Healing gardens and therapeutic landscapes

Despite the fact that the therapeutic role of natural environment has been known since ancient times, it is only in more recent times that landscape architecture became interested in the relationship between tended green areas and the preservation of health. The fascinating harmony of landscape factors (e.g. a botanical garden or the park of a sanatorium) can be very attractive for potential health tourists.

It was in the ancient Asian, Greek and Roman cultures that people recognized the healing effect of gardens. (Faurest, K. é.n.). The term ’healing garden’ is a general notion and it is used to describe a garden which is destined for improving patients’ health condition, or rehabilitating their physical, mental or emotional health after an illness. Healing gardens are parks, memorial places, war monuments, or monuments, which were erected to commemorate epidemics or other tragic events.  „The task of a healing garden is to offer a home and a possibility for renewing the human spirit  - be it a bench under a tree, or a carefully designed complex landscape. (Faurest K. é.n.)” Examples include the  National AIDS Memorial Grove in San Francisco, the Golden Gate Park and the Dora Efthim Healing Garden..

It is obvious that all gardens have an innate possibility for healing, consequently the well tended city parks and community green areas might also fulfil this role.  Gardens with a variety of carefully and creatively designed artistic elements, such as special light effects, rocks, streams, groves, are exceptionally attractive for people.

For further details see: www.levego.hu/sites/default/files/kapcsolodo/healinglandscape-hu.pdf

The design of therapeutic landscapes is professionally more challenging than this. The landscape is designed in a way so as to have a measurable positive effect on a certain disease, groups of diseases, or a group or several groups of patients.  „The landscape can be designed to meet the needs of a special group of patients, i.e. blind, paralyzed persons and people with other disabilities, or, rheumatic patients. From this point of view healing gardens can be considered one of the many therapeutic possibilities. (Faurest K. é.n.)”.