, 9 gardening-only [10].
Sources
[9], [10]
Caveats
Convenience samples, small sizes and self-reported intake limited the studies, and few had control groups or lasted a year [9].

Mixed results2

Limited

Diet in adult gardeners

One randomized trial found a community garden plot raised fiber intake by about 1.4 g a day, with no change in fruit and vegetable intake or overall diet quality.

Compared with a waiting list for a community garden plot [7]

The numbers and sources
Effect
Fiber intake showed a significant time-by-intervention effect (p = 0.034), with a mean between-group difference of 1.41 g a day at harvest time (99.5% CI -2.09 to 4.92). Combined fruit and vegetable intake and the Healthy Eating Index did not change [7].
Population
291 adults, three diet recalls at each of three time points [7].
Sources
[7]
Caveats
One trial in one US region. The difference was small and its strict interval crosses zero [7].
Moderate

Body weight

Mixed results: one meta-analysis of mostly cross-sectional studies linked community gardening to lower body mass index, while a randomized trial found no change in weight or waist.

Compared with non-gardeners, or the same people before gardening [11]; a waiting list for a community garden plot [7]

The numbers and sources
Effect
Pooled body mass index data showed a significant reduction with gardening, larger in quasi-experimental and case-control studies than in cross-sectional ones [11]. In the randomized trial, body mass index and waist circumference did not change over one season [7].
Population
19 studies, 14 cross-sectional, 4 quasi-experimental and 1 case-control [11]. 291 adults [7].
Sources
[11], [7]
Caveats
The meta-analysis abstract gives no pooled size, and cross-sectional data cannot show that gardening came first [11]. The trial was short for weight change [7].

Amounts studied

Trials of horticultural activities ran once or twice a week, indoors or outdoors, with similar effects on depressive symptoms [1]. Stress effects were larger with a total of 100 to 500 minutes of horticultural therapy [6]. In the community gardening trial, people received a plot for one growing season [7], and those who gardened the whole season reported a median 90 minutes a week at the garden [8]. School programs were gardening-only or combined gardening with cooking lessons [10].

Risks

Reported risks2

LimitedUncommon

Allergic reaction in the garden

One trial reported one allergic event in the garden among 145 people given a community garden plot.

The numbers and sources
How common
Uncommon: between 1 in 1,000 and 1 in 100 people.
Effect
One participant in the gardening group (under 1%) had an adverse allergic event in the garden. No other adverse events were reported in the abstract [7].
Population
145 adults given a community garden plot [7].
Sources
[7]
Caveats
One trial, and the waiting-list group was not described as having events to compare [7].
LimitedHow often is not known

Legionnaires' disease from potting mix and compost

Case-control studies and case reports: Legionella longbeachae pneumonia was linked to handling potting mix or compost, poor hand washing after gardening, and long-term smoking.

The numbers and sources
How common
How often is not known: the sources give no rate.
Effect
In New Zealand, risk factors were COPD, smoking over 10 years and exposure to compost or potting mix, including tipping and troweling it and having unwashed hands near the face. Mask or glove use was not protective [12]. In South Australia, recent use of potting mix was linked to illness in bivariate analysis (OR 4.74, 95% CI 1.65 to 13.55), and poor hand washing after gardening, long-term smoking and being near dripping hanging pots were stronger predictors [13]. A review found 79 cases outside Australia and New Zealand over 20 years, including severe pneumonia [14].
Population
31 hospitalized cases and 172 controls [12]. 25 cases and 75 matched controls [13]. Case reports from Europe, Asia and North America [14].
Sources
[12], [13], [14]
Caveats
Small case-control studies with no rate among gardeners. The infection is endemic in Australia and New Zealand and reported less often elsewhere [14].

Claims tested and not found

  1. That a community garden plot raises adults' fruit and vegetable intake. In a randomized trial, combined fruit and vegetable intake did not change against a waiting list [7].
  2. That gardening for a season lowers body weight. Body mass index and waist circumference did not change in the same trial [7].
  3. That horticultural therapy changes physiological stress measures. A meta-analysis found no significant effect on physiological indicators of stress [6].
  4. That gardening programs improve physical health in people with chronic conditions. The pooled effect on physical health was not significant (SMD -0.25, 95% CI -0.62 to 0.11) [3].

Related

Time in naturePhysical activitySunlight

Sources

  1. Sin PY, Li WHC, Fan MSN, Ng SC, Choi KC. Effect of horticultural activities on reducing depressive symptoms in community-dwelling adults: A systematic review and meta-analysis. International Journal of Nursing Studies. 2025. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.ijnurstu.2025.105081
  2. Briggs R, Morris PG, Rees K. The effectiveness of group-based gardening interventions for improving wellbeing and reducing symptoms of mental ill-health in adults: a systematic review and meta-analysis. Journal of Mental Health. 2023. https://doi.org/10.1080/09638237.2022.2118687
  3. Wang F, Boros S. Effect of gardening activities on domains of health: a systematic review and meta-analysis. BMC Public Health. 2025. https://doi.org/10.1186/s12889-025-22263-9
  4. Soga M, Gaston KJ, Yamaura Y. Gardening is beneficial for health: A meta-analysis. Preventive Medicine Reports. 2017. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.pmedr.2016.11.007
  5. Panțiru I, Ronaldson A, Sima N, Dregan A, Sima R. The impact of gardening on well-being, mental health, and quality of life: an umbrella review and meta-analysis. Systematic Reviews. 2024. https://doi.org/10.1186/s13643-024-02457-9
  6. Lu S, Liu J, Xu M, Xu F. Horticultural therapy for stress reduction: A systematic review and meta-analysis. Frontiers in Psychology. 2023. https://doi.org/10.3389/fpsyg.2023.1086121
  7. Litt JS, Alaimo K, Harrall KK, et al. Effects of a community gardening intervention on diet, physical activity, and anthropometry outcomes in the USA (CAPS): an observer-blind, randomised controlled trial. The Lancet Planetary Health. 2023. https://doi.org/10.1016/S2542-5196(22)00303-5
  8. Coringrato E, Alaimo K, Leiferman JA, et al. A process evaluation of a randomized-controlled trial of community gardening to improve health behaviors and reduce stress and anxiety. Scientific Reports. 2024. https://doi.org/10.1038/s41598-024-63889-w
  9. Savoie-Roskos MR, Wengreen H, Durward C. Increasing Fruit and Vegetable Intake among Children and Youth through Gardening-Based Interventions: A Systematic Review. Journal of the Academy of Nutrition and Dietetics. 2017. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jand.2016.10.014
  10. Muzaffar H, Guenther E, Bosse O, Nii-Aponsah H. Effectiveness of Gardening-Only, Cooking-Only and Combined Cooking and Gardening Programs in Elementary Schools to Improve Fruit and Vegetable Intake: A Systematic Review. Nutrients. 2023. https://doi.org/10.3390/nu15133008
  11. Kunpeuk W, Spence W, Phulkerd S, et al. The impact of gardening on nutrition and physical health outcomes: a systematic review and meta-analysis. Health Promotion International. 2020. https://doi.org/10.1093/heapro/daz027
  12. Kenagy E, Priest PC, Cameron CM, et al. Risk Factors for Legionella longbeachae Legionnaires' Disease, New Zealand. Emerging Infectious Diseases. 2017. https://doi.org/10.3201/eid2307.161429
  13. O'Connor BA, Carman J, Eckert K, et al. Does using potting mix make you sick? Results from a Legionella longbeachae case-control study in South Australia. Epidemiology and Infection. 2007. https://doi.org/10.1017/S095026880600656X
  14. Bell H, Chintalapati S, Patel P, et al. Legionella longbeachae pneumonia: Case report and review of reported cases in non-endemic countries. IDCases. 2021. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.idcr.2021.e01050

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