IDEAS home Printed from https://ideas.repec.org/a/gam/jresou/v12y2023i10p118-d1253167.html
   My bibliography  Save this article

Evaluating Importance of Community Gardens in Times of Calm and Crisis: From Relaxation to Food Self-Provisioning

Author

Listed:
  • Marek Hekrle

    (Faculty of Social and Economic Studies, University of J. E. Purkyně in Ústí nad Labem, Pasteurova 3544/1, 400 96 Ústí nad Labem, Czech Republic)

  • Jan Macháč

    (Faculty of Social and Economic Studies, University of J. E. Purkyně in Ústí nad Labem, Pasteurova 3544/1, 400 96 Ústí nad Labem, Czech Republic)

  • Lenka Dubová

    (Faculty of Social and Economic Studies, University of J. E. Purkyně in Ústí nad Labem, Pasteurova 3544/1, 400 96 Ústí nad Labem, Czech Republic)

Abstract

The functions of community gardens (CGs) are determined by the preferences of their users and external factors such as government restrictions or the situation of the food market. Recent food prices increases and COVID-19 restrictions have shown the importance of CGs as a place for both food self-provisioning (FSP) and relaxation. These have influenced how much the benefits provided by CGs in the form of ecosystem services (ES) are appreciated. This study aims to demonstrate how ES provided by the CG ‘Žížala na Terase’ in Czechia are affected in times of crisis related to the COVID-19 pandemic and to increased food prices, which trigger a demand for greater FSP. The results indicate that the importance of social interaction and educational ES decreased significantly in the COVID-19 scenario. On the contrary, the role of CGs as places for recreation increased. In the FSP scenario, the provisioning ES increased at the expense of recreational ES. The results of the economic assessment further show that the most important monetarily valued ES provided by CGs are cultural ES, followed by provisioning ES. This study demonstrates both the multifunctionality and adaptability of CGs to the current social crises and dynamic urban conditions.

Suggested Citation

  • Marek Hekrle & Jan Macháč & Lenka Dubová, 2023. "Evaluating Importance of Community Gardens in Times of Calm and Crisis: From Relaxation to Food Self-Provisioning," Resources, MDPI, vol. 12(10), pages 1-15, October.
    • Handle: RePEc:gam:jresou:v:12:y:2023:i:10:p:118-:d:1253167
    as

    Download full text from publisher

    File URL: https://www.mdpi.com/2079-9276/12/10/118/pdf
    Download Restriction: no
    File URL: https://www.mdpi.com/2079-9276/12/10/118/
    Download Restriction: no
    ---><---

    References listed on IDEAS

    as
    1. Lenka Dubová & Jan Macháč & Alena Vacková, 2020. "Food Provision, Social Interaction or Relaxation: Which Drivers Are Vital to Being a Member of Community Gardens in Czech Cities?," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 12(22), pages 1-17, November.
    2. Twiss, J. & Dickinson, J. & Duma, S. & Kleinman, T. & Paulsen, H. & Rilveria, L., 2003. "Community Gardens: Lessons Learned from California Healthy Cities and Communities," American Journal of Public Health, American Public Health Association, vol. 93(9), pages 1435-1438.
    3. Zick, C.D. & Smith, K.R. & Kowaleski-Jones, L. & Uno, C. & Merrill, B.J., 2013. "Harvesting more than vegetables: The potential weight control benefits of community gardening," American Journal of Public Health, American Public Health Association, vol. 103(6), pages 1110-1115.
    4. Victoria Schoen & Silvio Caputo & Chris Blythe, 2020. "Valuing Physical and Social Output: A Rapid Assessment of a London Community Garden," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 12(13), pages 1-20, July.
    5. Mejia, Angie & Bhattacharya, Manami & Nigon-Crowley, Amanda & Kirkpatrick, Kelly Rae & Katoch, Chandi, 2020. "Community Gardening During Times Of Crisis: Recommendations For Community-Engaged Dialogue, Research, And Praxis," SocArXiv 6587c, Center for Open Science.
    6. Sinan Kordon & Patrick A. Miller & Cermetrius L. Bohannon, 2022. "Attitudes and Perceptions of Community Gardens: Making a Place for Them in Our Neighborhoods," Land, MDPI, vol. 11(10), pages 1-25, October.
    Full references (including those not matched with items on IDEAS)

    Most related items

    These are the items that most often cite the same works as this one and are cited by the same works as this one.
    1. Hua Zheng & Min Guo & Qian Wang & Qinghai Zhang & Noriko Akita, 2023. "A Bibliometric Analysis of Current Knowledge Structure and Research Progress Related to Urban Community Garden Systems," Land, MDPI, vol. 12(1), pages 1-34, January.
    2. Kentaro Harada & Kimihiro Hino & Akiko Iida & Takahiro Yamazaki & Hiroyuki Usui & Yasushi Asami & Makoto Yokohari, 2021. "How Does Urban Farming Benefit Participants’ Health? A Case Study of Allotments and Experience Farms in Tokyo," IJERPH, MDPI, vol. 18(2), pages 1-13, January.
    3. Luyang Chen & Lingbo Liu & Hao Wu & Zhenghong Peng & Zhihao Sun, 2022. "Change of Residents’ Attitudes and Behaviors toward Urban Green Space Pre- and Post- COVID-19 Pandemic," Land, MDPI, vol. 11(7), pages 1-16, July.
    4. Michael Takudzwa Pasara & Steven Henry Dunga, 2022. "Value Chains And Climate Change Mitigation Strategies: A Case Of Nutritional Gardens In Zimbabwe," Eurasian Journal of Business and Management, Eurasian Publications, vol. 10(1), pages 62-75.
    5. Emad B. Dawwas & Karen Dyson, 2021. "COVID-19 Changed Human-Nature Interactions across Green Space Types: Evidence of Change in Multiple Types of Activities from the West Bank, Palestine," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 13(24), pages 1-21, December.
    6. Kirsten Schwarz & Bethany B. Cutts & Jonathan K. London & Mary L. Cadenasso, 2016. "Growing Gardens in Shrinking Cities: A Solution to the Soil Lead Problem?," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 8(2), pages 1-11, February.
    7. Leslie Gray & Laureen Elgert & Antoinette WinklerPrins, 2020. "Theorizing urban agriculture: north–south convergence," Agriculture and Human Values, Springer;The Agriculture, Food, & Human Values Society (AFHVS), vol. 37(3), pages 869-883, September.
    8. Scott Cloutier & Lincoln Larson & Jenna Jambeck, 2014. "Are sustainable cities “happy” cities? Associations between sustainable development and human well-being in urban areas of the United States," Environment, Development and Sustainability: A Multidisciplinary Approach to the Theory and Practice of Sustainable Development, Springer, vol. 16(3), pages 633-647, June.
    9. Liling Huang, 2023. "Developing Place-Based Health during the COVID-19 Pandemic: A Case Study of Taipei City’s Jiuzhuang Community Garden," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 15(16), pages 1-20, August.
    10. Anne E. Lally & Alban Morina & Leah N. Vermont & Jill N. Tirabassi & Lucia A. Leone, 2022. "Impacts of the COVID-19 Pandemic on Mobile Produce Market Operations: Adaptations, Barriers, and Future Directions for Increasing Food Access," IJERPH, MDPI, vol. 19(18), pages 1-16, September.
    11. Lauren Lautenschlager & Chery Smith, 2007. "Beliefs, knowledge, and values held by inner-city youth about gardening, nutrition, and cooking," Agriculture and Human Values, Springer;The Agriculture, Food, & Human Values Society (AFHVS), vol. 24(2), pages 245-258, June.
    12. John Taylor & Sarah Lovell, 2014. "Urban home food gardens in the Global North: research traditions and future directions," Agriculture and Human Values, Springer;The Agriculture, Food, & Human Values Society (AFHVS), vol. 31(2), pages 285-305, June.
    13. Cattivelli, Valentina, 2022. "The contribution of urban garden cultivation to food self-sufficiency in areas at risk of food desertification during the Covid-19 pandemic," Land Use Policy, Elsevier, vol. 120(C).
    14. Giordano Ruggeri & Chiara Mazzocchi & Stefano Corsi, 2016. "Urban Gardeners’ Motivations in a Metropolitan City: The Case of Milan," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 8(11), pages 1-19, October.
    15. Nugrahaning Sani Dewi & Masakazu Komatsuzaki & Yuriko Yamakawa & Hiromi Takahashi & Saori Shibanuma & Takeshi Yasue & Tsuyoshi Okayama & Atsushi Toyoda & Hikari Shimonishi & Seiichi Sasaki, 2017. "Community Gardens as Health Promoters: Effects on Mental and Physical Stress Levels in Adults with and without Mental Disabilities," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 9(1), pages 1-17, January.
    16. Tobias Ihle & Ellen Jahr & Dörte Martens & Holger Muehlan & Silke Schmidt, 2024. "Health Effects of Participation in Creating Urban Green Spaces—A Systematic Review," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 16(12), pages 1-26, June.
    17. Vaz, Eric & Khaper, Monica, 2016. "New Resources For Smart Food Retail Mapping. A Gis And The Open Source Perspective," Journal of Tourism, Sustainability and Well-being, Cinturs - Research Centre for Tourism, Sustainability and Well-being, University of Algarve, vol. 4(4), pages 305-313.
    18. Andrea Abraham & Kathrin Sommerhalder & Thomas Abel, 2010. "Landscape and well-being: a scoping study on the health-promoting impact of outdoor environments," International Journal of Public Health, Springer;Swiss School of Public Health (SSPH+), vol. 55(1), pages 59-69, February.
    19. Sina Razzaghi Asl & Hamil Pearsall, 2022. "How Do Different Modes of Governance Support Ecosystem Services/Disservices in Small-Scale Urban Green Infrastructure? A Systematic Review," Land, MDPI, vol. 11(8), pages 1-21, August.
    20. Fatmir Haskaj, 2021. "(Community) garden in the city: Conspicuous labor and gentrification," Environment and Planning A, , vol. 53(5), pages 1051-1075, August.

    Corrections

    All material on this site has been provided by the respective publishers and authors. You can help correct errors and omissions. When requesting a correction, please mention this item's handle: RePEc:gam:jresou:v:12:y:2023:i:10:p:118-:d:1253167. See general information about how to correct material in RePEc.

    If you have authored this item and are not yet registered with RePEc, we encourage you to do it here. This allows to link your profile to this item. It also allows you to accept potential citations to this item that we are uncertain about.

    If CitEc recognized a bibliographic reference but did not link an item in RePEc to it, you can help with this form .

    If you know of missing items citing this one, you can help us creating those links by adding the relevant references in the same way as above, for each refering item. If you are a registered author of this item, you may also want to check the "citations" tab in your RePEc Author Service profile, as there may be some citations waiting for confirmation.

    For technical questions regarding this item, or to correct its authors, title, abstract, bibliographic or download information, contact: MDPI Indexing Manager (email available below). General contact details of provider: https://www.mdpi.com .

    Please note that corrections may take a couple of weeks to filter through the various RePEc services.

    IDEAS is a RePEc service. RePEc uses bibliographic data supplied by the respective publishers.