Are you looking for a green focus to bring some peace to your life? A mini zen garden may be the solution you seek. Jennifer Miree Cope explains how to make a mini zen garden and how it can help you achieve zen and relieve stress.
What Is a Mini Zen Garden?
Zen gardens come from ancient Japanese gardening culture. Sometimes called rock gardens, their key features are raked sand, carefully placed rocks, and precisely sculpted greenery.
Most Zen gardens emphasize naturalness and simplicity and are intended to provide a sanctified place for people to meditate and find peace. Mini Zen gardens can vary in size, but many of them are small enough to fit on a tabletop.
Benefits of a Mini Zen Garden
A major feature of mini Zen gardens is sand that you can rake in a pattern. Many people find tranquility in sand raking, even if only for a few minutes a day. Spending time sand raking or even practicing mindfulness at the mini zen garden has many benefits, including promoting relaxation and relieving stress.
Increase Mindfulness. In today’s world of constant connectedness, being mindful is becoming more difficult. Taking a moment or two every day at your mini Zen garden to meditate or simply focus on something other than the stresses of everyday life gives your mind the rest it needs.
Relaxation. Some people only seek relaxation every now and then through a massage, bath, or another routine. A mini Zen garden can bring daily relaxation into your life. Raking sand or spending time by the garden is a great way to relax in the middle of the day or before bedtime.
Stress Relief. Mini Zen gardens are designed to promote relaxation and peace, two things critical to minimizing stress. If you find yourself wanting to decrease your stress levels, a mini Zen garden is a great way to bring daily stress relief into your life.
How to Create Your Own Mini Zen Garden
Zen gardens may seem complicated and skillfully designed. But as Jennifer Miree Cope explains, creating your own is easier than you may think.
The first step is collecting the materials required, including sand, pebbles or rocks, a rake box, and plants. You can source these items from your local home and garden store or even collect rocks from the beach or outdoors.
The next step is creating the sand base. Your rake box should be mostly covered in sand, creating plenty of room for daily raking. You can also add an essential oil of your choosing to the sand, which can help promote relaxation.
Place the pebbles and plants. There is no right or wrong way to organize your mini Zen garden. Just make sure not to place your plants or rocks in a way that makes it difficult to rake the sand. You can also experiment with decorative pieces to make your Zen garden stand out.
More About Jennifer Miree Cope
Jennifer Miree Cope is a landscape designer well known for her passion and thoughtful organization. In addition to her landscaping career, she is also an avid volunteer and contributes to several charitable organizations. She enjoys relaxing with her husband and two sons, walking her dog, and hiking in the North Carolina mountains.
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