Bade Minimum-Security Prison Uses Horticultural Therapy as a Guide to Accompany Elderly Inmates in Rediscovering Life's Rhythm

In response to the trends of an aging society and the diverse needs for inmate treatment, the Bade Minimum Security Prison of the Agency of Corrections, Ministry of Justice, has launched a horticultural therapy group for elderly inmates starting in April 2026. We have invited horticultural therapist Zhuo Mei-hui to conduct a 12-week course titled "The Journey of Le Petit Prince ." Using Le Petit Prince as a symbol of inner innocence and perceptivity, the program guides elderly inmates to reconnect with their inner selves through gardening and creative works.

The curriculum integrates plant care, moss ball planting, micro-landscape design, and cross-media art creation to help students cultivate focus, stabilize their life rhythm, and develop emotional regulation skills through hands-on practice. By expressing their inner feelings through their works, students gradually accumulate self-confidence and a sense of achievement. Furthermore, through group cooperation and sharing, the program enhances peer interaction and improves isolation and detachment, allowing participants to feel supported and warmed by companionship.

Centering on healing and integrating themes of life education, the group enables students to experience the natural rhythm of "flowers blooming and falling in their own time" and rethink the value of life. Wen Min-nan, the Chief of the Education and Reform Section, stated that elderly inmates require even more understanding and companionship. Engaging in horticultural activities and group interactions helps enhance their motivation for life and self-affirmation. In the future, the prison will continue to combine professional resources to deepen reformatory treatment for the elderly, assisting inmates in a steady transition back into society.