Spreading the Joy of Gardening, with Ellen Mary (vegan), Part 1 of 2

Ellen Mary, a prominent author, speaker and horticultural broadcaster from Norwich, in the United Kingdom, is absolutely passionate about plants. In today’s episode, Ms. Mary shares her journey from a long-time vegetarian to a vegan lifestyle, her love for plants, and why growing your own food is so beneficial.

According to Ellen Mary, there are three main reasons why people should shift to the vegan lifestyle. “I think it's the three main things. First of all, let's reduce animal suffering. We are humans; we know better. We should know that we do not need any other species on this planet to suffer. And secondly, of course, for the planet. We know that climate change is a huge issue at the moment, and we need to be doing something about it. And animal agriculture, of course, is a huge reason why fossil fuels are released into the atmosphere. 70% of agricultural land is used for animal agriculture. But if we can change that to growing crops for human consumption, we reduce the suffering of animals and we reduce fossil fuels as well. And thirdly, of course, it's health. And by eating more plants, we can improve our health and wellbeing overall.”

“The Royal Horticultural Society earlier on, who I have my certificates with, very recently conducted a survey. And they found that for those who garden two to three times a week, their wellbeing score is higher than those who don't garden at all. And if your garden is biodiverse, so if you're gardening for the bees and the butterflies and the birds as well, your wellbeing score is even higher.”

“And growing your own food essentially brings you back to that place where you're connecting with nature again. You're getting outside. You're getting physical exercise. It's good for your mental health, wellbeing, all of those benefits as well. The benefits really are endless to growing your own food. You can invite friends and family over to eat. And you can cook with the food that you've grown. And you can talk about how you've enjoyed the process and hopefully encourage more people to grow their own as well.”