ECOLOGY - PROJECT 1

HEALING GARDEN IN HOSPITALS

BY- NIKITA MADAN

RAINEM GYASRA
AMISHA SOOD
ARSHDEEP KAUR

Chandigarh College Of Architecture

2nd Sem. M. Arch.
What are healing gardens?

• A healing garden is an outdoor garden space that has been specifically designed to meet physical,
psychological, social and spiritual needs of the people by making them interact with the nature.

• These can be found in variety of settings like in hospitals, skilled nursing homes, hospice residences
and other related healthcare and residential environments.

• The focus of the gardens is primarily on incorporating plants and friendly wildlife into the space. The
settings can be designed to include active uses such as raised planters for horticultural therapy
activities or programmed for passive uses such as quiet private sitting areas next to small pond with a
trickling waterfall.

• According to the two leaders in this field,Clare Cooper Marcus and Marni Barnes,the therapy comes
because the gardens promote:
-Relief from symptoms
-Stress reduction
-Improvement in overall sense of
wellbeing
-hopefulness

Ways in which nature is important to human beings

Why do we find nature so restorative?

One school of thought holds that it is

hardwired in our genes. Roger Ulrich, a
leading researcher in healing gardens,
summarizes it thus:” we have a kind of
biologically prepared disposition to
respond favourably to nature because we
evolved in nature. Nature was good to us,
and we tend to respond positively to
environment that were favourable to us.”

• After a stressful event, images of nature very quickly produce a calming effect –
Within three to four minutes after viewing nature scenes, blood pressure, respiration rate, brain activity, and the
production of stress hormones all decrease and mood improves.
• Nature is also fundamentally linked to our human spirituality-
Nature provides a space in which we can connect spiritually both with ourselves and outside ourselves.
• Nature provides a great distraction-
Because we are genetically programmed to find nature engrossing, we are absorbed by nature scenes and distracted
from our pain and discomfort.
• Nature reduces stress and anxiety-
plants offer psychological comfort. As one researcher in this area, lewis says “plants take away some of the anxiety and
tension of the immediate now by showing us that there are long, enduring patterns in life.” Their growth is steady and
progressive, not erratic.
History of healing gardens

• Restorative gardens first appeared in

Europe around the Middle Ages. Hospitals
and Monasteries for the sick and insane
often incorporated courtyards which
served as places for reflection, growing
food and herbs for consumption and
medicinal use, and growing flowers for use
in ceremonies.
• The space was traditionally divided into
quadrants by paths, and at the center
stood a well or fountain. During the
fourteenth and fifteenth centuries, the
monasteries declined, existing facilities
were overwhelmed, and the importance
of the gardens declined.
DESIGN ASPECTS AND ELEMENTS OF HEALING GARDEN
PLANT SELECTION
• When selecting plants materials, research
which particular species might have special
sacred or evocative meanings for the cultural
and age groups being served.
• If possible, use plants that have some
medicinal value. For an example of a garden
design using medicinal plants, visit Southern
Cross University – Medicinal Plant Garden.
• Choose plants that engage all the senses. Use a
variety of textures, scents, colors, as well as
plants that make pleasant sounds as wind
rustles their leaves. Providing seasonal interest
allows people to connect with the cycle of
nature.
SLOPES

Flowers and vegetables are planted in raised beds to create

ease of maintenance and easier access by visitors with limited
mobility.
CASE STUDY - Gardens at Lucas Gardens School, New South Wales, Australia
Gardens at Lucas Gardens School, New South Wales, Australia
This special education facility is linked to a nearby pediatric hospital. A series of courtyards have been
developed into gardens over the years. Most of the young users rely on wheelchairs or cots, and thus the
garden is universally designed to accomodate the needs of all.
CASE STUDY - Gardens at Lucas Gardens School, New South Wales, Australia
Features of a sensory garden

• It has a series of curved, raised planters that

enclose a number of “activity stations” and
provide space for sensory plantings. The
activity stations allow children to explore
different textures and play with water
through a splash table.

• There are also a number of quieter areas

useful for music therapy sessions and family
time. Other spaces include: a shade house,
compost area, grassy field, outdoor concert
stage, potting shed, earthworm bins and a
native plant propogation area. The garden
is open to the larger community. Visually
impaired and physically disabled students
from surrounding schools visit, mildly
physically disabled people engage in work
experience and a nursing home reading
group meets regularly there (Cooper Marcus
and Barnes, 1999).

• Because the garden provides for robust uses,

and is community-based it has been quite
successful.