Most of us don't associate hospitals and gardens with one another, but recently clinics across the country have picked up the idea of incorporating gardening into nutrition lessons.
Kathy Oslund, Registered Dietician at Mayo Clinic Health System Franciscan Healthcare, started the patio garden at the clinic to provide produce for the hospital.
“We got into gardening because we believe in the tremendous benefitsthat gardening offers. It's a form of healthy food, physical activity, there's stress release with it when you get connected with nature,” says Oslund.
“The produce that we do have is mostly used down in our marketplace cafeteria. This we really look at this as modeling and showcasing some of those techniques that people can employ at their own homes and their own businesses,” says Oslund.
Michael Tangen, Executive Chef at Mayo says he uses as much produce as he can get his hands on.
“I use everything. Because we serve so many people here that I can go through what they pick in a day, no problem. We could go bigger,” says Tangen.