Doctors Might Soon Write Prescriptions To Visit A Botanical Garden

More than half a billion people walk through the gates of botanical gardens every year. They come to see flowers, stroll beneath canopies of rare trees, or simply breathe air that smells nothing like a highway. But a growing movement in conservation science argues these green spaces aren’t just pretty. They may be necessary infrastructure for healthier, more livable cities and could even function as a form of medicine.

A new commentary published in the journal Biological Diversity makes the case that botanical gardens deserve a far more central place in urban planning. The authors, researchers from South China Botanical Garden and Royal Botanic Gardens Victoria in Australia, argue that as cities balloon in population and the planet faces simultaneous crises of climate change, biodiversity loss, and pollution, these living plant collections are well-positioned to address all three while also improving the mental health of the people who live nearby.

Going well beyond saving endangered species or filtering polluted air, the paper envisions a future in which hospitals collaborate with botanical gardens to issue what the authors call “Horticultural Healing Prescriptions.” In other words, doctor-ordered garden visits for patients struggling with depression, chronic illness, or post-traumatic stress. Some gardens already run programs like “Plant Adoption” and “Horticultural Mutual Aid Groups” aimed at lonely elderly people, children without parental supervision, and other vulnerable populations who use the simple act of planting and caring for something alive as a way to rebuild a sense of control and human connection.

Why Botanical Gardens Are More Than Pretty Flowers

The commentary traces how botanical gardens have evolved from their early roots as places for growing and studying medicinal plants into institutions that serve six core functions: conservation, scientific research, public education, resource use, recreation, and garden display. Today, these gardens collectively protect about 30 percent of the world’s wild plant species in off-site collections, particularly through seed banks and living specimen libraries. That conservation work is urgent as species vanish faster than scientists can catalog them.

The authors push well beyond conservation, describing botanical gardens as a kind of ecological Swiss Army knife for cities. Gardens can help cool neighborhoods suffering from the urban heat island effect, that phenomenon where concrete and asphalt absorb sunlight and make city blocks significantly hotter than surrounding countryside. They can absorb excess rainwater during extreme floods, a problem worsening with climate change. And they can improve air quality while promoting local, drought-resistant plants for green roofs and rain gardens, all of which make urban infrastructure more resilient.

The paper also points to an economic angle. Botanical gardens research and develop economically valuable plants (species used in medicine, agriculture, and horticulture) which can contribute to local economies. At the same time, their educational programs build scientific literacy, helping residents understand why environmental protection matters and what they can personally do about it.

How Botanical Gardens Could Boost Mental Health

The most compelling thread running through the commentary is its focus on psychological wellbeing. The authors cite research showing that the greater the biodiversity in a green space, the greater the psychological benefit for visitors. A garden bursting with hundreds of different species does more for a person’s mood and stress levels than a manicured lawn with a few ornamental shrubs.

The paper identifies seven specific ways botanical gardens improve quality of life. Some are straightforward: satisfying curiosity, providing a beautiful environment for leisure. Others cut deeper. Time spent in biodiverse garden settings can promote mindfulness and reduce stress. The authors also name something increasingly discussed in psychology: eco-anxiety, the distress people feel in response to environmental destruction. Botanical gardens, they argue, can help people process that anxiety by offering direct, tangible experiences with living nature and educational programs that channel worry into action.

The authors envision a “Green Prescription” model in which botanical gardens partner with hospitals and clinics so that mental health professionals could formally prescribe garden visits and therapeutic gardening courses. Patients with depression or post-traumatic stress would participate in structured programs, planting seeds, tending beds, watching things grow, as a complement to traditional treatment. The authors frame this as “a low-cost, high-yield health intervention.”

Tools for Equity and Urban Planning

Equity runs through the paper as a recurring theme. The authors argue that botanical gardens should actively work to remove physical and economic barriers to access. In some countries, immigrant communities and low-income groups have been involved in garden planning and in selecting which plants to grow based on their own cultural backgrounds. This approach doesn’t just celebrate cultural diversity: it gives marginalized people a sense of what the authors call “spatial belonging,” transforming botanical gardens from generic public spaces into places where everyone genuinely feels welcome.

The commentary frames this vision within a larger international policy context. A global agreement known as the Kunming-Montreal Global Biodiversity Framework emphasizes cities’ responsibility for protecting biodiversity. An updated global strategy for plant conservation, aligned with that framework, includes dozens of voluntary actions, and the authors see botanical gardens as central to meeting those commitments. They recommend five actions: strengthening conservation research, promoting collaboration between gardens and urban planners, building public engagement networks, connecting garden work to sustainable development goals, and ensuring no community gets left behind.

The authors also describe an evolution in how botanical gardens relate to the urban landscape. In the earliest stage, gardens simply existed within cities as green islands surrounded by development. In the next stage, cities began to weave gardens more deliberately into their planning. The final stage, which the commentary advocates for, envisions something more ambitious: cities embedded within nature, where the boundary between garden and metropolis dissolves into what the authors call “natural symbiosis.”

This is a lofty vision, and the paper is a commentary rather than a study presenting new experimental data. But the argument rests on a foundation that is hard to dismiss. With China’s urban population exceeding 66 percent and developed countries topping 80 percent, the majority of humanity now lives in places where open space and biodiversity are scarce. Fifty million people visit Chinese botanical gardens each year alone. The infrastructure is already there, the audience is already walking through the gates, and research increasingly suggests that spending time among diverse, living plants makes people healthier in both body and mind. Giving botanical gardens a bigger seat at the urban planning table may be one of the more practical tools cities have for keeping their residents well and their ecosystems intact.

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Disclaimer: This article summarizes a scientific commentary and should not be taken as medical advice. The ideas discussed, including “green prescriptions,” are emerging concepts and not a substitute for professional care. If you have health concerns, speak with a licensed healthcare provider.

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