Military members are a unique and diverse group making up 7% of the U.S. population. After completing their military service many return home and struggle with reintegration back into civilian life due to mental and physical ailments they obtained during enlistment. One of the first steps of civilian reintegration is acquiring a job. A type of job that military members enter is in plant-related fields. Research on the passive and active interaction with plants and its benefits, has been conducted extensively. However, it is not yet known how specific jobs that require working with plants or being in nature can help improve military member health and if they have therapeutic benefits. To evaluate this, part 1 of an online survey ascertained demographics and part 2 was created based on the National Veteran’s Survey and the VR-36 which looked at participants’ physical (PCS) and mental wellness (MCS). Results show that most of the military participants (N=148) were in the 25-30 year and 40-50-year-old range, Caucasian (70.9%) males (68.9%) involved in Army (44.6%) and Marine (24.3%) branches of the military and honorably discharged or retired. Military members in plant-related jobs scored in the top 3 job categories for PCS (49.1) and MCS (45.0), while Health related jobs were top for MCS (53.6) and those retired were top for PCS (49.7). Overall, those in plant, health, and retired jobs described them as relaxing, easy, and physical. Military in rural locations also had lower MCS in comparison to those living in urban centers. The findings from this research suggest that plant-related jobs could offer military members an opportunity to improve their mental and physical health, while helping with job retention and community reintegration.
