Bolt Burdon Kemp (BBK) Grow A Pear – Growing for Wellbeing
At BBK we are committed to wellbeing and supporting our people to look after their health. Last year when UK entered lockdown, we noticed many were taking up gardening. ‘Grow A Pear’ started over Zoom to not only enable colleagues to stay connected but also to encourage them to engage in an activity which supports both physical and mental wellbeing.
Wellbeing benefits of gardening
Mind, the mental health charity says “spending time in green space or bringing nature into your everyday life can benefit both your mental and physical wellbeing. For example, doing things like growing food or flowers, exercising outdoors or being around animals can have lots of positive effects”.
This year the theme for Mental Health Awareness Week celebrated between 10th and 16th May 2021 was all about nature and how nature can support our mental health and wellbeing. At BBK we actively reminded people about the benefits of spending time in nature which included their own green spaces. Law Care’s (a charity providing information and support to anyone experiencing mental health and wellbeing problems within the legal community) ‘Recharge in Nature’ top 10 tips include: “grow your own vegetables, plants or flowers, in a garden, balcony or just a pot on a windowsill. Gardening is proven to benefit your mental health”.
Gardening has proven links to physical wellbeing too, a Harvard Medical School article discussed by RHS states “the number of calories burnt from 30 minutes of gardening is comparable to playing badminton or practicing yoga”.
Gardening updates, tips, stories and successes!
Now in its second year, Grow A Pear runs from spring to early autumn. It provides a platform to exchange tips, share gardening updates, stories and successes of our people within the firm.
Sharing gardening information on numerous topics, such as how to:
- encourage pollinators into the garden,
- take care of houseplants,
- provide best plant living and watering conditions,
- grow in a more environmentally friendly way,
- understand plant feed and make our own compost
We have received numerous photos, comments from our people about their green fingered adventures and successes. Some of them are listed below:
Pollinators – “We decided to give part of the lawn to wildflower/grass with positive results we think as the wild flowers are coming through. Chives are a great addition to the flower bed and are coveted by the bees”.
Courgette success – “I grew courgette plants from seed, planting out in the garden early May. They have been doing great since. I’ve now got 7 courgette plants!”
Gardening with family – “Our 3 year old absolutely loves being in the garden and tending to the plants, it’s a great way to enthuse little ones into healthy eating”
Healing houseplants – “Growing Aloe Vera which is good for cuts and burns, Pilea or Chinese Money Plants which is good for improving air quality”
Rescuing flowers – “I grew the lupines and the bottle brush plant as rescues from last year and my rose plant from Horatio’s Garden, it smells divine!”
Garden decoration – “My magical gnome garden to cheer up passers-by!”
It has been another great Grow a Pear season! We will be rounding off soon in early October in collaboration with BBK’s Baking for Elevenses club, where we will be using our own harvests or local seasonal produce to inspire our bakes!
