If you have been gardening for any length of time, even if it's just one year, or maybe you

just have herbs on your window sill, then you know what a benefit gardening is to mental health.

It truly came as a surprise to me.

You know my background is in psychology, that's what I got my bachelor's degree in, but then I didn't

pursue it as a vocation. Still, I had that background, but I was shocked when I would go out in my garden

on a November day and I would plant my garlic and I would come back inside, rejuvenated and refreshed.

To me, it's still somewhat mysterious to me, but let me tell you,

I wouldn't give it up for the world. As we are headed into the winter season, for those of us in

the northern hemisphere, I am well aware that this is the time of year that I know I tend to

struggle more mentally.

It's something that I have encountered most years ever since I was in college.

And it has made me honestly dread this time of year.

And if I have struggled with this in a normal year, I have to be honest with you that I am a

tad worried about the extra pressures of 2020

on mental health for myself this year going into winter and I have a feeling that I am not

alone. Both my own personal experience and the increased stress of 2020, coupled with so many of you who have

started gardening for the first time this year, who have embraced it as a way to cope with

what we've all been dealing with this year, has led me to want to address this on the podcast.

And to do that, I have brought on my internet friend Whitney Caves. She is a licensed professional

counselor from Mississippi and she and I have been communicating online about her garden for

quite a long time. If you are a member of the Beginners Garden Shortcut Facebook group, you may

recognize her name and she's also very active on Instagram and I'm

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