How to combine exercise and diet in one acivity: Should hospitals teach patients how to grow vegetables?

Google has a vegetable garden

Google was doing it in 2007: In Growing our connection to food, Google explained they launched a mini-farm on campus with 300 self-watering containers. The correct name for the containers is sub-irrigated planters (SIPs) and they can be purchased commercially ($30) or made from plastic totes.

Sports team has a mini-farm

San Francisco Giants have a mini-farm on their stadium growing kale, Swiss chard, lemon grass, sage and more. The garden—one of the first of its kind at an American sports stadium—comes as a bizarre sight to some fans who associate stadiums with more traditional fare. But the Giants say that the Garden, as they call it, promotes healthy eating. In a city with no shortage of fussy foodies, it has attracted its share of devotees.



Hospitals could be next

The Giants garden may be an almost utopian oasis of tranquility, with its rows of lushly packed planter beds and water-conserving, vertical garden towers. But it is also a popular vantage point—complete with tables and seating. Fans who want to stay planted inside the garden can still watch the game action through a series of cutouts in the center-field wall or follow it on one of TVs.

Quoting the late author Lewis Grizzard, it reads: “It’s difficult to think anything but pleasant thoughts while eating a homegrown tomato.”

It is possible that hospitals that focus on wellness initiatives may be interested in launching their SIP-powered gardens as an educational initiative for patients and staff.

Related videos:



Google Garden Planting. Executive Sous-Chef Jennifer Johnston leads a team of volunteers to plant a Growing Connection garden on Google campus.



Google Garden Harvest. Rebecca Jepsen from Santa Clara County Master Gardeners helps Jennifer maintain and harvest the garden.



The Growing Connection Gardens at Google. Google Chief Internet Evangelist and Co-Chair of the Global Advisory Board of The Growing Connection Vint Cerf stopped in and helped unveil The Growing Connection's Gardens at the Googleplex on May 1, 2007.

References:

Official Google Blog: Growing our connection to food http://buff.ly/1oC2lkr

For San Francisco Giants, the Star of This World Series Is a Vegetable Garden - WSJ http://buff.ly/1sY8qpM

"Food gardening is the most intelligent adult endeavor on earth and ought to be understood by anyone who eats. You eat healthier, fresher, tastier food, enjoy gentle exercise, and make new friends." Source: http://amzn.to/RpbdJx

Gardening helps you burn calories - 160 calories for 30 minutes of gardening http://buff.ly/1ekjB7L

Why Gardening is Good for Your Health (infographic) http://bit.ly/10JAhzU

He who plants a garden plants happiness. — Chinese proverb