Gardening

Sophie Hello and welcome to 6 Minute English. I'm Sophie… Neil And I'm Neil… What did you do at the weekend, Sophie? Sophie I did a spot of gardening. Neil So, you are you a keen gardener? Sophie Yes, I am, Neil. And gardening is the subject of today's show! Now why don't we start with a quiz question? Neil Good idea. Sophie What percentage of people in the UK said that gardening makes them happier, according to a survey conducted by the Royal Horticultural Society? Is it… a) 22% b) 52% Or c) 82%? Neil Well, I'll guess: b) 52%. Sophie Well, we'll find out later on if you got it right or not. So, does gardening make you happy, Neil? 6 Minute English © British Broadcasting Corporation 2016 bbclearningenglish.com Page 2 of 5 Neil Well, I tried to grow some tomatoes once. And to be honest it made me rather anxious. All the leaves curled up… and then dropped off. Sophie Did you get any tomatoes? Neil No. Sophie So you don't have green fingers, then? Why are you looking at your fingers, Neil? I wasn't asking whether you literally have green fingers! Having green fingers means a natural ability for growing plants. It's funny you should say gardening makes you anxious because other people find it calming and relaxing. Neil Do they? Do you? Sophie Yes, I do. Being in the fresh air, in all weathers, communing with nature… Neil Sounds very unpleasant! Sophie In all weathers means something you do in all types of weather – rain, snow, sunshine. And communing with nature means feeling close to nature, and being a part of it. Neil Well, when I tried communing with nature my hands got all scratched – I got stung by nasty creepy-crawlies – and I got soil up my nose. I didn't enjoy it at all. Sophie Try wearing protective clothing next time – and maybe a nose plug too! A creepy-crawly is a small insect, by the way. Neil So do you like getting your hands dirty, Sophie? Sophie Yes, I love it. And it turns out there might be a good reason for this. Dr Christopher Lowry from the University of Colorado conducted an experiment to test whether soil gives us a natural high – meaning to make us happy without taking drugs. He injected a bacterium commonly found in soil into mice to see what effect this would have on them. Let's hear what he said in this BBC programme. 6 Minute English © British Broadcasting Corporation 2016 bbclearningenglish.com Page 3 of 5 INSERT Dr Christopher Lowry, neuroscientist, University of Colorado US and Helena Merriman,