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Horticulttural Therapist Dee McGuire |
We may never become transplant surgeons, but nature allows all of us the opportunity to assume that role with plants, according to Dee McGuire, horticultural therapist and speaker at the July 15 patient education event.
“Given the perfect environment, you can take a cutting from one plant and transplant it to another container successfully,” she observes. The group will have the opportunity to do just that. Before the event, residents at Levindale Hebrew Geriatric Center and Hospital, where Ms. McGuire works, tested the theory in their gardening clubs. They took cuttings from begonias and African violets and placed them in large, empty pretzel containers. The plants’ environment replicated a tropical setting, which helped the plants thrive.
Ms. McGuire is bringing along those containers and will show the group how to accomplish that goal. She will also offer summer gardening tips.
Passionate about the healing powers of nature, Ms. McGuire notes that patients heal faster when they are stimulated. Gardening empowers people to nurture life—a role reversal for those who are used to receiving care.
The message is clear, says Ms. McGuire, “Living cells activate life. The pretzel container becomes the life support, just as our bodies support our organs.” And even if transplant patients are awaiting organs, we can use nature to reinforce that hope.
“When we are stressed or anxious,” offers Ms. McGuire, “we can always connect with nature. Maybe we are not well enough to get ‘down and dirty’ in our gardens, but we can enjoy nature—even on a windowsill.”
[Please note: Transplant patients should always use gloves when working with dirt and should avoid gardening for the first three months following a transplant.]
Bridges Summer 2003
