1422: "What the Garden Gives Back"

HistoryPodcastScience
Written By JC

Interesting Things with JC #1422: "What the Garden Gives Back" – Touch the soil, and something happens. Science now shows what generations already knew: dirt can calm your mind, steady your body, and heal your spirit. This episode, dedicated to Educator Kate, uncovers the hidden medicine waiting in the ground.

Curriculum - Episode Anchor

Episode Title: What the Garden Gives Back

Episode Number: 1422

Host: JC

Audience: Grades 3–12, college intro, homeschool, lifelong learners

Subject Area: Biology, Environmental Science, Health Science, Cultural Studies

Lesson Overview

Learning Objectives: Students will be able to:

  • Define key biological and cultural terms such as Mycobacterium vaccae, serotonin, grounding, and shinrin-yoku.

  • Compare scientific findings about soil bacteria, grounding, and plant-based remedies with traditional cultural practices from Navajo, Japanese, and African traditions.

  • Analyze the connections between gardening, mental health, physical health, and community wellness.

  • Explain how science and cultural knowledge both highlight the relationship between humans and the natural world.

Key Vocabulary

  • Bacteria (bak-TEER-ee-uh): Microscopic living organisms, some of which can support human health. Example: Mycobacterium vaccae in soil can improve mood.

  • Serotonin (sair-oh-TOE-nin): A chemical messenger in the brain that helps regulate emotions and feelings of calm.

  • Grounding: The practice of direct contact with the earth, such as walking barefoot, linked to stress reduction and health benefits.

  • Cortisol (KOR-tih-sawl): A hormone released in response to stress; lowered by grounding and time in nature.

  • Shinrin-yoku (SHIN-rin YOH-koo): The Japanese practice of “forest bathing,” spending mindful time in forests to support health.

Narrative Core

  • Open: The story begins by reminding listeners of the timeless comfort of gardening—hands in dirt, breathing easier, and calming the mind.

  • Info: Science now supports this wisdom, showing that soil bacteria like Mycobacterium vaccae can improve mood and health.

  • Details: Practices such as grounding, cultural traditions like Navajo sand painting, shinrin-yoku in Japan, and African clay medicine show a shared global understanding of earth’s healing role.

  • Reflection: The episode highlights how gardening and plant-based remedies blend old and new knowledge for human well-being.

  • Closing: These are interesting things, with JC.

A smiling red-haired woman squats barefoot in dark garden soil, her hands dirty as she tends seedlings. Morning light highlights her skin and soil, with blurred green plants in the background suggesting herbs and natural growth.

Transcript

There’s something honest and steady about putting your hands in the dirt. Folks have known for generations that working in the garden just makes you feel better. You breathe a little easier, your thoughts settle down, and the world feels manageable. Science has finally caught up with that old wisdom. Researchers now say the soil itself carries living helpers, tiny bacteria (bak-TEER-ee-uh) that can lift your mood, sharpen your focus, and even help your body fight off sickness.

One of them is called Mycobacterium vaccae (my-co-bak-TEER-ee-um VAK-ee). When you breathe it in or get it on your skin, it can spark the release of serotonin (sair-oh-TOE-nin). That’s the chemical that helps with calm and happiness. Tests have shown it eases stress and steadies emotions. What used to be written off as “just dirt” is now understood as a living world that speaks to both our nerves and our immune (ih-MYOON) system.

There’s also something folks call grounding, kicking off your shoes and walking barefoot on grass or soil. Studies show it can lower blood pressure, steady heart rhythms, and help with sleep. It may sound simple, but researchers have tracked drops in cortisol (KOR-tih-sawl), the stress hormone, in people who do it. The exact reasons are still debated, but the results are steady enough to be noticed.

People have trusted these connections for centuries. Among the Navajo (NAV-ah-ho) people, sand painting was not just art but part of healing rituals, connecting body and spirit through direct contact with earth. In Japan, the practice of shinrin-yoku (SHIN-rin YOH-koo), or “forest bathing,” grew from the belief that time with trees and soil brings calm and strength. Even in old farming communities across Africa, red clay was sometimes used as both medicine and spiritual protection. Different cultures, far apart, all came to the same truth, that touching the land restores balance.

And then there’s the medicine cabinet of plants. Generations before us used elderberry (ELL-der-bair-ee) syrup to fight off colds, fire cider to warm the body and clear the lungs, and strong-smelling oils drawn from herbs to soothe or heal. None of these replace modern medicine, but they remind us how our grandparents leaned on what grew around them. That balance, taking the best of old remedies alongside new treatments, is where many folks are finding comfort today.

The research continues. Universities in England, Bristol (BRISS-tull) and London, have shown that Mycobacterium vaccae (my-co-bak-TEER-ee-um VAK-ee)switches on brain cells tied to serotonin. That points to a natural antidepressant (an-tee-dee-PRESS-uhnt). Other studies in health journals show that grounding can thin the blood. That lowers the chance of clots and may help circulation overall. Gardening itself counts as exercise too. Just a half hour of weeding can burn around 150 calories (KAL-or-eez) and strengthen muscles. That’s without a gym membership, just a patch of ground and steady work.

This isn’t only theory. In Milwaukee, farmer Will Allen (AL-en), once a professional basketball player, turned his attention to raising food in the city. Through his work with Growing Power farms, he showed how soil and gardening could bring health back to neighborhoods as well as to individuals. His story is a plain example of soil as medicine, not just science.

The heart of it is plain. Whether it’s a quiet morning pulling weeds, bare feet in cool grass, or steam rising off a pot of herbs, these small things bring us back to balance. They remind us that health doesn’t just come in a bottle from the pharmacy. Sometimes it’s right there in the ground, waiting on us to notice, like the smell of fresh soil after a summer rain, rich and alive.

This episode is dedicated to Educator Kate in North Carolina, whose inspiration helped bring today’s story to life

These are interesting things, with JC.

Student Worksheet

  1. What is Mycobacterium vaccae and how does it affect the human body?

  2. How does grounding impact stress and physical health?

  3. Compare one cultural practice (Navajo, Japanese, or African) with modern scientific findings about health and soil.

  4. Why might gardening be considered both exercise and medicine?

  5. How did Will Allen use urban farming to improve community health?

Teacher Guide

  • Estimated Time: 1–2 class periods (45–90 minutes)

  • Pre-Teaching Vocabulary Strategy: Use visuals (microscope image of bacteria, serotonin chemical model, diagram of grounding, photo of forest bathing).

  • Anticipated Misconceptions:

    • Students may think all bacteria are harmful.

    • Students may believe traditional remedies replace modern medicine (clarify complement vs. replacement).

  • Discussion Prompts:

    • Why do you think cultures across the world developed similar practices about soil and healing?

    • Can science and cultural traditions work together in modern health approaches?

  • Differentiation Strategies:

    • ESL: Provide word banks and bilingual glossaries.

    • IEP: Use tactile activities like soil observation and barefoot “grounding” in a safe outdoor space.

    • Gifted: Research additional soil microbes with health benefits.

  • Extension Activities:

    • Design a simple experiment: track mood changes after daily gardening or grounding for a week.

    • Create an infographic comparing scientific and cultural perspectives on soil and healing.

  • Cross-Curricular Connections:

    • Biology: Microbes and human health.

    • Health Science: Stress and immune system regulation.

    • Art/History: Navajo sand painting, Japanese forest bathing, African healing practices.

    • Physical Education: Gardening as exercise.

Quiz

  1. Which soil bacterium has been shown to improve mood?
    A. Streptococcus pneumoniae
    B. Mycobacterium vaccae
    C. Escherichia coli
    D. Staphylococcus aureus
    Answer: B

  2. What chemical in the brain is linked to calm and happiness?
    A. Cortisol
    B. Dopamine
    C. Serotonin
    D. Adrenaline
    Answer: C

  3. What does “grounding” involve?
    A. Eating plants from your garden
    B. Walking barefoot on natural surfaces
    C. Taking soil supplements
    D. Planting trees in a community park
    Answer: B

  4. Which cultural tradition involves forest bathing?
    A. Navajo sand painting
    B. Japanese shinrin-yoku
    C. African red clay healing
    D. European herbalism
    Answer: B

  5. Who demonstrated the power of urban gardening in Milwaukee?
    A. George Washington Carver
    B. Will Allen
    C. Norman Borlaug
    D. Vandana Shiva
    Answer: B

Assessment

Open-Ended Questions:

  1. Explain how soil and gardening can influence both mental and physical health. Provide at least two examples from the episode.

  2. Compare traditional cultural practices with modern scientific findings. How do they align or differ in their understanding of soil and health?

3–2–1 Rubric:

  • 3: Accurate, complete, and thoughtful explanation with multiple details.

  • 2: Partial or missing one key detail.

  • 1: Inaccurate or vague response.

Standards Alignment

U.S. Standards

  • NGSS MS-LS1-5: Construct explanations for how environmental factors influence behavior. (Applies to bacteria, grounding, and gardening effects on health.)

  • NGSS HS-LS2-8: Evaluate evidence for how natural ecosystems maintain homeostasis. (Cultural and microbial balance with human health.)

  • CCSS.ELA-LITERACY.RST.9-10.2: Determine central ideas in a scientific text and provide summaries.

  • C3 Framework D2.His.4.6-8: Analyze multiple factors in cultural traditions and their continuity over time.

International Equivalents

  • UK National Curriculum Science KS3: Interactions and interdependencies – relationships in ecosystems.

  • IB MYP Science Criterion A (Knowledge and Understanding): Use scientific knowledge to explain phenomena.

  • Cambridge IGCSE Biology 2.3: Relationships of organisms with one another and with the environment.

Show Notes

This episode of Interesting Things with JC explores the surprising ways soil, plants, and gardening can improve both body and mind. From beneficial bacteria like Mycobacterium vaccae (my-co-bak-TEER-ee-um VAK-ee) that trigger serotonin release, to grounding practices shown to lower stress and blood pressure, modern science is uncovering truths long known to cultures around the world. Navajo sand painting, Japanese shinrin-yoku (forest bathing), and African healing with red clay all echo this timeless connection between land and health.

The story of urban farmer Will Allen demonstrates how gardening heals not only individuals but also communities. In classrooms, this episode bridges biology, cultural studies, and wellness, making it a powerful tool for exploring how ancient practices and modern science meet in the soil beneath our feet.

Special thanks to Educator Kate of North Carolina for inspiring this episode.

References

JC https://jimconnors.org
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