ORIGINAL RESEARCH

published: 11 November 2021

doi: 10.3389/fpubh.2021.740187

Home Garden With Eco-Healing

Functions Benefiting Mental Health
and Biodiversity During and After the
COVID-19 Pandemic: A Scoping
Review
Xindi Zhang 1 , Yixin Zhang 1,2* and Jun Zhai 1
1
Department of Landscape Architecture, Soochow University, Suzhou, China, 2 Collaborative Innovation Center of
Architecture and Urban Environment of Soochow University-Suzhou Yuanke; China-Portugal Belt and Road Cooperation
Laboratory of Cultural Heritage Conservation Science, Research Center of Landscape Protection and Ecological Restoration,
Soochow University, Suzhou, China

The COVID-19 pandemic has led to tremendous impacts on human lives and society,
which are not only because of negative effects on people’s mental health due to isolation
policies and physical distance for mitigating the spread of SARS-CoV-2, but also because
the incident post-acute sequelae of the coronavirus will cause mental disorders. A green
Edited by:
environment is a health resource, which cannot only benefit human physical and mental
Wulf Rössler, health, but also increases biodiversity, contributes to flood mitigation, and cools urban
Charité – Universitätsmedizin areas. A home garden, as a kind of small green space, can provide ecosystem services
Berlin, Germany
with eco-healing functions in reducing mental stress during the isolation period of the
Reviewed by:
Ye Liu, COVID-19 pandemic through the garden itself and physical activities in it. Such an
Sun Yat-sen University, China eco-healing approach within a mini-therapeutic landscape can also benefit biodiversity
Zheng Feei Ma,
Universiti Sains Malaysia Health
by enhancing plant diversity in residence and increasing biodiversity at a large scale. In
Campus, Malaysia this article, we propose a conceptual framework describing a home garden as “ecological
*Correspondence: medicine” with healing functions to improve mental health, as well as indirectly enhancing
Yixin Zhang urban biodiversity. A home garden, as a mini-type of green landscape with biodiversity
[email protected]
content, allows people to get close with nature so that it can promote comfortable
Specialty section: and natural feelings during the pandemic. Furthermore, such an eco-healing home
This article was submitted to garden approach benefiting urban biodiversity can meet the challenges in maintaining
Public Mental Health,
a section of the journal
environmental and mental health in post COVID-19 pandemic recovery, as well as
Frontiers in Public Health preparing unknown next-surge risks with potential isolation regulations.
Received: 26 July 2021
Keywords: green environments, biodiversity, ecosystem services, nature-based-solution, plants and animals
Accepted: 11 October 2021
Published: 11 November 2021

Citation: INTRODUCTION
Zhang XD, Zhang YX and Zhai J
(2021) Home Garden With
The 2019 coronavirus disease (COVID-19) pandemic sweeping the world has had a profound
Eco-Healing Functions Benefiting
Mental Health and Biodiversity During
impact on all aspects of human society. It was calculated that the global cumulative number of
and After the COVID-19 Pandemic: A people suffering from COVID-19 was over 157 million, and the death rate had reached 3.29 million
Scoping Review. in May 2021 (1). Throughout the COVID-19 pandemic, countries have enforced stay-at-home
Front. Public Health 9:740187. advisories or shelter-in-place and border control policies to control the spread of the coronavirus
doi: 10.3389/fpubh.2021.740187 SARS-CoV-2. And now, as the pandemic is almost under control, policies have changed, stating

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Zhang et al. Home Garden With Eco-Healing Functions

that residents or visitors entering from abroad should be COVID-19 pandemic and in the future, and (b) exploring the
tested for COVID-19 and quarantined for more than 14 positive effects of home gardening, a kind of physical activity, on
days immediately. mental health during the isolation period.
The policies during the pandemic reduced the likelihood of
people getting along with others (2, 3), and the loneliness of
isolation accompanied by the fear of the COVID-19 pandemic,
CONCEPTUAL MODEL
the stress of economic downturn, and the increasing amount For achieving mental health and benefiting biodiversity through
of unemployment also affected people’s mental health (4–9). It green space, a conceptual model of green space (home garden) for
indicated that the proportion of the population suffering from biodiversity and mental health under the COVID-19 pandemic
depression during the COVID-19 pandemic in the U.S. was three is proposed (Figure 1). The logical framework of green space
times higher than before (4, 10). And data collected from the (home garden) to improve mental health is linked to its eco-
Household Pulse Survey showed that more than 35% of adults healing effects as “ecological medicine” in reducing mental
in the U.S. experienced anxiety or depressive disorder during problems and stress which are caused by being unable to visit
February to March 2021, while the data collected from January green spaces and parks.
to June 2019 were 8.2% for anxiety disorder, 6.6% for depressive
disorder, and 11.0% for anxiety or depressive disorder. A high-
dimensional approach also identified that incident post-acute METHODS
sequelae of the COVID-19 included neurocognitive disorders Strategy for Selection of Articles
and mental disorders (11). In the long run, mental health risks
In order to carry out the scoping review, electronic journal
associated with the COVID-19 pandemic can be more harmful
databases (Web of Science, Science Direct, Google Scholar, Johns
than the virus itself (12, 13). Thus, it is necessary to find a green
Hopkins University and Medicine, WHO, and other databases)
and sustainable solution to meet the challenges.
were used to collect literature and other information. Firstly,
For mental disorders, the traditional treatment is psychiatric
over 200 articles in the last 20 years were selected by searching
medication (14–16). However, the use of medications can have
topic words including human health (set 1: “the COVID-19,”
unwarranted side effects. In addition, traditional psychiatric
“psychological health,” “mental health,” or “morbidity”), green
treatment may be associated with stigmatizing attitudes in
space (set 2: “green space,” “home garden,” “balcony garden,”
general, while complementary or alternative therapies are widely
or “biodiversity”), and activities (set 3: “home gardening”).
accepted (17), such as plant and horticultural therapy.
At the same time, psychological health or mental health was
Plant-based or gardening-based horticultural therapy can lead
combined with some keywords like COVID-19, green space,
to a reduction in the prevalence of distress such as depression,
home garden, balcony garden, and home gardening. For a
stress, and anxiety, and they can improve mental health (18, 19).
thorough understanding, references in relevant articles were
The rehabilitative effects of horticultural therapy are based on the
also reviewed. Secondly, to be included in the article, literature
theories of green spaces’ healing functions to benefit people not
had to meet the following criteria through a review of the
only physically but also psychologically (20–24). These healing
abstract, introduction, and methods: (a) first-hand research
functions depend on the health of the human environment, the
articles were preferred, (b) findings were directly applicable to the
functions of the ecosystem (25, 26), and biodiversity (27). The
mental health promotion of home garden or home gardening,
promoting effects are positively correlated with the increase of
and (c) articles had high impact. Based on these, over 100
greenness and proximity to green space (28). And the main
articles from 68 scientific journals in health, medicine, ecology,
benefit is that more physical exercise in green space can have
landscape, environmental sciences, and other relevant areas were
effects on reducing greenhouse gas emissions and enhancing
finally selected. Lastly, we divided the collected articles into two
more appreciation of natural environment and biodiversity (29).
categories: (a) the positive influence of a home garden on mental
The established aspects of green space with biodiversity can make
health, and (b) the promotion of home gardening on mental
significant contributions to physical and mental health (25, 27).
health (Table 1).
Based on the theories of psychological treatment and
horticultural therapy, the concept of “ecological medicine,” which
The Procedures
is one type of nature-based solution, has emerged for improving
As it was difficult to conduct a systematic review or meta-
mental health through natural space. “Ecological medicine”
analysis, we decided to conduct a scoping review. Based on the
mainly refers to a home garden and home gardening in this article
literature we collected and selected, we summarized two broad
because the isolation policies reduced the opportunities of access
themes to organize the review (Table 1). And this study mainly
to public green space during the COVID-19 pandemic, and a
focuses on examining if a home garden and home gardening
home garden can provide mental health services in limited areas.
promote mental health directly or indirectly during and after the
Especially, “ecological medicine” has not only therapeutic effects,
COVID-19 pandemic:
but also ecological and sustainable effects, such as lowering
the temperature, improving air quality, and increasing urban (1) To think about the solutions of mental health needs during
biodiversity. The objectives of this article dealing with the home the lockdowns period of the COVID-19 pandemic, the
garden are: (a) reviewing and examining how a home garden, a articles discussing the benefits of green space (home garden)
kind of green space, can contribute to mental health during the or gardening on mental health were searched and collected.

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Zhang et al. Home Garden With Eco-Healing Functions

FIGURE 1 | The conceptual model of effects of green space/home garden on reducing mental problems under the pandemic (scenario) and benefiting biodiversity. It
shows the logical framework of the green space with eco-healing effects. To control the COVID-19 pandemic, stay-at-home advisories or shelter-in-place policies
were published. But, on the other hand, some mental issues including the feelings of stress, fear, and loneliness increased. Green space as one nature-based solution
has been proven to relieve mental problems and stress through restoration (restoring and building capacities), maintenance (environmental perception), and protection
(protection). And it also increases urban biodiversity through plants and animals. Due to the low likelihood of people accessing public green spaces, a home garden is
mentioned. So the home garden, a kind of green space at a small scale, is good for mental health during the COVID-19 pandemic and has an indirect positive effect
on combating the challenges of the pandemic. Thus, the idea of using green space, a kind of natural solution, to improve mental health and urban biodiversity not only
during the pandemic but also in daily life is raised.

TABLE 1 | The table shows some literature discussing aspects of (A) the positive influence of a home garden on mental health; (B) the promoting effects of home
gardening (a kind of physical activity) on mental health.

Study characteristics
(A) The positive influence of a home garden on mental health
keywords: green space, home garden, balcony garden, biodiversity, psychological health, mental health

Aspect Study

(i) More areas with green space can result in better mental health; Almanza et al. (30); Annerstedt et al. (31); Arslan et al. (32); Campbell et al. (25); Carrus
(ii) More frequently entering into green space can lead to fewer mental et al. (33); Cox et al. (34); Cracknell et al. (35); Dadvand et al. (28); De Jong et al. (36); De
problems; Vries et al. (37); DeSchriver and Riddick (38); Dong et al. (39); Dzhambov et al. (40);
(iii) Green spaces improve mental health through three main stages, Engemann et al. (20); Fuller et al. (41); Fuller and Gaston (42); Gascon et al. (43); Gascon
including restoration, maintenance, and protection; et al. (44); Goldstein et al. (45); Grahn et al. (46); Han, (47); Hartig et al. (21); Hartig and
(iv) Biodiversity makes significant contributions to mental health; Kahn (48); Jackson (26); Kumar et al. (22); Li et al. (49); Markevych et al. (50); Mitchell (51);
(v) Contact with nature can reduce stress, anxiety, and other Mytton et al. (52); Sarkar et al. (53); Taylor and Hochuli (27); Tzoulas et al. (23); Ulrich et al.
negative emotions. (54); Van den Berg et al. (24); Van Renterghem (55); Wells (56); White et al. (57); Wild-Eck
(58); Wilkie et al. (59); Wilkie et al. (60); Wu et al. (61); Young et al. (62).

(B) The promotion of home gardening on mental health

keywords: home gardening, psychological health, mental health

Aspect Study

(i) Home gardening can be good for mental health through relaxation and Chalmin-Pui et al. (63); Chang et al. (64); Corley et al. (65); Dennis et al. (66); Dzhambov
restoration; et al. (67); Korn et al. (68); Lachowycz and Jones (69); Lakhani et al. (70); Pouso et al. (71);
(ii) Home gardening can strengthen human contact with the natural Sofo and Sofo (72); Soga et al. (73); Theodorou et al. (74)
environment;
(iii) Home gardening can improve physical health to promote mental health.

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Zhang et al. Home Garden With Eco-Healing Functions

The mental health benefits of exposure to nature can be public places like shopping malls, gyms, and schools, and also
found in both direct and indirect aspects. The direct aspect discouraging social gatherings. In addition, many countries took
is about the benefits of nature factors, such as natural colors, stricter measures, such as imposing total lockdowns or even
natural sounds, and animals, while the indirect aspect is curfews (75). However, such measures have led to a more
about benefits like increasing physical activities. sedentary shift to unhealthy lifestyles through people staying
(2) The mechanisms of a home garden and home gardening on away from work, schools, or gyms (76, 77).
mental health promotion were also analyzed by summarizing A study investigating the effects of stay-at-home policies
and exploring the benefits of gardens’ components including taken during the COVID-19 pandemic on human eating
water, plants, animals, and so on. And then we developed a behaviors, physical activities, and body weight showed that
framework about the benefits between home garden/home participants spent less time exercising and more time sitting
gardening and mental health. The framework can be used or lying each day, which would lead to weight gain (78).
not only during the COVID-19 pandemic but also after it. Therefore, policy interventions to ensure control of the COVID-
19 pandemic should be accompanied by attention to maintaining
RESULTS a healthy lifestyle.
In this context, a home garden, an important part of green
Overview: Effects of a Home Garden and space, becomes the preferred option to deal with the dual
Home Gardening on Promoting Mental pressure of lockdown policies and mental health needs. A study
Health of physical and mental health effects of a home garden using
Green spaces including home gardens and balcony gardens among older adults in Scotland during the COVID-19 pandemic
have positive influences on mental health (Table 1A), and suggested that a home garden had positive benefits on subjective
home gardening also has a promoting effect on mental health well-being, including physical and mental health (65).
(Table 1B). Thus, during and after the COVID-19 pandemic, It has also indicated that a home garden promotes mental
green space (home garden) will be “ecological medicine” for health through not only itself but also activities such as home
mental health. gardening. On the one hand, a home garden, along with other
types of green space, provides opportunities for people to interact
Analysis: Odds Ratios for Describing the directly with nature which is beneficial to mental health (79, 80).
Positive Effects A home garden can provide people with sunshine and fresh air,
Green spaces have positive effects on improving mental health which can have indirect mental health benefits, including helping
(42, 53). People living closer to urban green spaces are often with sleep and eating patterns (81, 82). In addition, spending time
associated with lower mental distress (57) because of the in a home garden involves physical activities, which can promote
buffering effect of green space in reducing negative feelings, such physical strength, health, and flexibility, and additionally, provide
as depression and anxiety (Figure 2). And it can promote mental mental health benefits (83). And it also shows that spending time
health through sight, hearing, touch, and smell. The relationship in a home garden can provide opportunities for people to interact
between greenness and the individual situation of Figure 2 is with their neighbors while obeying social distancing, thereby
reflected by odds ratio (OR) which uses Equation (1): promoting a sense of community and social connection, and
also indirectly improving mental health (37) especially during
A/B AD the lockdowns.
OR = = (1)
C/D BC Thus, a home garden as a potential health resource can
play the role of “ecological medicine” during the COVID-19
A: number of exposed persons in the case group.
pandemic. Following on, this article will focus on discussing (a)
B: number of non-exposed persons in the case group.
the mechanisms of a home garden on mental health, and (b) the
C: number of exposed people in the control group.
positive effects of home gardening on mental health.
D: number of non-exposed people in the control group.
A home garden acts as an important kind of green space in
a balcony or courtyard, it can also provide space for home The Mechanisms of a Home Garden
gardening so that people can reduce mental problems through Promoting Mental Health During the
physical exercise. Green space complexity can vary dramatically COVID-19 Pandemic
in contributing to benefiting human mental health, and green A home garden is a small ecosystem which can provide ecosystem
spaces with higher species richness can also have greater mental services, and enhance human health at a small scale, including
benefits (41). improving mental health, mitigating allergies, and reducing all-
cause, respiratory, cardiovascular, and cancer mortality (84). And
DISCUSSION it also shows that a home garden can benefit mental health
directly through three main stages: (a) restoration, i.e., recovery
The Home Garden as “Ecological from stress (37), (b) maintenance (40, 44, 50), and (c) protection
Medicine” During the COVID-19 Pandemic (37, 40, 44, 50).
In order to control the spread of the COVID-19 pandemic, People with mental problems will show high stress, low
governments quickly took protective measures, such as closing attention, and low interest. A home garden has been proved

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Zhang et al. Home Garden With Eco-Healing Functions

FIGURE 2 | By searching data from the previous studies, the relationship between greenness and individual situation (see Appendix A for references) is reflected by
odds ratios (ORs). If the OR < 1, it means that there is a negative correlation between the two factors. And it will be positive between two factors if the OR is more
than one. There are four pairs of relationships that are positively correlated: (b) residential surrounding greenness and mental health, (c) residential surrounding
greenness and mental health, (h) perceived greenness and mental health, and (i) green space and physical activity, which indicate that greenness will promote mental
health and physical activity. In addition, negative correlations of scenarios with mental problems are: (a) NDVI over 350 m, which represents the greenness assessed
by the Normalized Difference Vegetation Index (NDVI) surrounding a residence over 350 m, (d) surrounding greenness over 100, 300, and 500 m, (e) amount of green
over 100, 300, and 500 m, and (f) (g) a 1-interquartile range increase in greenness. The solid lines represent the range of the relationship, and the dashed lines indicate
the potential range of the relationship.

to improve mental health through restoring capacities, which exercise more frequently in locations with more green space than
means attention restoration (54, 59, 60), stress recovery (46, 85), in locations with less green space (30).
and increasing physical activity (51, 52). A study taken among And maintenance means that higher perceived green space
116 college students in Taiwan showed that 15-min exercise in and satisfaction of the residential environment can potentially
an area with at least 40% visible greenery was good for attention maintain mental health (36, 39, 69), and the higher levels
restoration (47). Higher green levels will result in lower stress of greenness will result in higher levels of satisfaction.
levels (85), and the more time and higher frequency of access to The greenery visible from home and in the neighborhood
green space can also lead to less stress (46). In addition, greenness was associated with a decrease in depression and anxiety
is also positively correlated with the frequency of physical activity symptoms. More houseplants indoors or in gardens are
(52). A survey taken in California showed that children would associated with better mental health, which supports the

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Zhang et al. Home Garden With Eco-Healing Functions

hypothesis of the mental health-support effects of indoor alternative for people to undertake physical activities within a
greenery (67). limited area.
During the COVID-19 pandemic, in addition to the pandemic While doing home gardening, people can improve mental
itself, some environmental factors, such as a climate change- health not only through taking part in physical activities, but
related urban heat island, can also affect mental health. Research also through getting in touch with nature. Evidence has also
has indicated that climate change can affect mental health shown that plant fragrance or color can improve mental health
indirectly through affecting physical health, for example, extreme (32, 41, 58, 91), and natural sounds can relax people and support
heat can cause heat stroke in vulnerable people and lead to recovery by suggesting proximity to nature (31, 55). In addition,
mental health problems, including an increased suicide rate (86). some components and elements of a home garden, such as water
Green spaces with trees and vegetation can lower land surface (92) and flowering plants (49), were proved to be better for
temperature by providing shade and through evapotranspiration, mental health. Besides, medicinal and aromatic plants are also
and a study in Suzhou, China showed that a 10% increase in green good choices for home gardens which can stimulate the senses
space coverage was associated with a 1.41◦ C reduction in surface of garden users (32).
temperature (61), which could reduce the urban heat island effect The isolation policies during the COVID-19 pandemic
to release the pressure of heat stroke. In a similar way, a home reduced communication among people and communities, as well
garden and active interactions with indoor plants can also be an as reduced people’s access to public green space for exercise. A
interactive ecological buffer that reduces mental stress through home garden, as a kind of green space which can be built in
suppressing sympathetic nervous system activity and promoting balconies, yards, or other areas, can increase the likelihood of
feelings of comfort, soothing, and naturalness (87), which then, exposure to green space and increase physical activity so that it
improves mental health during the pandemic. can benefit mental health not only in high-income areas but also
In general, a home garden can provide the sustainable use in low-income communities (68).
of natural resources and ecosystem services through plants, in Therefore, a green space/home garden can play a role of
terms of health, economic, productive effects (72), and it can also “ecological medicine” and a natural solution to reduce mental
make a beneficial contribution to urban biodiversity conservation problems during and after the pandemic. And home gardening
(88). Though the lockdowns during the pandemic reduced the has also been proved to be good for mental health (93). In the lack
likelihood of people encountering outdoor green space, the of access to green space (69) during the lockdown period of the
home garden can be a new way to replace public green space COVID-19 pandemic, a home garden, a small-scale green space,
and improve mental health through restoration, maintenance, becomes a rational alternative for contacting greenery (65) by
and protection. increasing the frequency of access to green space and increasing
physical activities.

The Positive Effects of Home Gardening, a

Kind of Physical Activity, on Mental Health
Research has found that mental health is positively associated RECOMMENDATIONS
with the frequency of access to green space and the presence
of green window views (the greenery outside the window
“Ecological Medicine” for Achieving
brought by the community greenery, balcony greenery, courtyard Mental Health Through Natural Solutions
greenery, vertical greenery, and so on) (73), which can also Using a Home Garden
benefit recovery from sickness (89). Based on this, a home garden The World Health Organization (WHO) defined human health
can be a source of greenery with a significant mitigating effect as “a state of complete physical, mental, and social well-being
on mental problems through these two aspects (66), especially and not merely the absence of disease or infirmity” in 1948, and
during the isolation period of the COVID-19 pandemic. the definition has not been amended since then. While fighting
An online survey taken in April 2020 collected 1,491 adults’ with the COVID-19 pandemic, we cannot ignore the increasing
reports and showed that there were negative changes in physical number and harm of mental problems. So “ecological medicine,”
activity during the COVID-19 pandemic which was associated a kind of natural solution, will become a good choice to achieve
with higher depression, anxiety, and stress symptoms (90). In mental health when a lot of medical resources are invested in the
view of this phenomenon, a home garden can be a choice for treatment of the virus (Figure 3).
increasing physical activity, such as home gardening, which is “Ecological medicine” as a nature-based method can deal
good for mental health (45, 70). And a survey among 5,766 with issues of mental problems during the isolation and physical
gardeners and 249 non-gardeners within the UK showed that distance period through ecosystem services from a home garden.
gardening at least 2–3 times a week could result in better Some ecosystem services are related to human health and well-
mental health (63). There was also a similar survey taken during being, such as mitigating allergies, heat, noise, and air pollution,
the Italian lockdown from March to May 2020 indicating that as well as improving mental health (84). A national survey
participation in gardening activities could promote mental health taken in Singapore by online questionnaires among 1,262 people
by reducing stress from the COVID-19 pandemic (74). Due to the showed that high life satisfaction, which improved mental health,
isolation policies during the COVID-19 pandemic, people could was positively associated with nature experiences and views from
not go to the park to relax, so the home garden became a good windows (64).

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Zhang et al. Home Garden With Eco-Healing Functions

FIGURE 3 | The diagram shows the mechanisms of “ecological medicine” in which the logical framework is discussed in Figure 1. And the diagram also shows some
plant species in a home garden for mental health. The government gives stay-at-home advisories or shelter-in-place policies in order to control the spread of the
COVID-19 pandemic. However, people will feel stress, tension, fear, anxiety, and loneliness due to isolation from society. A home garden, a kind of green space, can
improve mental health through natural sounds (birds sounds or water sounds), aroma, color, and vegetation, and it can also benefit biodiversity through more kinds of
plants and animals. What is more, it can also increase the frequency of physical activity, such as home gardening, which can give people opportunities to get in
contact with nature and release mental stress to improve mental health, as well as benefit biodiversity conservation. The benefits of these can be summarized into
three stages: restoration (attention restoration, stress recovery, and increasing physical activity), maintenance (higher quality of green space and residential
environment can potentially maintain mental health), and protection (home garden as a buffer between human and harm from the environment). And the pathway of
this is called “ecological medicine” which is a kind of nature-based solution. Image (left-down picture of a home garden): https://mooool.com/the-garden-house-in-
the-city-by-christos-pavlou-architecture.html.

Many studies have indicated that a home garden can improve participants (N 1 = 39; N 2 = 40) (35). And a home garden
mental health through increasing physical activity (45, 63, constitutes a key center for biodiversity conservation (94). In a
70). Flowering plants in a home garden have better effects home garden, medicinal and aromatic plants can significantly
on mental health than foliage plants. A study among 150 increase biodiversity (95) and be good choices for healing
college students showed a 10-min image of an impact to because they stimulate the senses of garden users to relieve
participants in order to elicit stress. After 5 min of recovery, mental disorders (32). According to the WHO (World Health
the participants were randomly divided into three groups: those Organization), (96), around 80% of people in all developing
that looked at (a) red geraniums, (b) only green leaves, and (c) countries use medicinal plants as a primary source of health care
nothing. The results showed that the participants significantly and sometimes as the only available treatment. And some studies
recovered from the pressure after seeing the red-flowered have shown that many kinds of plants, such as Brugmansia
geranium, and it was very obvious compared with the other two arborea, Cyperus prolixus, and Ruta graveolens, can be used to
groups (49). treat bad moods (95).
Additionally, higher biodiversity was shown to be greater However, allergenic plants should be avoided in a home
for mental benefits by a study taken in the UK among 79 garden as they can be associated with the prevalence of allergy

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Zhang et al. Home Garden With Eco-Healing Functions

diseases (97), which will cause more serious mental distress. It Home Garden, a Small-Scale Green Space,
has been indicated that exposure to pollen from some allergenic Can Promote Mental Health With Home
plants is associated with severe allergy symptoms (98). Therefore,
Gardening
we need to pay special attention to control the application of
Home garden/home gardening can be “ecological medicine” to
allergenic plants (especially flowers that undergo pollination by
provide mental health benefits through restoration, maintenance,
wind, e.g., plant species belonging to genera Acer, Tilia, Betula,
and protection during the isolation policies. In home gardens,
Populus, Platanus, Celtis, Aesculus, Thuja, Ulmus, Robinia, and
people cannot only get in close contact with nature through
Quercus) (99) and increase the area of non-allergenic plants, so as
sensual messages (touching, seeing, smelling, and listening), but
to reduce the pollen concentration of allergenic plants in the air.
also divert their negative emotions through gardening and release
What is more, being surrounded by natural sounds (birds
the pressure of mental disorders. Additionally, home gardening
sounds or water sounds) has been proved to be helpful to reduce
along with urban green nature has great potential to be a “nature-
stress (31) through relaxing people and supporting recovery by
based solution” for improving public mental health during the
suggesting proximity to nature (55). It has also been proved that
pandemic, and it can also indirectly contribute to the control of
animal watching not only makes participants lower their pulse
the COVID-19 pandemic.
rate and muscle tone, and increase their skin temperature, but
also provides positive natural feelings to benefit mental health
(38, 56). Biodiversity Increasing due to Home
In order to control the spread of the virus, the U.S. Gardens for Mental Health
government established stay-at-home advisories or shelter-in- Mental benefits are also positively associated with the biodiversity
place policies to implement extraordinary physical distance of plants and animals (33, 34, 62). There is also evidence that
interventions so that people could not access community green green spaces with wildlife may be better for mental health because
spaces, parks, and other public places for activities (8, 100). they can provoke a sense of connection with the whole of
However, a home garden as a green space at a small scale has nature (91), and afternoon bird abundances can benefit well-
been proved to be beneficial to mental health by increasing the being through increasing interactions (34). A home garden can
frequency of access to green space, views from windows, and be a kind of small green space in urban areas benefiting mental
physical activity. During the isolation period of the COVID-19 health, and a complex network of home gardens in cities can
pandemic, a home garden became a new choice for people to provide a positive effect on improving urban biodiversity (112).
get in touch with nature. So people could use their balconies
or private courtyards for gardening and build their own home “Ecological Medicine” Is an Efficient
gardens to make contact with nature and release stress, and
relieve loneliness and other mental problems. And in a home
Healing Alternative to Improve Mental
garden, flowering, medicinal, and aromatic plants will be better Health—Nature Experience as a
for mental health (32, 49). Natural sounds from birds or water Determinant of Mental Health
are also proved to be good for mental health (31, 55). With these To deal with the negative effects of isolation and social distance
findings, people can design and build their home gardens to relax policies on mental health, a home garden and gardening
and exercise for their mental health. can be effective approaches for people re-connecting to green
During the COVID-19 pandemic, people could use this environments to provide a nature experience with eco-healing
“ecological medicine” as a new way to maintain mental health effects on maintaining mental health, and it may also reduce the
through a home garden and home gardening which are less health burden due to COVID-induced disability and sequelae
harmful and more sustainable ways to reduce stress, tension, across all age groups, including neurocognitive disorders and
fear, anxiety, and loneliness from the virus or the lockdowns and mental health disorders (11, 113). Natural sounds, vegetation
improve their mental health. color and shape, plant fragrance, and so on coming from a home
garden can help improve mental health through sense organs by
hearing, seeing, touching, and smelling (32, 41, 58, 91). A home
CONCLUSIONS garden, with flowers, animals (e.g., bees, butterflies), medicinal
herbs, and so on, not only has the benefits of increasing green
The COVID-19 pandemic has disrupted the normal rhythm of habitats and supporting urban biodiversity (plants, animals, and
life in the world over the past 17 months, and will continue to soil microbiome), but also has the advantages of being accessible
affect people’s health for an uncertain period of time, especially at any time, with nature experience (gardening) effects on
mental health (101–107). Due to the shortage of mental health cognitive functioning, emotional well-being, and other multiple
professionals and the sharply increasing demand for mental dimensions of mental health. Balconies, backyards, or courtyards
assistance or interventions for the general population (108–110), can be designed and built with effective nature-based solutions
it is urgent and crucial to define rational nature-based practices with eco-healing effects to improve public mental health during
that are developed for mental health care (111). The stay-at-home lockdowns of the pandemic and indirectly help contain the
and lockdown policies during the COVID-19 pandemic have COVID-19 pandemic. And in the future, such eco-healing home
made home gardens a rational alternative choice for promoting gardens can be an approach to meet challenges in mental health
mental health. not only in post COVID-19 pandemic recovery, but also in risks

Frontiers in Public Health | www.frontiersin.org 8 November 2021 | Volume 9 | Article 740187

Zhang et al. Home Garden With Eco-Healing Functions

of future unknown pandemic surges with isolation and physical (SU-SY) Collaborative Innovation Center of Architecture
distancing regulations. and Urban Environment. This project was also supported
by the National Key Research and Development Program
AUTHOR CONTRIBUTIONS of China (grant no. 2021YFE0200100; China-Portugal Belt
and Road Cooperation Laboratory of Cultural Heritage
XDZ and YXZ designed this study and wrote the manuscript. JZ Conservation Science).
discussed this manuscript. All authors contributed to the article
and approved the submitted version. ACKNOWLEDGMENTS
FUNDING The authors wish to thank the reviewers for their constructive
comments and rational suggestions, which helped us to
YXZ’s research is partially supported by a grant significantly improve this manuscript. YXZ thank the SU-SY
(p113800618) of Soochow University-Suzhou Yuanke Collaborative Innovation Center.

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APPENDIX A
Table A1 | Odds ratios (ORs) for the association between greenness and individual situations.

Model OR Author

NO. Greenness Individual situations

(a) NDVI over 350 m Serious mental distress 0.64–0.96 Wang et al. (114)
(b) Residential surrounding greenness over 100, Mental health 1.32, 1.25, and 1.17 Dadvand et al. (28)
250, and 500 m
(c) Residential proximity to green space 1.20–1.30
(d) Surrounding greenness over 100, 300, and Depression 0.54, 0.59, and 0.63 Gascon et al. (44)
500 m
(e) Amount of green over 100, 300, and 500 m 0.95, 0.47, and 0.60
(f) A one-interquartile range increase in High depressive symptoms among middle school 0.81–0.87 Bezold et al. (115)
greenness (6th−8th grade) students
(g) High depressive symptoms among high school 0.92–0.98
(9th−12th grade) students
(h) Perceived greenness Mental health 1.00–1.93 Sugiyama et al. (116)
(i) Green space Physical activity 1.00–1.24 Mytton et al. (52)

Nine pairs of interrelationships were extracted from six articles, and whether the relationships between them were positive or negative was reflected by the odds ratios.

Frontiers in Public Health | www.frontiersin.org 13 November 2021 | Volume 9 | Article 740187