Healing gardens as a way of aiding therapy
Michał Dmitruk
m.dmitruk@pollub.plDepartment of Architecture, Urban and Spatial Planning, Faculty of Civil Engineering and Architecture, University of Lublin (Poland)
Abstract
Being close to nature always had a positive impact on human health and well-being. From the Neolithic Revolution, which began 10,000 years before our era and the start of the transition from hunting and gathering to sedentary life, people began to ascribe mystical powers to sacred gardens, groves or rock formations. In the Middle Ages, gardens were often placed near monasteries. Herbal ones for purely pragmatic, therapeutic function and recreational gardens, as places for contemplation and reverie. With the development of civilization, the presence of gardens amongst the human settlements has become a permanent part of the landscape. Their beneficial effect on the psyche and human health, as well as purely aesthetic qualities has been appreciated. With the development of modern medical techniques, the role of healing gardens has been marginalized, or entirely omitted. In Poland, medical gardens, along with hospitals and clinics are not considered an essential element of their architecture. There is a need for public education, also among architects, to force a trend, focusing on designing healing gardens along with hospital buildings. Health benefits for the patients are disproportionate to the economic costs. Yet health is the most valuable.
Keywords:
public space, landscape design, healing gardens, stress, health rehabilitation, treatmentReferences
Cooper M., 1999. Historical and cultural perspective on healing gardens. John Wiley & Sons, Nowy Jork.
Google Scholar
Gesler W., 1998. Putting health into place: landscape, identity and well-being, Syracuse, Syracuse University Press.
Google Scholar
Hensel W., Tabaczyński S., 1978. Rewolucja neolityczna i jej znaczenie dla rozwoju kultury europejskiej. Zakład Narodowy im. Osolińskich, Wrocław-Warszawa-Kraków-Gdańsk.
Google Scholar
Latkowska M.,2008. Hortiterapia – rehabilitacja i terapia przez pracę w ogrodzie. Zeszyty Problemowe Postępów Nauk Rolniczych.
Google Scholar
Kaplan S., 1995. The Restorative Benefits of nature: Toward an Integrative framework, Journal of Environmental Psychology.
DOI: https://doi.org/10.1016/0272-4944(95)90001-2
Google Scholar
Rybczyński W., 1999. A Clearing in the Distance: Frederick Law Olmsted and North America in the Nineteenth Century. Nowy Jork.
Google Scholar
Stigsdotter U. i Grahn P., 2002. What makes a garden a healing garden? Journal of Therapeutic Horticulture
Google Scholar
Szolginia W., 1992. Architektura: Sigma NOT, Warszawa.
Google Scholar
Authors
Michał Dmitrukm.dmitruk@pollub.pl
Department of Architecture, Urban and Spatial Planning, Faculty of Civil Engineering and Architecture, University of Lublin Poland
Statistics
Abstract views: 346PDF downloads: 281