Once a week I work with a group of clients who get me so tickled. Recently, I asked one of them how many children she has and she said “15,000” confidently. Those of us who heard tried to hide our smiles. We weren’t mocking her, of course, because it was a result of her condition. …
Read more “A sense of belonging, feeling seen and heard: what clients need”
Our research on “The Effects of Therapeutic Horticulture on Student Well-being and Academic Resilience” at the University of Florida has been published in Frontiers in Psychology! Research findings demonstrated that students who took part in at least 8 weeks of therapeutic horticulture programming experienced significant reductions in stress and anxiety, and significant improvements in resilience …
Last August I bought a plant from the nursery and it came with a hitchhiker plant – a little seedling that I had not intended to purchase. It was of a different species but too young for me to identify then. As I repotted my plant, I repotted my hitchhiker plant along with it. After …
This month we conducted a series of therapeutic horticulture sessions at the National University of Singapore, with the goal of improving personal wellbeing through self-compassion and mindfulness. Activities were purposefully designed to facilitate opportunities to practice these while interacting with plants, and to talk/ponder about the hard stuff. It was an honour to be a …
Our lime tree is no stranger to feathered and winged visitors but lately, we’ve had our first resident birds – the yellow-vented bulbul! A few observations: 1. They are much more skittish than the spotted doves which have built a nest in another side of the balcony garden 2. They are fantastic weavers 3. They …
Over the last 1.5 years, I have been attending several trainings to improve on my therapeutic skills so as to better support my clients. It gets easier and more difficult at the same time. Easier because I am now better equipped with approaches and skills to empathise, listen, and support; and more difficult because each …
Several years ago I ran a gardening programme for youths at risk in a local secondary school. We didn’t use the term “therapeutic horticulture” then, but the teacher who engaged me and I were clear that the goal of the programme wasn’t centered around the food we would grow, but the youths. The intention was …
A new paper co-authored by Siang Yu has been published! This pilot study on therapeutic horticulture for chronic low back pain involved designing a therapeutic horticulture activity that incorporated a wide range of movements of the spine, as well as opportunities for interactions with plants to inspire curiosity and reduce stress and anxiety. Full text …
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Siang Yu was awarded the Florida Horticulture for Health Network 2024 Professional Service Award in recognition of her demonstrated versatility, scholarship and a willingness to undertake any task that was required to make the network successful. Thank you Florida Horticulture for Health Network for the award!
“I don’t like the ones who came after you. I didn’t like the ones before you.” On my last day at the greenhouse, I said goodbye to one of the participants from our therapeutic horticulture program whom I haven’t seen in a long time and she ended up in tears. As programs and work engagements …