Grow Heal thrive

Having just given a taster session (and we did start with actual tasting of seasonal berries!) to counsellors at the Life Centre for victims of domestic violence and sexual abuse, I've been thinking a lot about parents and children gardening together. Actually I think about my own mum and dad a lot when I garden. I remember my mum teaching me to take cuttings, her love of flowers, my dad diligently side-shooting tomatoes in the greenhouse. Many people we work with talk about their memories of their parents and grandparents when they smell a particular herb or see a flower that carries meaning for them. Those bonds last a lifetime and that's one of the reasons we are offering 'Growing with your Children' as a therapeutic course over the summer holidays for women survivors of trauma and other mental health challenges and their children. We hope it will be the foundation for a future of enjoying the restorative power of nature and gardening and a source of happy, positive memories for both.