Urban Gardening and Environmental Behavior of Urban Gardeners in Different Garden Forms in Barcelona, Spain

This investigation analyzes the current situation of urban community gardening in the Catalan metropolis Barcelona. Community gardens are places where people can produce food, motivate, learn or teach about nature and integrate themselves socially. The study is based on a quantitative survey method using questionnaires. For this purpose, 93 test persons in 15 different gardens were randomly selected and interviewed on their intentions, practices, and perspective connected with gardening. The collected data show that recreation and relaxation in the urban gardens are displacing the perception of self-sufficient food supply as the driving factor for people of lower social status in particular. Knowledge of horticulture spreads in these urban “green oases.” They are “laboratories” in which skills and abilities related to the environment are generated, distributed and applied in practice. The resulting neighborhood integration counteracts socio-urban exclusion. The gardeners can be divided into the groups of retirees and younger, ecologically sustainable people. This categorization is visible in many behavioral aspects related to urban gardening. In general, there is an urgent need to secure and extend the existing urban gardens because of numerous benefits for many urban dwellers.