Acclaimed scientist Kathy Willis trained as a paleoecologist, a fact, she notes, “that can stop the conversation dead at parties, since not many people know what it is (never mind how to spell it).” In fact, her field of study is fascinating: Willis and her peers study the fossilized remains of plants to reconstruct how vegetation has changed over time in response to climatic changes and human impact.
While you might expect someone who studies plants for a living to also be a keen gardener, Willis admits it wasn’t until she served as director of science at the Royal Botanic Gardens, Kew, in 2013 that she found herself looking up from her microscope to enjoy the vast array of plants around her. And not just the plants, but also the garden visitors who “stopped to inhale their fragrances, bask in their shade, or reach out to touch leaves or stroke bark.” She became intrigued by the question of the positive health impact of plants on humans.
While the notion that spending time in nature has physiological or psychological benefits is not new, Willis shows an exceptional ability to weave together science, history and personal experience in her engaging Good Nature: Why Seeing, Smelling, Hearing and Touching Plants Is Good for Our Health. Fans of the BBC program Gardeners’ World and its coverage of the Royal Horticultural Society Chelsea Flower Show will be especially delighted to read the chapter titled “Flower Power,” in which Willis provides research-based (and highly entertaining) information about the positive effects of flowers. We learn about the evolutionary history of flowers, the calming impact of a vase of pink roses on workers’ desks, and research that suggests yellow flowers may make us more creative. Elsewhere, she details the benefits of nature sounds, plant scents, “digging for health” and even “the proven health benefits of tree hugging.”
“We cannot survive without a diverse nature around us,” Willis writes. Good Nature convincingly argues that we must protect plants and make them a priority in built environments. After all, she concludes, “We need nature more than it needs us.”
