Summer is the time to relax, according to the cliché we hear every year. With no school to keep students busy, it may be easy to sit at home all day and watch TV or spend countless hours surfing the web. Instead of passing time in front of a screen, students could do something beneficial, like gardening.

Gardening has many benefits, including stress relief. Bear Facts compiled information to help make your gardening life easier.

Benefits of gardening:

• Stress relief (a recent study showed gardening was better at relieving stress than normal leisure activities)
• Better mental health (gardening may help depression symptoms)
• Exercise (it actually gets your blood pumping, and it is done outside)
• Brain Health (studies have shown it helps reduce the risk of dementia)
• Nutrition (The food grown in a home garden is fresher than from a store)

We also talked with Kirsten Drehobl, senior who enjoyed gardening.

What do you garden?

“I have a bunch of flowers and a vegetable garden in which there are tomatoes, peppers, herbs, cucumbers, beans, and various others.”

Why do you garden?

“It’s relaxing and really rewarding to see life spring up around you. Of course, the flowers are also very pretty.”

Why did you start gardening?

“My family has always had gardens. My grandma gave us nine roses to begin with. I always do the planting and the tending. It’s a family tradition.”

Do you recommend gardening for others?

“[I recommend it for] anyone who enjoys being outdoors. It’s a really calming process. You don’t think about anything but the plant, the dirt, and yourself.”

What is your favorite thing in your garden?

“My favorite flowers that I tend are roses. My favorite vegetables are the cucumbers.”

Definition of perennial (pulled quote type box)

Often times one will come across the word “perennial” when looking for flowers. It means:

“1. Lasting or continuing throughout the entire year, as a stream.

2. Perpetual; everlasting; continuing; recurrent.”

Recommendations:

Petunias:

-look nice in hanging pots, along retaining walls or as a ground cover.

Requires: regular amounts of water and full sunlight.

Globe Amaranth:

-Last a long time in gardens and fresh bouquets.

-The flowers come in white, red, pink, lilac or purple.

Requires: moderate amounts of water and full to partial sunlight

Sea Holly:

-They resemble thistles, but their colors are mostly blue-green, due to their prickley leaves, which also have streaks of silver.

Requires: moderate amounts of water and full sunlight

Gardening tips:

Pest Patrol

Keep a close eye out for any pests; catching them early is key. For roses, the most important things to look for are aphids and mildew. Also, do not forget to protect your garden (especially with fruits and vegetables) against animals.

Staking & Support

Put up stakes and supports for tall plants, like peonies and delphiniums. The plants will be neater and more sturdy as they grow through the summer: you want to have control over where they grow.

Watering

Even though it is cold out now, do not forget to keep up with watering as it gets warmer. Under-watering results in roots staying near the surface, which in turn makes them more prone to heat. Regular watering is about an inch of water a week. Do not just spritz because the water will not effectively reach the roots.

Plant Bulbs

Plants bulbs for bloom in the fall in mid-summer and spring bulbs in late summer.