Switzerland helps create 'garden therapy' centre in Poland
"It also facilitates physical exercise, for example for patients who have problems with balance, they can hop from one stone to another.
"But when we have intellectually-impaired patients, we must make sure there are no toxic plants in the gardens like yews, hydrangeas or lily of the valley," she told AFP in an interview.
While horticultural therapy does not cure mental illness, it can stimulate patients both intellectually and socially, boosting their self-confidence and sense of well-being, experts say.
Even just getting them out of their rooms into the fresh air can help by improving their physical condition.
Alina Anasiewicz, the director of the Ruskie Piaski care home which is one of the leading centres in Poland for garden therapy, says she came across it on a 2013 study trip to Switzerland.
In 2013, Switzerland handed her a cheque for 1.4 million zloty (330,000 euros, $370,000) to create the therapeutic park, with flower and vegetable gardens as well as an orchard, at the care home.
Patients at the Ruskie Piaski care home can stay as long as their condition requires medical supervision and are able to leave for family visits or have visitors, but their daily garden therapy can depend on the weather.
Staff say that when the weather is bad or in winter, patients are more depressed. One went on a visit to see her family, but asked to return earlier than planned.
She'd said simply, "I miss the garden", they explained.
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