Although many people affected by COVID-19 suffer from some form of psychological distress, access to proper treatment or psychosocial interventions has been limited. This study aimed to examine the feasibility and preliminary effects of a therapeutic gardening program conducted during the COVID-19 pandemic. The program consisted of 30 sessions and was conducted at 10 nationwide sites in Korea from June to November 2021. Mental health and well-being were assessed using the Mental Health Screening Tool for Depressive Disorders, Mental Health Screening Tool for Anxiety Disorders, Engagement in Daily Activity Scale, brief version of World Health Organization Quality of Life, and Mindful Attention Awareness Scale. Cohen’s d value was calculated for the effect size, and a multilevel analysis was used to determine the longitudinal effects of therapeutic gardening. The effect sizes for depression, anxiety, daily activities, quality of life, and mindfulness were 0.84, 0.72, 0.61, 0.64, and 0.40, respectively. Multilevel analyses showed that all five mental health variables improved significantly over time as the therapeutic gardening program progressed. Therapeutic gardening is promising and applicable as a nature-based intervention to improve the mental health of individuals experiencing psychological distress especially in the COVID-19 pandemic.

This study examined the applicability of forest therapy in alleviating psychological distress among socially isolated young adults, with a particular focus on their associations with the mindfulness. A total of 159 socially isolated young adults were recruited from the community and participated in a two-day, one-night forest therapy program. Psychological distress (depression, anxiety, loneliness, and stress) and mindfulness were assessed before and after the program. Multilevel analyses were conducted to examine changes in psychological distress and mindfulness following participation, as well as whether the five mindfulness subcomponents (nonreactivity, observing, acting with awareness, describing, and non-judging) were associated with individual differences in changes in these outcomes. The results indicated reductions in depression, anxiety, stress, and loneliness, along with an increase in overall mindfulness after the program. Among the mindfulness subcomponents, reductions in psychological distress over time occurred most closely in parallel with changes in nonreactivity, non-judging, and acting with awareness, whereas the parallel was weaker for describing and observing. These findings suggest that forest therapy may be a promising intervention for reducing psychological distress among socially isolated young adults, and that incorporating activities designed to cultivate mindfulness skills—particularly nonreactivity, non-judging, and awareness—could further enhance its mental health benefits. As this study did not include a control group, randomized controlled trials are needed to confirm these effects.