The benefits of a dirty mind

Did you know there’s a bacterium in soil that can actually make you happy?

Scientific research into soil microbes – mycobacterium vaccae – has found that they can have a similar neural effect to drugs commonly prescribed for depression, but without the side-effects and chemical dependency. Apparently these microscopic wrigglies stimulate serotonin, the brain’s natural happy juice. Combined with the feel-good factor of spending time outdoors in the sun and fresh air, and the satisfaction of seeing a seedling grow and bear fruit, for me it’s a pretty powerful prescription.

Our own little patch of dirt therapy is absolutely thriving at the moment, thanks to the recent rains. Everything is growing like crazy, and we’ve got a random, scattered planting on the boil: spinach, snow peas, fennel, cauliflower, broccoli, celery, carrots, red cabbage, strawberries (and bubbleberries), shallots, an array of tasty herbs, and my lovely baby bok choi – the latter of which is pretty much good to go for a delicious stir fry or Asian-style soup this week!

 

Decs has been keenly watching over everything, and makes a daily beeline for the worm farm to see if there’s any ‘worm wee’ to help the plants along. The little guys aren’t producing much as yet – I think their ranks need a numerical boost – but we’re working on it. Envisaging tiny mouths struggling to bite through chunks of food, Steve now makes them a ‘worm smoothie’, blending up veggie scraps and egg shells with a bit of water for them. They seem to love it – it’s definitely disappearing before the less puréed stuff. No baby-worm-led weaning here!

There’s no doubt that we’re total amateurs, but what we lack in experience we make up for in enthusiasm and a willingness to experiment. Though there’s been a few casualties along the way, all in all I’m pretty happy with how it’s panning out. And more than happy that the little guy – and all of us – have the space to play with it and see what happens. Here’s to a long weekend of getting down and dirty in the patch, calming our minds while we nurture our veggies.

So does getting your hands dirty and being outdoors help you find your balance? What are you doing this weekend to slow down and find your happy?

xJen
seeding the wild