Following a couple of years’ hiatus due to COVID-19 and some health challenges, Campus horticulturist Angie Girdham is back to offering regular plant therapy sessions through the Health Center.
A handful of students gathered in the back room of the new addition to the Health Center on March 29 to discuss their mental health and partake in plant-themed activities.
“We have a small but mighty group today,” Girdham said. “I need to get my following back after my hiatus.”
The March 29 project involved making tea lights from recycled jars, pressed flowers, and rice paper. Girdham told students to select the paper and flowers that they initially gravitated toward and that would look nice when light shined through the glass.
At the end, students wrote a word that inspired them — a term, an idea, or a name — on the battery-powered candle. Cradled in sand at the bottom of the jar, when the light was turned on, students were able to see their flowers illuminated and their chosen word through the glass.
“Our objectives for the student body are typically along these lines: To enhance our students’ general well-being through therapeutic plant-related activities, to cultivate intrinsic motivation and create a foundation for the growth of new interests or skills; providing an outlet for stress and/or anxieties, to provide a safe and supportive environment for all participants, to increase self-esteem and pride, and to allow a setting for introspective thought,” Girdham said.
Girdham works closely with Hillsdale’s Director of Health and Wellness and Clinical Counselor Brock Lutz.
“Over the years, we have had Angie lead various horticulture therapy activities,” Lutz said. “We have always received really positive feedback on the events and how they provide a way for people to learn how to be active, outside, creative, and these various activities.”
Junior Mary Ruth Oster works with Girdham and is a regular attendee of her plant therapy sessions. Oster said she is planning on opening a business in plant therapy and is a fellow in the Kehoe Fellowship for Entrepreneurial Excellence program to follow this passion.
“I went to plant therapy once my freshman year and meeting Angie and going out to the Haden Park greenhouse was such a peaceful little escape from normal campus life,” Oster said. “The sessions are meaningful because Angie is very honest about hardship and makes the session a place to relax and be your authentic self.”
Upcoming sessions will be held at 4 p.m. on weekdays and 10 a.m. on Saturdays on the following dates: April 12, 15, and May 3. Interested students can sign up via the SAB newsletter or email Girdham at agirdham@hillsdale.edu.