Close care
A letter from all of us at I Giardini di Giulia
We’re writing to you from where we spend almost all our days: among the plants. We’re the people who watch them grow, prepare them one by one before sending them on their way, read your questions when a leaf turns yellow, and look for the right answer. For three generations, our work has always begun the same way, with our hands in the soil.
It’s a simple act: dig a small hole, place a little plant in it, gently press the soil around its roots. We repeat it every day, yet each time it asks the same thing of us: attention and a little patience. Over the years, we’ve learned that you can’t care for a plant from a distance. It needs someone nearby, who comes back to check on it and learns to know it.
This letter comes from that place: from a choice we made together and want to tell you about simply.
When greenery becomes a way to be together
Some people put their hands in the soil for work, like we do, while others come to it by different paths. For some time now, therapists and educators have been bringing vegetable gardens and gardens into programs for children and young people with autism. It’s called horticultural therapy: sowing, repotting, and watering, guided by trained practitioners, become opportunities to develop focus, connection, and independence.
As we read about their experiences, we recognized many things. At the Chicago Botanic Garden, a therapist accompanied children and adults with autism through weekly garden sessions over the course of a season. She found that among the plants, they could enjoy a peaceful break, filled with sounds, movements, and colors that captured their attention without overwhelming them: 72% of participants appeared less anxious during garden activities than at other times of the day.
She also saw how helpful a simple, consistent sequence could be: dig the hole, remove the plant from its pot, place it in the hole, and cover the roots with soil. 77% of participants followed these steps more successfully and were able to repeat them on their own. And she saw their relationship with touch change, week after week: those who initially avoided getting their hands dirty ended up becoming curious about it.
In India, a program at Kerala Agricultural University involved 44 young people with autism, aged 10 to 15, in indoor and outdoor growing activities for a year. The study found an improvement in their emotional intelligence.
These are experiences with small groups, and they don’t replace therapy: they complement it. Every child has their own pace. But what these stories tell us feels familiar, because we experience it every morning: being among plants is good for you.
What plants teach us all
A plant isn’t in a hurry, and it can’t stand it when we are. Too much water overwhelms it; too little weakens it. It asks us to find a rhythm, and reveals its changes a little at a time. Every new leaf is a small milestone, and when one appears, we still tell each other so, even after all these years.
Then there are the senses. Smooth leaves, velvety ones, fleshy ones. The scent of rosemary as soon as you brush against it, the sound of water trickling into a pot, the weight of damp soil between your fingers. A pot on the windowsill is already a little garden to touch.
If you’d like to try it at home with a child
- Choose safe plants: some common houseplants are toxic if eaten. Herbs such as basil, mint, and rosemary are a good place to start.
- Break each activity into a few clear steps and always repeat them in the same order.
- Let the child decide how much to touch: offer contact with the soil, but don’t force it.
- Give each person their own pot, so the plant becomes their personal responsibility.
- Don’t look for quick results: the value lies in coming back to observe and care for the plant regularly.
Adopting up close
Plants aren’t adopted from a distance: they’re cared for up close. It’s the same idea behind i Bambini delle Fate, a social enterprise founded in 2005 by Franco Antonello, father of Andrea, a young man with autism. Since then, it has provided financial support for inclusion projects and programs for young people and families affected by autism and other disabilities, run by local associations.
We were struck by how much their principle resembles our work. Business owners and citizens “adopt up close” a project and support it over time: not a one-off gesture, but an enduring presence. In their words, those who support a project get their hands dirty. That’s an expression we know well.
La Casa di Pandora
The project we’ve chosen to support is called La Casa di Pandora. It’s a multifunctional center in Bari dedicated to children and young people with autism and their families. It was established by Asfa Puglia, an association founded by parents, with ongoing monthly support from business owners who choose to stand alongside i Bambini delle Fate.
There, children and young people take part in educational programs with educators and specialists, play sports, play, cook together, and participate in projects with schools, alongside family members, friends, and classmates. At the opening, the president of Asfa Puglia reminded everyone that doing activities together with a classmate with autism “is an opportunity to be embraced.” It’s a phrase we took home with us.
Why we’re telling you
We’re not writing to ask you for anything. We’re writing because this choice is part of who we are, and those who have followed us for a long time deserve to know. Starting this autumn, some of our work will support La Casa di Pandora: it’s our way of getting our hands dirty there, too.
If you’d like to learn more about the project, contact i Bambini delle Fate: you’ll find their stories and how to support it.
With affection,
all of us at I Giardini di Giulia
