Lived Experience of Senior Citizens on Plant-Human Relationship: A Phenomenological Study of Therapeutic Wellbeing in Urban Nepal

Ageing is a natural phenomenon, and it is inevitable. Everyone eventually grows, and this growth brings weakness and decline in the individual's physical, mental, and overall well-being. There have been many studies done regarding identifying the possible link between the plant-human relationship and its impact on the well-being of humans. This phenomenological study has provided the perspective of elderly people/senior citizens concerning their experience with plant-related activities. The foundation of this study is based on five key primary questions in the thematic area of “plant-health relationship for subjective wellbeing in later life of retirees”. This study involved fifteen participants: four women and eleven men aged 60-80 years who were retired from 20 to 40 years of service in governmental, semi-, and non-governmental organizations. They were living with their families and had fairly similar physical and cognitive abilities. The interviews were recorded, transcribed, coded, and analyzed using the descriptive phenomenological method. Retired professionals from different sectors (education, police force, banking, agriculture, Army, engineering, nursing, community development, etc.) were found to be active, having a good understanding of plants and their relationship to human wellbeing. Most of them spent more than three hours daily in their horticultural activities (like kitchen gardening, rooftop gardening, terrace gardening, lawn or indoor plants). They utilized their competence and experiences gained from parents and ancestors, keeping themselves busy and productive after retirement. The narrative presented in this study directs towards a strong link between plant-human relationships and wellbeing.