Book Review: The Wellness Garden

The Wellness Garden: Grow, Eat & Walk Your Way to Better Health by Shawna Coronado (Cool Springs Press, 160 pp., $24.99)

Meet Shawna Coronado. Diagnosed with severe spinal degenerative osteoarthritis, her future looked bleak. She suffered from debilitating joint pain and inflammation that affected her everyday life, limiting what she could do.

She could have resigned herself to the use of pain medications to get through each day, become a couch potato, and given up her passion for gardening.

Thankfully, with the help of an on-the-ball nutritionist and her own determination, Shawna focused on following an anti-inflammatory diet, leading a healthy lifestyle, and adapting her garden so she could still pursue and enjoy her passion.

She chronicles her journey to wellness in The Wellness Garden and no matter what types of health or physical challenges readers might have, there is much to learn from each page.

In part one, the author looks at what it takes to grow healthful food. She emphasizes the importance of building your soil through the use of organic amendments, selecting a good site for a garden and watering wisely.

The section on elevated beds, vertical gardening (“living walls”) and container gardening provides plenty of ideas for those who find it difficult to garden at ground level. And really, when you think of it, this will apply to most of us eventually, right?

In the section entitled, “Growing for Nutrition and Vitamins,” Shawna includes a table of the nutrients found in each type of homegrown vegetable and fruit. She also shares the dramatic differences her new diet made in how she felt and functioned every day.

The “Kitchen Garden Inspiration” section was a treat both to read and to look at the many appealing photographs. She begins by highlighting chef Rick Bayless’ kitchen gardens in Chicago. One of his passions is growing microgreens and Shawna includes his instructions, showing how easy they are to grow.

Part two covers an important component to staying healthy: incorporating exercise in the garden. The author explains the benefits of a walking program along with the importance of being in a garden or, at least, around plants in a conservatory or garden center. She talks about warm-up exercises, using good posture, and avoiding carrying too heavy or awkward of a load.

Shawna suggests alternating the types of gardening activities you’re doing rather than repetitively doing the same activity. Instead, vary them. She points out that battery-start lawnmowers are easier to use than those with pull-cords, and advises readers to look for adaptive tools and avoid activities where your arms need to be above your head.

Part three is about therapeutic gardening, which includes suggestions to solve gardening challenges and accessibility issues. There is information on creating sensory gardens as well.

Since we can’t ignore the fact that we are all aging, The Wellness Garden is a good resource to help us learn how to continue enjoying our passion in a comfortable, enjoyable way.