Short-term responses across two sequential plant-based activity sessions: an exploratory fixed-order pilot study.

Background: Structured plant-based activities combine natural materials, purposeful manual work, sensory engagement, and social interaction, but direct comparisons of practical formats in community adults remain limited. We characterized short-term responses during two sequential sessions and compared within-session changes. Methods: Twenty-five adults participated in a single-group, fixed-order pilot study. Session 1 involved horticultural crafting; 1 week later, Session 2 involved balm crafting followed by horticultural crafting. Twenty-three attended both sessions. DASS-21 and STAI-S were principal outcomes; horticultural wellbeing, HRV, and forehead single-channel EEG were exploratory. Within-session changes and complete-case between-session differences were estimated with 95% CIs. Results: Both sessions were followed by favorable short-term psychological changes. DASS-21 scores decreased by 8.57 points in Session 1 [95% CI (5.41, 11.72), Conclusion: Both sessions were associated with favorable short-term psychological changes, particularly reduced distress and state anxiety. These findings support the feasibility and potential value of brief, hands-on plant-based activities in community settings and provide estimates for larger randomized, counterbalanced trials. Given the fixed order and absence of a control group, the findings are preliminary rather than definitive causal or modality-specific evidence.