From Seed to Table: How Micro Gardening Fosters Healthier Eating and Social Connection Among Residents

There’s something richly satisfying and rewarding about working in a garden daily and, eventually, harvesting foods that you can enjoy in your meals. It’s an experience that encourages physical activity, promotes healthier eating, and provides valuable entertainment – and thanks to a new program, senior living residents have the opportunity to enjoy those same experiences and benefits.

Elior North America has implemented a new micro-farm movement in its senior living communities. Through its Cura Senior Living brand of senior living centers, Elior has implemented a micro garden program, and it’s already having a meaningful impact on residents and staff.

How the Micro Garden Program Works

Michael Williams, DBA, MBA, RD, CDN, Vice President of Nutrition, Wellness, and Culinary at Cura Hospitality

Michael Williams, DBA, MBA, RD, CDN, is a Registered Dietitian, Executive Chef, and Vice President of Nutrition, Wellness, and Culinary at Cura Hospitality with more than 20 years of food service experience. He says the micro garden program has been running for several years and has been so well received that Cura plans to expand it further. “We have several different types of gardens that we use throughout the communities, including everything from traditional outdoor gardens to raised beds and herb gardens,” he explains.

The garden type and structure depends on what works for each individual community, so each garden looks a bit different. “This is one of the benefits of the way we set up the programs,” adds Williams. “We truly partner with the sites.”

Typically, one person takes responsibility for overseeing the garden, ensuring it is well maintained and harvested on time. However, the day-to-day work varies depending on the community’s structure and what arrangement works best. In smaller gardens, residents often lead the efforts and manage the upkeep themselves. In some communities, the food service team takes primary ownership of the garden, handling much of the labor. In others, responsibility is shared among the food service team, the unit team, and residents, with all groups working together to keep the garden thriving.

The crops grown in the gardens vary widely. Because the communities are located in Pennsylvania, the local climate plays a key role in determining what thrives. Herb gardens often feature staples like basil, parsley, and rosemary. Many sites also cultivate essentials such as lettuce, tomatoes, and squash, while one community has added root vegetables like carrots and beets. After harvest, these fresh ingredients are incorporated directly into residents’ meals, bringing the garden’s work full circle.

The program has also introduced hydroponic gardens, which offer distinct advantages. They require less space than traditional gardens and make it possible to grow food even in areas with poor soil conditions. “This really does help make it possible to grow in some of the different environments that we have,” says Williams.

Why Micro Gardening Is Valuable in Senior Care Settings

Micro gardening is an excellent way to engage residents while also helping to reduce stress. It encourages physical activity and, because it can be quite labor-intensive, often motivates residents to stay more active. “It lends to healthier eating. When you grow something, you tend to want to eat it more than if you buy it at the store,” says Williams.

Micro gardening can also help foster social connections between residents and staff. “When you have people working together in a close environment, they tend to become friendlier and make connections they may not have made otherwise,” Williams explains. Passing one another in the hallway rarely leads to discovering shared interests. But when residents work side by side in the garden, conversations naturally unfold, and those interactions often grow into meaningful connections.

Advice for Communities to Implement Micro Gardening

While micro gardening is highly rewarding for communities, the results can also be unpredictable. “I think the biggest challenge is that you can’t control or predict the harvest,” says Williams. “One week of rain, or not enough watering, and you could ruin your whole crop. We’re not professional farmers.” Dining staff must remain flexible when incorporating harvested foods into meals, as the garden’s yield can never be fully predicted.

Williams advises communities interested in starting gardens to first assess the space they have available and then research which crops are best suited to their local growing conditions. “Just be realistic with expectations,” he advises. “Remember that gardening is a skill and it does take time. There are so many variables that if you’re not getting the return you want, maybe some little tweaks are needed.”

It’s easy to overlook the importance of promoting the gardens and their harvests within the community. When fresh produce is incorporated into salads or used as garnishes, highlighting that fact helps residents recognize and appreciate the unique benefits the gardens provide. “We need to make sure we’re labeling it properly so that people know that part of the food they’re eating came from the on-site garden,” Williams says. “It’s coming in very local and very fresh, so people can take pride in it and have fun while eating.”

Paige Cerulli

Paige Cerulli is a contributing writer to i Advance Senior Care.