East Anglia is gardening hotspot


30 May 2007 09:03

The future for Norfolk gardeners is green - and a healthy, happy green at that.

According to new figures one in ten people in East Anglia are out gardening every day and nearly half the population tend their plants and shrubs once a week, making East Anglia the gardening capital of the country.

And it is apparently making people happier and healthier than their gym-going, non-gardening counterparts - 66pc of gardeners described themselves as happy, compared with 38pc of non-gardeners; and 40pc of gardeners claim to be healthy compared to just 11pc of non-gardeners.

Bill Webster, 85, of West Earlham has been involved with Norwich in Bloom for 16 years. He took up gardening after retiring from his job working as a pest controller and said it has kept him fit and healthy since.

The great-grandfather said: “If you look at the amount of people who have spent this bank holiday weekend in garden centres planning for the summer - people here take a real pride in their gardens and you can see that.

“I think it has an impact on everyone's lives - it's beautiful just heading into the city these days and people take a real interest in the plants and flowers around the city.”

He said: “We have special needs kids and disabled kids who will actually get out of their wheelchairs and kneel on a rug to help us with our planting and they enjoy it.

“And whoever you are, if you have had a busy, stressful day, then there is nothing better than coming home and putting some plants in and having a potter in the garden.

“It does you the world of good.”

The results are part of a UK-wide survey by garden tool makers Spear and Jackson into the nation's gardening habits.

They reveal that as a whole, gardeners are healthier, happier and less stressed than people who go to the gym.

An amazing three quarters of people who describe themselves as “very happy” are regular gardeners. James Debbage, manager of the Norwich branch of Notcutts Garden Centre, said: “Norfolk has always been a great place for gardening and people here are carrying on an agricultural tradition.

“I hear lots of people talking about starting gardening with their grandads or copying their mum. We take in most of the south east and the Midlands with stores as far afield as Surrey, but Norwich is the best performing for garden products.

“I think that is because people have larger gardens and land is less expensive than it is in the south.”

Do you know someone who has done something really special with their garden this Spring? Call Katie Cooper on 01603 772326 or email Katie.cooper@archant.co.uk

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