As part of the Cherokee Garden Library’s Ashley Wright McIntyre Lecture Series, join us on Wednesday, October 16, 2024, for a talk by renowned psychiatrist and avid gardener Sue Stuart-Smith, who will discuss her award-winning book,
The Well Gardened Mind: The Restorative Power of Nature (New York: Scribner, 2020).
Her work is an inspiring and intricately researched exploration of the healing effects of gardening and the long-lasting mental health benefits that can come from immersing oneself in the natural world.
In a powerful combination of contemporary neuroscience, psychoanalysis, and storytelling, The Well-Gardened Mind explores the magic many gardeners have known for years—working with nature can radically transform our health and well-being. Sue Stuart-Smith shares illuminating stories of people navigating stress, depression, trauma, and addiction, from asylum seekers to veterans, and inner-city young people to retirees. This book of science, insight, and anecdote shows how our understanding of nature and its restorative powers is only just beginning to flower.
The Well-Gardened Mind was published in 2020 and became a Sunday Times, UK bestseller and a Times, UK and Sunday Times, UK book of the year. It has since been translated into eighteen languages.
About the Author
Dr. Sue Stuart-Smith, a prominent psychiatrist and psychotherapist, graduated with a degree in English literature from Cambridge University before going on to train as a doctor. She worked in the National Health Service for many years, becoming the lead clinician for psychotherapy in Hertfordshire. Dr. Stuart-Smith currently works for DocHealth, a not-for-profit service that helps doctors suffering from stress and burnout. She is married to Tom Stuart-Smith, the celebrated garden designer. For over thirty years together, they have created the wonderful Barn Garden in Hertfordshire.
Learn more about Sue Stuart-Smith, The Well-Gardened Mind, and the Barn Garden: www.suestuartsmith.com
“This is a life-affirming study of the special pleasures of growing things.”
—The Guardian
“The wisest book I’ve read in many years. You don’t have to be a gardener or own a garden to take immense solace and pleasure from this remarkable book. Dr. Stuart-Smith doesn’t presume to make absurd and extravagant claims, but everything she says about the mind (and I’ve learned so much in the way of the history of psychiatry and psychology, as well as practical tips for both mind and garden) has the ring of authenticity and truth. Hugely recommended.”
—Stephen Fry
“Must be the most original gardening book ever.”
—John Carey, The Sunday Times, UK
“This is a book so wise and comfortable that it merits a place alongside Christopher Lloyd’s The Well-Tempered Garden by the side of every bed… Her deep understanding of the human psyche makes this a perfect source text as well as an engrossing read.”
—Marian Boswall, Gardens Illustrated, UK
“Combines observation, horticulture, literature, and history… it is a book that builds, chapter by chapter… As a reference and an inspiration… There is much here to feed the soul.”
—Ann Treneman, The Times, UK
“An important and timely book … Sue Stuart-Smith’s book is beautifully written drawing on a lifetime’s experience as both as a clinician and a gardener, and I urge everyone to read it.”
—Monty Don, BBC’s “Gardeners’ World”
The Ashley Wright McIntyre Lectures are made possible with generous funding from the Ashley Wright McIntyre Education and Programming Fund, part of the Cherokee Garden Library Endowment.
