The symposium participants from Australia, Canada, Korea, Japan, Mexico, Greece, and Cuba as well as across the U.S. exchanged ideas related to people-plant interaction. In this fourth symposium co- sponsored by PPC, Texas A&M faculty organized an excellent educational program. The proceedings will prove to be a valuable resource for researchers, teachers, and spokespersons for the horticulture industry --- as have the proceedings from the symposia conducted by University of California Davis, Rutgers, and Virginia Tech.
For more information contact: Dr. Jayne M. Zajicek, Dept. of Hort. Sciences, College Station, TX 77843-2133, (409) 845-4482.
This book by Charles Lewis delves into the psychological, sociological, and physiological responses of people to plants in urban and forest settings. Lewis also addresses HT programs in hospitals, geriatric centers, drug rehabilitation programs, and correctional institutions. In this book, he examines people-plant interaction from two perspectives: participatory (an individual is involved in planting and maintaining plants) and observational (an individual bears no responsibility for the plants), using the latest and best research.
Charles Lewis has pioneered work in people-plant relationships during his work as a horticulturist and a research fellow at the Morton Arboretum in Lisle, Illinois. Lewis is now a consultant in people-plant interaction.
Green Nature/Human Nature is available in paperback (ISBN 252- 06510-7; $14.95) or cloth (ISBN 252-02213-0; $32.95). For an autographed copy, write to Charles A Lewis, People-Plant Interaction, 1020 Manzano Court NW, Albuquerque, NM 87102. Please enclose your check for the cost of the book, plus an additional $2.00 for postage.
Charles Lewis of Alberquerque, New Mexico, has been awarded the Horticultural Therapy Award from the American Horticulture Society to recognize his significant contributions in this field. Lewis has been a pioneer in the area of people-plant relationships, working to increase understanding of people's relationship to green nature and how that can be utilized for human benefit. His work endeavors to foster an appreciation of the role of humans in living harmoniously with the natural environment of the planet. He is the author of "Green Nature/Human Nature: The Meaning of Plants in Our Lives."
Sociohorticulture: A New Field of Horticulture and Its Present Status in Europe, the U.S.A. and Japan
Matsuo, E. [J. Kor. Soc. Hort. Sci. 37(1), 1996]
Sociohorticulture is the interdisciplinary field of horticulture that studies the relationship between horticulture and human beings (both individuals and groups) and applies the research results to enhance human life quality and to care for our nearby environment. This field encompasses all other fields of horticulture, except commercial aspects of horticultural production or marketing, and its botanical basis in horticultural plants, such as vegetables, fruits, ornamental plants, and landscaping plants.
This field can be approached from the following perspectives: how horticulture affects human beings and how we apply this to our life quality and nearby environment. This include issues such as 1) economic benefits of plants, 2) environmental effects, 3) psychological and physiological effects, 4) physical effects, and 5) social effects. The results of research in these areas will be applied to increasing the use of flowers and greenery in our nearby environment, improving the psychological and physical health of city dwellers, establishing horticultural therapy programs for disabled and elderly individuals, and promoting Kleingarten.
The relationship between horticulture and human beings is different from area to area and/or from culture to culture and has been changing historically. This topic covers the cultural aspects of horticulture, such as plants in social customs, arts, plays, religions, etc. It also covers areas such as the language of plants; preferences in flowers, vegetables, and fruits; usage of plants; production systems; and so on. This area is being explored by researchers in economics and marketing of horticultural crops as well as by social scientists, anthropologists, artists, and psychologists.
Human beings learn through horticulture. Horticulture is used as a method of education in science, environment, agriculture, "joso- kyoiku" (aesthetics and emotion), and even mathematics, social science, language, and art. However, the most important educational aspect is that we learn the concept of "fostering" or "nurturing" through horticulture. Understanding this concept and developing skills in nurturing helps us to live us human beings by balancing the "acquiring" aspect of human creativity. This understanding forces us to reconsider the present educational system in society and schools, such as kindergarten, primary school, high school, technical school, community college, college, and university. This article also gives an introductory comparison of the present status of horticultural therapy (HT) and the Kleingarten (the allotment) in Europe, the U.S.A. and Japan.
The design of healthcare facilities traditionally has emphasized the functional delivery of healthcare, as expressed in such concerns as providing efficient spaces for laboratories or doors wide enough to accommodate beds. This emphasis has often produced facilities that are functionally effective but psychologically "hard." There is a growing recognition that hard designs are unsatisfactory from the standpoint of marketing facilities to patients. More fundamentally, hard facilities usually fail because they are stressful or otherwise unsuited to the psychological needs of patients, visitors, and staff. There is increasing scientific evidence that poor design works against the well-being of patients and, in certain instances, can have negative effects on physiological indicators of wellness. Research has linked poor design to negative consequences for patients,such as, anxiety, delirium, elevated blood pressure, and increased intake of pain drugs.
In this context, design should do more than produce health facilities that are satisfactory in terms of functional efficiency, marketing, cost, and codes. Another critically important goal of designers should be to promote wellness by creating physical surroundings that are "psychologically supportive."
Two studies were done comparing the preferences of high and low sensation seekers for nature paintings representing different styles. The paintings had been previously rated for qualities of complexity and tension. Factor analyses established five stylistic categories among the paintings. In both studies, high sensation seekers had a relatively greater liking for high-tension paintings, whereas the lows had a relatively greater liking for low-tension paintings. In both studies, high sensation seekers had a relatively greater liking for expressionist style paintings, and in the second study, the lows had a greater preference for the realistic, low- tension pastoral scenes than the high sensation seekers. Men liked complex, high-tension, realistic paintings more than women did. Complexity did not interact with personality, but was subordinate to other qualities of the paintings. High sensation seekers liked tension evoking paintings and were more tolerant of ambiguity in style than low sensation seekers.
The purpose of this paper is to examine the research and theory concerning the potential influences of environmental perception on health and well-being. There is an evident distinction between urban and natural environments in the literature on visual preferences for environments and the literature about the restorative influences of environments. People generally prefer natural enviornments and believe them to be healthy or restorative. This distinction between natural and urban environments is used as a point of departure to examine evolutionary theories of environmental aesthetics expounded by Kaplan, Kaplan, and Ulrich. The major distinction between the theories is Ulrich's assertion of affective primacy in the processing of environmental information. Ulrich's assertion is shown to be consistent with LeDoux's model of subcortical affective processing and Henry's model of neuro-endocrine responses, both of which in turn support the tentative proposal of two types of affect initiation systems with separate time courses and implications for the health effects of environmental exposures.
A prominent theme in the relatively young field of landscape ecology is the development of an ecological aesthetic. Landscape ecologists and others are concerned with the planning and management of environments for both ecological sustainability and environmental aesthetics. Research and conceptual examples are used to illustrate the potential incompatibility of these goals in some situations. Many writers have maintained that densely vegetated, wood patches support the diversity of wildlife habitats, while evidence from the literature on the aesthetic quality of natural environments has repeatedly established that people tend to prefer more open, grassy areas punctuated by occasional groupings of tress and shrubs. We are also exploring the general psychological importance of environmental aesthetics and human interactions with wildlife. Emerging evidence from various research areas indicates the potential stress-reducing, health, cognitive, and psychosocial effects of human interactions with outdoor environments, in general, and with wildlife in particular. Though in the nascent stages, research in these areas suggests that there are important potential benefits associated with the visual quality of the environment and that people derive similar benefits from interactions with wildlife and other animals. There is also evidence that nonconsumptive human interactions with wildlife are not entirely benign, underscoring the importance of research concerning the potential benefits of visual contacts with wildlife.
Marumo Publishing Co. Ltd., 201-1 5F Dogenzaka 1 chome, Shibuya- ku, Tokyo 150, Japan. Telephone: 03-3496-7046, Fax: 03-3496-7387.
People-Plant Relationships: Setting Research Priorities (1992 Symposium), edited by Joel Flager and Raymond P. Poincelot, PhD, is the winner of the 1995 National Publications Award from the American Horticultural Therapy Association!
A video, Ornamental plants in the customs of the Sierra Norte of
Puebla/ October fiestas in Cuetzalan, is available in English or
Spanish. For more details contact:
M.C. Helena L. De Borys, 21 Sur 1103, C.P. 72160, Puebla Pue.,
Mexico
Kathy Wolf, a research professor at the Center for Urban Horticulture, University of Washington, is doing the study and is focusing on revitalizing multicultural business districts. Sponsored by the National Urban and Community Forestry Advisory Council and the U.S. Forest Service, her study will examine both business owners' perceptions of urban trees, as well as shoppers' attitudes and behavior. There are three phases of the project - interviews in the Seattle area, a regional questionnaire, and a national questionnaire.
Do you know of a group or organization that would like to participate in this study? Survey respondents are needed in cities outside of the Washington/Oregon area. If you would like more information, please contact Dr. Kathy Wolf at the Center for Urban Horticulture, University of Washington, Box 354115, Seattle, WA 98195. Telephone: (206) 616-5758, E-mail: kwolf@u.washington.eud.
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People-Plant Relationships: Setting Research Priorities. Joel Flagler and Raymond P. Poincelot, Editors. 1993. Food Products Press. 368 pages. $54.
The Healing Dimensions of People-Plant Relations: A Research Symposium. Mark Francis, Patricia Lindsey, and Jay Stone Rice, Editors. 1994. 498 pages. $39.
People-Plant Interaction (1305 citations) and Horticulture Therapy (1184 citations) bibliographies are available on 3.5-inch, DS/HD diskettes containing the citations in WordPerfect 5.0. The material also can be ordered on 3.5-inch diskettes as DOS text files. Updates - return original diskette and $5.
1) Role of Horticulture in Human Well-Being and Social Development
- reflections of Jules Janick, Charles Lewis, Roger Ulrich, Russ
Parson, and Diane Relf.
2) The Art of Rhonda Roland Shearer.
**** All prices include shipping and handling. Make checks payable to Treasurer, Virginia Tech. ****
Seasons of the Mind reinforces the basis of HT -- that it gives clients opportunities to explore nature while carrying out projects tailored to their needs and abilities. American researchers have been investigating HT for over 30 years, now Canada is in the developmental stage of exploring the use of horticulture as a therapeutic approach.
This video is available for rental or purchase. For more information, contact CECOM at the Hospital Riviere-des-Prairies; 7070, boul. Perras; Montreal, Quebec; H1E 1A4, Canada. Telephone: 541-328-3503; FAX: 514-323-4163.
Editor: Diane Relf
Chair, People-Plant Council
Assistant Editor: Melissa Williams
The People-Plant Council Newsletter (ISSN 1061-03460) is a quarterly publication of the People-Plant Council. Address correspondence to Dr. Diane Relf, Chair, People-Plant Council, Department of Horticulture, Virginia Tech, Blacksburg, VA 24061- 0327. FAX: 540-231-3083. Telephone: 540-231-6254.