THE Press family (a.k.a. the Press Gang) descended upon our favourite restaurant last week. We were supposed to be celebrating my brothers' birthday. The only trouble was that my brother wasn't there.

Well, he was, physically, but he seemed to have undergone a personality transplant. I was listening to him telling us about his potatoes, his pear tree that had fruited for the first time this year and the satisfaction that he gets from popping down to his allotment after work to water and potter.

This is the brother who, just a few years ago, would rather have been tinkering with something mechanical or using big DIY tools. Don't get me wrong, he is quite a sensitive guy and does his fair share of 'new man', but the last time he showed an interest in anything horticultural was when he ploughed furrows in the soil with his knees after tumbling off his BMX.

So what is it that makes a grown man turn to gardening? I always hold firm to the belief that it is something buried deep within our genetic makeup. We evolved with a dependency on and a respect for nature, and our understanding of it could have meant the difference between life and death. Gradually we have learnt to tame certain aspects of nature and use them to our benefit. Now, in a world of hustle and bustle, where all our needs come pre-packaged, we use our love of horticulture as a form of relaxation.

On one hand, there is the physical outlet. Gardening, at times, can be quite strenuous. Activities such as digging, barrowing, clipping, sawing and sweeping can use up copious amounts of calories. They go a long way to toning up the major muscle groups too. Exercise stimulates the 'happy' chemicals in the brain, so, although it may be hard going, we get that euphoric afterglow.

Then there is the mental side. Much of horticulture involves repetitive tasks, ones where you don't have to use up much cognitive power. This leaves your mind free to wander, and it does. You have the time to go over all those things that you normally wouldn't dwell on. One train of thought often flows into another, and so on. I have figured out many a puzzle and come up with inspirational ideas whilst weeding, mulching, pruning or hoeing.

One of my duties at Nature's World involves working with people who have had troubles, illnesses or disabilities which stop them working full-time. It is a government-backed initiative called the Work Preparation Rehabilitation Scheme, and aims to get people back into work by doing something that they enjoy. Although all the work is done in the gardens, we are also working on other skills such as social interaction, taking responsibility and getting used to the routines and stresses of a working day.

It is a two-way thing. They are doing something that they are interested in and we are getting the benefit of their labours. For me though, the biggest bonus of all is making acquaintances and getting to share in their successes. Over the past two and a half years, 90 per cent of the people who have been on this programme have gone on to employment or further education.

Horticulture as a therapy is gradually being recognised at greater levels. Trials are underway in some areas of this country where you can get a doctor's prescription for a course of gardening.

Outdoor gymnasiums have sprung up where a fitness instructor takes you through your paces amongst the shrubbery. Instead of dumbbells and resistance machines, they have spades and wheelbarrows. Hospitals are redesigning their gardens so that patients can do a bit of dead-heading or weeding as they convalesce.

It all goes to show that gardening has a positive and beneficial effect on anyone who succumbs to its temptations.

JOBS TO DO

Thin out your vegetables

Vegetable seeds that were sown straight into the soil will need thinning out now. Things like carrots, beetroot, turnips and radish. Pull out the smallest in each instance and leave a good two inches between each plant.

Cut down perennials

Remember to cut down and deadhead the perennials in your borders and pots as they go over. Things like geraniums, lupins, iris, etc. will look tidier, be less likely to contract disease and may even put on a second flowering.

Take layered cuttings

Plants like Rhododendrons, azaleas, hops and jasmine often have branches or stems brushing the ground. They can all be air-layered. This is where you make a small cut to the underside of a low branch (near a node if possible) and peg it into the soil. By next spring you should be able to see roots developing at the site and can cut it off from its parent and pot it up.

DON'T FORGET...

If you have any gardening questions, need some advice or would even like to share your favourite horticultural tip, then phone Brigid on the Garden Hour on Radio Cleveland, Sundays 11am-12 noon.

Published: 22/06/2002