Abstract: Objective: To explore the effects of horticultural therapy on symptoms, quality of life, and social function in patients with depressive disorder. Methods: Totally 134 patients with depressive disorder were randomly divided into control group (n=67) and therapy group (n=67). The control group was treated with antidepressants combined with conventional care, while the therapy group received the extra horticultural therapy. Hamilton Depression Rating Scale (HAMD), Quality of Life Comprehensive Assessment Questionnaire (GQOLI-74), and Social Function Defect Screening Scale (SDSS) were used to assess the improvement, before and after those treatments. Results: HAMD, GQOL-74 and SDSS score of therapy group after 8 weeks were 6.60±2.42, 13.57±3.63, 7.94±1.32, respectively, which were significantly higher than those of the control group (P<0.05). Conclusions: Horticulture therapy can significantly release the symptoms and improve the quality of life and social function of patients with depression, and it is worthy to be promoted in clinical practice.