Seek out the garden for physical emotional wellness

April showers brought May flowers and our roses are in peak bloom this month. Their beauty is much needed in today's upside-down world. COVID-19 has left our regulated lives and schedules upended and in turmoil, and us with them. Social distancing has mandated the cancellation of many events including gardening seminars, rose shows and garden tours. But gardening has not been canceled. It is safe and therapeutic.

Gardening is good for us physically

Don't ever underestimate the amount of exercise you can get in a garden. Right now, our gyms are closed, but our gardens are an ideal place to work out, keep fit and burn calories. Think about all the varied movements we make when we garden. We bend, squat, lift, pull, push, carry and stretch. And if you want to add some cardiovascular exercise to the mix, throw in some raking and digging!

The physical exercise activates our positive, feel-good endorphins, and being outdoors gives us our required daily dose of vitamin D3. This month in the rose garden, stake and tie canes that are tall and heavy with blooms, as well as those that are bending over and need support. Inspect your roses daily for the first signs of pests, looking out especially for aphids, hoplia beetles, caterpillars and rose slugs. Fertilize your roses, and when your beautiful blooms are spent, deadhead them to prepare the rose for the next bloom cycle.

Get in extra squats and bends when you pick up all fallen petals and leaves, and cut out blooms plagued with botrytis and leaves infected with rust and black spot. These fungal diseases will be more prevalent this year because of our rainy weather.

Gardening is also good for us mentally

Our gardens are a place of sanctuary. They reassure us that beauty and peace still exist despite the chaos in our present world. They beckon us to "come outside" each day, and they provide nourishment for all our senses.

Carefree timelessness is good for us

Periodically, put down your tools and simply be. Reverse the well-known phrase and let it become, "Don't just do something, sit there." Discover that your garden is a spot for meditation, contemplation and spiritual reflection. Escape into this quiet, welcoming haven and feel harmony, peace, tranquillity and gratitude.

Your garden is a place of healing and a place to soothe your anxiety and stress. Our ears are often assaulted by a cacophony of unpleasant sounds, but in our gardens there is nothing insistently demanding to be heard. Find a special place in your garden and step daily into this soothing refuge. This will be a place to escape where you can breathe in deeply, listen to the birds' chorus and observe rays of light glowing through the blooms.

It is often hard to be in the present moment in daily life, but it happens frequently in a garden. Like meditation and yoga, gardening makes us more mindful and allows us to be in the moment as we focus on the task at hand. When we tend to and nurture our gardens and our roses, we feel better, more tranquil and filled with health-giving energy. We remember lovely memories and gain insights into our thoughts and feelings, and a garden can provide solace when our souls need soothing.

Sometimes when we have suffered a loss, nurturing our plants can get us through our sadness. In all these many ways, gardens make our lives calmer, fuller and richer. This is why gardening is so addictive!

In this time of trouble when everything feels out of control, allow nature and the beauty of your roses to seep into your soul, reduce your worries, restore your positive mood, renew hope and help make your perspective on life more rosy. Just as we give our time and love to our roses, our roses return joy and satisfaction and blooms and fragrance to us. Photograph blossoms, birds and butterflies and share the images to help close some of the present social gaps and voids.

This is definitely the perfect time to pamper and indulge yourself and your housemates! Use the petals of unsprayed roses to make rose water, rose scones and rose petal jam. Walk past the rose gardens in your neighborhood. The roses want to see you, and you will feel better for seeing them!

Perwich is a member of the San Diego Rose Society, a Consulting Rosarian and a Master Gardener with UC Cooperative Extension.

Rita's Rose Petal Jam

This is made in a Ball Automatic Jam Maker (purchased on Amazon.com)Fills two to three 6-ounce jars

10 cups fragrant unsprayed rose petals2 tablespoons low-sugar pectin1 2/3 cups sugar3-4 tablespoons pomegranate or grape juice1 tablespoons rose petal water1 teaspoon lemon juice½ teaspoon butter

Harvest fresh blooms in the morning. All roses are edible, but the flavor is usually more pronounced in the fragrant red and pink varieties. I especially like thinner-petaled roses like Gertrude Jekyll, Rose de Rescht and Francis Dubreuil, but thicker-petaled hybrid tea roses like Mister Lincoln, Papa Meilland and Firefighter make good jam, too.Hold the rose bloom and cut the petals into thin strips with kitchen scissors taking care not to include the bitter white tip at the base of each petal.Sprinkle pectin over bottom of Ball jam maker. Add rose petals, sugar, juice, lemon juice and butter.Select "Jam." Press "Enter." Jam is ready in 21 minutes.Place jam in sterilized bottles. Preserve by canning, or keep in fridge for three weeks and freezer for up to 1 year.

Variation: Omit juice and add 1 to 2 cups chopped organic strawberries to 8 cups rose petals.

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