A distinguished psychiatrist and avid gardener offers an inspiring and consoling work about the healing effects of gardening and its ability to decrease stress and foster mental well-being in our everyday lives.\nThe garden is often seen as a refuge, a place to forget worldly cares, removed from the “real” life that lies outside. But when we get our hands in the earth we connect with the cycle of life in nature through which destruction and decay are followed by regrowth and renewal. Gardening is one of the quintessential nurturing activities and yet we understand so little about it. The Well-Gardened Mind provides a new perspective on the power of gardening to change people’s lives. Here, Sue Stuart-Smith investigates the many ways in which mind and garden can interact and explores how the process of tending a plot can be a way of sustaining an innermost self.\nStuart-Smith’s own love of gardening developed as she studied to become a psychoanalytic psychotherapist. From her grandfather’s return from World War I to Freud’s obsession with flowers to case histories with her own patients to progressive gardening programs in such places as Rikers Island prison in New York City, Stuart-Smith weaves thoughtful yet powerful examples to argue that gardening is much more important to our cognition than we think. Recent research is showing how green nature has direct antidepressant effects on humans. Essential and pragmatic, The Well-Gardened Mind is a book for gardeners and the perfect read for people seeking healthier mental lives.

Well Gardened Mind

Stuart-Smith, Sue

William Collins

The Well Gardened Mind: Rediscovering Nature in the Modern World

Crafts, Hobbies & Home

Gardening & Landscape Design

One of Garden & Gun's Favorite Books of 2020 A distinguished psychiatrist and avid gardener offers an inspiring and consoling work about the healing effects of gardening and its ability to decrease stress and foster mental well-being in our everyday lives. The garden is often seen as a refuge, a place to forget worldly cares, removed from the "real" life that lies outside. But when we get our hands in the earth we connect with the cycle of life in nature through which destruction and decay are followed by regrowth and renewal. Gardening is one of the quintessential nurturing activities and yet we understand so little about it. The Well-Gardened Mind provides a new perspective on the power of gardening to change people's lives. Here, Sue Stuart-Smith investigates the many ways in which mind and garden can interact and explores how the process of tending a plot can be a way of sustaining an innermost self. Stuart-Smith's own love of gardening developed as she studied to become a psychoanalytic psychotherapist. From her grandfather's return from World War I to Freud's obsession with flowers to case histories with her own patients to progressive gardening programs in such places as Rikers Island prison in New York City, Stuart-Smith weaves thoughtful yet powerful examples to argue that gardening is much more important to our cognition than we think. Recent research is showing how green nature has direct antidepressant effects on humans. Essential and pragmatic, The Well-Gardened Mind is a book for gardeners and the perfect read for people seeking healthier mental lives.

The Well-Gardened Mind: The Restorative Power of Nature

Health, Fitness & Dieting

Mental Health

Scribner

A distinguished psychiatrist and avid gardener presents “a truly uplifting book on the power of gardening—and how it can change people’s lives” (Stylist, UK).\nThe garden is often seen as a refuge, a place to forget worldly cares, removed from the “real” life that lies outside. When we get our hands in the earth we connect with the cycle of life in nature through which destruction and decay are followed by regrowth and renewal. Gardening is one of the quintessential nurturing activities and yet we understand so little about it. The Well-Gardened Mind provides a new perspective on the power of gardening to change people’s lives. Here, Sue Stuart-Smith investigates the many ways in which mind and garden can interact and explores how the process of tending a plot can be a way of sustaining an innermost self.\nStuart-Smith’s own love of gardening developed as she studied to become a psychoanalytic psychotherapist. From her grandfather’s return from World War I to Freud’s obsession with flowers to case histories with her own patients to progressive gardening programs in such places as Rikers Island prison in New York City, Stuart-Smith weaves thoughtful yet powerful examples to argue that gardening is much more important to our cognition than we think. Recent research is showing how green nature has direct antidepressant effects on humans. “The most original gardening book ever [that] combines observation, horticulture, literature and history” (Sunday Times, UK), The Well-Gardened Mind is a book for gardeners and non-gardeners alike, and the perfect solace for people seeking healthier mental lives.

Una maravillosa exploración del jardín como lugar mental y de los poderes de la naturaleza. 
Un jardín es un refugio ideal para huir del ajetreo del mundo y conectar con la naturaleza. Sin embargo, sabemos muy poco sobre los verdaderos beneficios de la jardinería. Investigaciones recientes demuestran que, cuando la practican, los presos tienen menos probabilidades de reincidir, los jóvenes en riesgo de exclusión tienden a perseverar en el sistema educativo y los ancianos viven más y mejor. 
Repleto de curiosidades científicas y emocionantes historias humanas, La mente bien ajardinada es una poderosa combinación de neurociencia, literatura, historia y psicoanálisis que indaga en el secreto que muchos jardineros conocen desde siempre: el contacto con la naturaleza puede transformar radicalmente nuestra salud y nuestra autoestima. 
Sue Stuart-Smith, distinguida psiquiatra, apasionada jardinera y brillante narradora, entreteje ejemplos como el papel clave de la horticultura para su abuelo tras la Primera Guerra Mundial, la obsesión de Freud por las flores y curiosas historias clínicas de sus propios pacientes. Con todo ello, nos convence de hasta qué punto puede influirnos la conexión con los ciclos de la naturaleza (en los que, tras la descomposición, brota de nuevo la vida), de las muchas formas en que la mente y el jardín interactúan y de la idea de que hundir nuestras manos en la tierra puede ser un modo de cuidarnos a nosotros mismos. 
La crítica ha dicho: 
«Sin duda el libro sobre jardinería más original de todos los tiempos.» 
The Sunday Times 
«Una investigación elegante y completa que muestra lo enriquecedor que es para la mente cambiar la pantalla por el verde. Nos ha hecho un gran favor al escribir este libro.» 
The Observer 
«Bellamente escrito y repleto de revelaciones sobre el placer y los beneficios del cuidado de las plantas. Inspirador.» 
The Guardian 
«Mezcla de horticultura, literatura e historia, es un libro edificante, alimento para el alma.» 
The Times 
«Una fascinante asociación entre la ciencia de la psiquiatría y el antiguo arte de la jardinería.» 
Financial Times 
«Un logro impresionante. Este sí que es un libro optimista.» 
The Spectator 
«Convincente y conmovedor, muestra hasta qué punto nuestro bienestar depende del contacto con la jardinería y la naturaleza. Léanlo.» 
Edmund De Waal 
«El libro más inteligente que he leído en muchos años. Un relato convincente de cómo las mentes atribuladas pueden reconectarse consigo mismas y recuperar la confianza a través de la naturaleza. Muy recomendable.» 
Stephen Fry

La mente bien ajardinada: Las ventajas de vivir al ritmo de las plantas

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