What used to be a barren plot of dirt on a drab street across from the Cook County (IL) Jail now holds life, delight, triumph, hopes and goals.

That may be a stretch, but not much when one considers that the life—flowers and herbs—has been sown and nurtured by women who, by society’s measure, don’t have much going for them: All are former jail detainees who take part in its furlough program. Their success in growing and harvesting these plants, and donating them to local end-users, has proven a subtle but tangible factor in their own healing and growth.

Now in its second year—and having expanded to a second site on the jail grounds—this horticulture therapy is the latest initiative of the expressive arts program at Cermak Health Services, a county agency that provides the jail’s health care. The expressive arts program, part of the mental health services department, seeks to help inmates through creative outlets such as poetry and journaling, visual art and music.

While gardening is different, conceptually, it’s well-known to have therapeutic effects. According to the American Horticulture Therapy Association, “[HT is] a process in which plants and gardening activities are used to improve the body, mind and spirits of people.” (See box at right for more information from the AHTA.)

That definition describes perfectly what expressive therapist Eric Dean Spruth, MA, ATR, sought to convey in his proposal for Cermak’s horticulture program. However, the idea first struck him at a visceral level. As his proposal noted, “[T]hink about how seeing nature bloom lifts your spirits…. Making things grow can boost self-esteem and be a jolt of independence…. Even if it is only to help relax and unwind, horticulture therapy can improve any person’s life.”

A home gardener himself, Spruth had long seen wasted potential in the empty planting beds. But since they are in front of the county courthouse administration building—in an open, public area—it was not feasible for detainees to work there. However, security was less of a concern for the furlough participants, who must check in daily at the jail but are free to live and work in the community.

Before approaching the Department of Women’s Justice Services and the other agencies that had to be on board, Spruth found a large landscaping firm to donate most of the materials and to prepare the plots. He then presented a plan that spelled out logistical details, objectives and therapeutic benefits. For the most part it wasn’t a hard sell: “[DWJS executive director] Terrie McDermott is a gardener herself, and she said OK before I even finished the presentation.”

From Idea to Reality
With the necessary approvals in place, Spruth invited women in the furlough program to lend a hand, and on June 4, 2003, the Blooming Entrepreneurs English Garden was born. Initially there was some grumbling from skeptics, but no more: “People are seeing results, and that is changing their perceptions,” Spruth says.

Those results come in several forms. Most visible, perhaps, are the plants themselves. The first-year garden relied on starter plants rather than seeds to improve the odds of success. It contained herbs and flowers chosen for their marketability.

Before long county staffers began to express their appreciation: “It adds beauty and life to the facility. It is wonderful to have something nice to look at,” wrote one clerk.

While the aesthetic appeal to staff is welcomed, the real purpose is to cultivate the well-being of the gardeners. By design the program is informal, with no fixed assignments for work or plant type. From 8 to 20 gardeners may show up on a given day, and they are gently encouraged to pitch in wherever help is needed. All work is done by hand or by spade, which enables the gardener to connect quite literally with the soil.

From time to time, especially when the weather does not permit work outdoors, Spruth brings in speakers to teach the women about the fine points of gardening or the therapeutic uses of plants.

“I now know what will help me sleep,” wrote one woman. “I know that rosemary oil is good for the hair and skin. I have an herb book so I’m going to study it when I get home.”

From a medical standpoint, gardening creates physical results such as reducing stress and lowering blood pressure, says Cermak psychiatrist Maria Mynott, MD. But it also has less tangible effects: “In an environment like this you lose power. This garden lets the women reconnect with their roots and establish community. They can progress to the point where they are providing not only for themselves, but also for the community. This is very empowering.”

The women take pride in knowing that the herbs and flowers they have harvested are put to good use. To date they have been donated to local restaurants and to a business that uses dried flowers in specialty soaps. One restaurant has even hired one of the gardeners as an apprentice chef.

Like the garden itself, interest in the project has flourished, and this year detainees are being invited to try their hand at a plot within the jail confines. More local organizations, including the Chicago Botanical Garden, have signed on as supporters. Spruth has received stacks of commendation letters from local dignitaries and others.

But, at the end of the growing season, the most important result, articulated by Cermak’s chief psychologist (and Spruth’s boss) Carl Alaimo, PsyD, is this: “The gardening program has proven to facilitate not only an opportunity for our patient population to look beyond themselves but also deep into the future of how consistent nurturing will provide a positive outcome in their lives.”