Green day: Hong Kong horticultural therapist’s relaxing urban farm experiences

When Linda Lee was young and living in the heart of Hong Kong’s urban metropolis, her father found peace in a small cluster of greenery in their flat. He stood in the corner each day, tending to each pot. When he smoked, he always turned to blow the smoke onto the plants, which would absorb the chemicals, he said, leaving clean air for Lee and her mother. Lee’s father was a tough character. He did not talk much, or have many friends. But Lee saw something in his face relax whenever he tended to his “garden”. Each time Lee starts her day as a horticultural therapist, she remembers him. Today, Lee works at Farmacy, an urban farming organisation using hydroponic technology – where plants grow in a water and mineral solution instead of soil – to create mobile farms and farm labs in Hong Kong. These spaces are usually compact, indoor, climate-controlled environments. Lee leads urban farming experience days around once a month, a time when participants can drop their usual worries and engage all five senses in the greenery in Farmacy’s headquarters in Shau Kei Wan. When visitors step into the premises on the 20th floor of a commercial building, a distinct floral smell greets them that emanates from the vast hydroponic farm that they will soon become acquainted with. Lee starts by taking the guests through a brief mindfulness practice, designed to bring them into the space and return their attention to their breathing. Lee says the grounding process can look a little different indoors than it would in a nature-filled environment. “If you go out in nature, I would recommend people take off [their] shoes and step on the grass, hug the trees a little bit … but here in the indoor environment, you can just relax, make yourself feel safe and comfortable,” Lee says. Next, she either takes participants on a tour of Farmacy’s vertical farm or gives a short presentation on hydroponic farming. To enter the urban farm, guests must wear special sanitation outfits and step through an air shower, which works to sanitise people before entering. From there, participants move to the “hands-on planting and caring” section of the event, where the guests prepare their own planters or crops. Participants choose from a series of tactile activities. Lee says the overarching theme is horticultural therapy, “which is about using the plant as the medium or the base to connect with the person”. “That builds the sense of responsibility, patience and the sense of purpose,” Lee says. The list of hands-on activities includes plant rubbing – an artistic technique that captures the texture of different leaves by placing them underneath a piece of paper and shading over it with crayons or pencils – and seeding arts. Visitors can also try aromatherapy. There is also an option for a farm-to-table experience, where participants work together to create a simple meal with fresh produce from Farmacy. Lee says groups have made everything from Vietnamese spring rolls to pizza and tacos with parsley, basil and mint. Kindness, intention, connection and sharing After the activities, participants slow down for a “kindness and intention” section, where they can choose an intention or a wish for themselves or their plant. “It creates an emotional bridge: nature becomes a mirror for resilience,” Lee says. A “connection and sharing” time concludes the experience, where participants are invited to share their takeaways with the group. People often share feelings of connection and pride in their work, Lee says. “Some people just say that they completely forgot about what they did, but they just enjoyed that moment,” she says, adding that this is the most important part of the workshop – the opportunity to “forget about the world for a while”. “They just immerse themselves into their fingers, their nose, their eyes and [their] taste,” Lee says. “So all [these] body senses within themselves lead them back to their focus.” In addition to the urban farming experience days, Lee leads a myriad of workshops and programmes throughout the community. She brings greenery and fresh life to corporate offices and local classrooms. Farmacy also refurbishes unused classrooms as urban farm labs, according to community programme lead Alison Lee. The farm labs provide two purposes: to decentralise farming, allowing for local produce rather than importing produce from mainland China or overseas, and to help out local communities, especially in lower-income areas. “We would love to have hubs that provide really fresh veggies for people within the community,” Alison Lee says. Linda Lee has seen the benefits of horticultural therapy for many different segments of the community. In schools and social settings, she has seen people become more focused and confident. In corporate settings, she sees a decrease in stress levels and an elevated mood. Horticulture therapy is most beneficial when it is used as “supportive care”, she says, meaning that it can be used alongside medical treatments. It can be helpful for anxiety and burnout, social challenges, low mood, and trauma-informed care. In Linda Lee’s personal life, working with plants is a connection to her father since his death. “He’s still alive to me, to be honest, whenever I’m doing all this gardening – just anything related to planting, to just looking, growing small pots of plants,” she says. Today, her mother tends to the same garden in the corner of their family’s flat. “They are my mom’s companions now, you know … so that she doesn’t feel lonely, and she feels [supported], and she’s feeling more alive because they are growing,” Linda Lee says. “They are like evergreen.” Her father may have died, but his presence lingers in the leaves of the little corner garden.

Green day: Hong Kong horticultural therapist’s relaxing urban farm experiences

.css-1c6uqr6{color:inherit;font-weight:inherit;font-size:inherit;font-family:inherit;line-height:inherit;overflow-wrap:break-word;}Linda Lee’s urban farming experience days mix hydroponics, plant care, mindfulness and crafts

Linda Lee’s urban farming experience days mix hydroponics, plant care, mindfulness and crafts