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Winter Green

A horticultural therapist seeks to bring all of us back to the garden, for good.

When her mother died in 2001, Mary Beth Miller turned intuitively to the healing power of nature. “When I was a kid, if something was really bothering me, I would go outside,” says Miller. “Nature isn’t judgmental. I always seemed to get answers outdoors.” So the master gardener used what she knew to help herself, her father—and pretty soon, anyone who would listen. She founded Gardening for Good, a nonprofit organization dedicated to promoting the therapeutic benefits of gardening. “I’m on a mission,” she says. “My purpose is to show people how to connect with plants and nature in the simplest ways possible.”

Miller works with all ages, from school kids to nursing home residents, using plants as “a pathway to well-being.” It doesn’t matter if you’re struggling with anxiety or arthritis, if you’re five years old or ninety, she says. “Plants are magic. Plants are eager to connect.”

Winter brings fresh opportunities for connection. “Find beauty in the moment,” Miller says. “From a window or your steps. Breathe in that cold air and feel its refreshment. Go out and touch the evergreens. Experience this moment that Mother Nature is giving us.” Learn more at gardening4good.org.

Miller’s simple indoor ideas for winter:
• Fill a dish with moss, stones and natural elements.
• Force amaryllis bulbs for a burst of color.
• Create a water garden by filling saucers with water and setting them on the window sill.
• Plant wheat or rye grass in a small container.

By Martha W. Murphy
Photography by Andrew Gentry