Research & reports
Peer-reviewed research and reports on community urban agriculture, food education, composting, welfare and more.
Theme
Critical findings
845 results(30 / 34)
Food Forests and Home Gardens: Their Roles and Functions in Domestic Food Production and Food Security in the Caribbean
2013Clinton L. Beckford, Donovan Campbell · Palgrave Macmillan US eBooks · Caribbean
In the Caribbean, kitchen gardens are categorized into home gardens and food forests, both grown on home plots. Home gardens are small areas for short-term crops, used for home consumption and sharing, while food forests are low-maintenance agroforestry systems with diverse plant species, including fruit trees and non-food hardwoods. These systems mimic a forest's vertical structure.
DIYFood sovereignty & justiceBiodiversityOrganic cycleDeveloping Urban Community Garden Projects
2013Austen Moore, Amy Harder, Norma Samuel · EDIS · United States
This 7-page fact sheet provides a guide for individuals or groups interested in starting urban community gardens. Community gardens are used to grow vegetables and flowers, produce food for local consumption or sale, and teach gardening and other skills. The guide includes information on how to identify garden sites, build partnerships, engage community members, and develop a project overview.
CommunityFood educationDIYDefining the skycourt and skygarden
2013Jason Pomeroy · · Egypt
The ancient Egyptian city of Fustat, now part of Old Cairo, incorporated skygardens. Archaeological findings indicate its importance as a trade hub and production center. Historical accounts describe 14-storey residential buildings with rooftop gardens irrigated by ox-drawn water wheels.
CommunityDIYAdaptation of Excavation Pits for Sustainable Urban Farming and Eco-Supportive Infrastructure in Kaduna State, Nigeria
2013R. O. Yusuf · · Nigeria (Kaduna State)
In Zaria, Kaduna State, Nigeria, a study examined the contribution of urban farming activities utilizing water from excavation pits to farmers' income and food security, and the eco-supportive component of using these pits. Data were collected from 10 farmers between December 2011 and May 2012 through structured interviews and observation. Farmers cultivated various crops and obtained higher incomes from farming compared to their primary occupations. The utilization of excavation pits was found to be eco-supportive by regulating the microenvironment's water balance, serving as carbon sinks, and providing low-cost water extraction. However, observed constraints included insecure land tenure, disturbance from straying domestic animals, and theft of farm produce.
DIYFood sovereignty & justiceEconomicsClimate changeDesign Thinking on Urban Agricultural Construction of Intelligent Ecological Residential Building
2013Xiao Di Li, Wei Hu, Xiao Yang · Applied Mechanics and Materials · Global
This research aims to create intelligent ecological residential buildings with small, limited agricultural rooms for city residents, fulfilling their psychological desire for nature, eco-protection, work-life balance, and a residential agronomic garden. Through logical reasoning, it was found that rapid social, political, technological, and economic development sufficiently supports the realization of intelligent eco-building ideas for urban agriculture. This is expected to initiate social concerns and further research on urban intelligent ecological agricultural buildings.
DIYClimate changeDigital agricultureFrom Garden City to City in a Garden (Case Study: Shiraz City as a ""Permaculture"" Model in Iran)
2013Sara Fattahi · · Iran (Shiraz)
Focusing on Shiraz City, Iran, rooftop gardens were examined as an example of incorporating passive, eco-friendly technology for sustainable development. Rooftop gardens are stated to help mitigate negative environmental impacts by conserving energy and water, improving air and water quality, assisting in storm water management, absorbing solar radiation, becoming a source of local food production, providing habitat restoration, and creating natural retreats.
DIYClimate changeBiodiversityOrganic cycleUrban farming a reality at the Sydney Cooking School
2013Brett Deverall · Practical Hydroponics and Greenhouses · Australia (Sydney)
The Sydney Cooking School has embraced urban farming by growing their own herbs for use in cooking classes. Chef and owner, Brett Deverall, is passionate about using the freshest produce possible and decided to implement a self-contained growing system from Elevated Gardens.
Food educationDIYHumanized Design on Residential Community Garden:Taking Beijing Langqinyuan Community for Example
2013Li Fei · Beijing Linye Daxue xuebao · China (Beijing)
This paper analyzes the connotation and principles of humanized design for residential community gardens, using Beijing Langqinyuan Community in Xicheng District as an example. It explains the application of humanized design concepts to aspects such as road networks, waterscapes, public spaces, leisure facilities, lighting, identification, and planting within a residential community garden. The study also discusses the expression methods of humanized design.
CommunityDIYHealthEvaluación de dos variedades de tomate: Chonto Santa Cruz y Río Grande (Lycopersicon esculentum Mill.) mediante técnicas de agricultura urbana en el municipio de Istmina, Chocó, Colombia
2013Mirla Perea Murillo · Revista Bioetnia · Colombia (Istmina)
In Istmina, Colombia, the agronomic yield of two tomato varieties (Chonto Santa Cruz and Río Grande) was evaluated using urban farming techniques (bed and chorizo systems). Water and nutrient solution were used for plant hydration, and 12 beds and 12 chorizos were used for the study. As a result, the Río Grande variety cultivated in the bed planting system with added nutrient solution showed a higher yield, producing 134 tomatoes (16.76 kg), compared to the Chonto Santa Cruz variety, which produced 78 tomatoes (1.7 kg) using the same system and nutrient solution.
DIYFood sovereignty & justiceCommunity서천군 ‘산너울’ 생태마을의 조성 과정과 공동체 생활
2013남윤철 · · South Korea
The Ecovillage 'Sanneoul' in Seocheon-gun, South Korea, was developed for urban dwellers returning to rural areas and to prevent rural population decline. The village incorporates ecological elements such as rainwater recycling, rooftop gardens, and ecological sewage disposal plants, and residents utilize sunlight and solar heat systems, garbage recycling, and pellet boilers. While residents are content with the village's ecological elements, significant dissimilarities among residents in age, profession, and previous living environments pose an obstacle to community maintenance.
CommunityOrganic cyclePeri-urban agricultureDIYLa agricultura urbana y el cultivo de sí. Los huertos de ocio a la luz de las dinámicas neorrurales. (Urban agriculture and the growing of the self. Leisure gardening in light of new-rural dynamics)
2013Fernando Richter · DOAJ (DOAJ: Directory of Open Access Journals) · Global
Urban agriculture is currently expanding on rooftops, balconies, and abandoned plots. Historically, its main function was food production, but now its practice as a recreational activity and leisure experience is emphasized. This phenomenon converges with symbolic dynamics related to new-ruralism, consumption, and a nostalgic search for authenticity, with leisure studies offering a useful perspective for understanding its complexity.
CommunityDIYUrban–rural linkageUrban gardening
2013Àngels Viladomiu Canela · AusArt · Global
This article reviews artistic interventions that address specific uses of urban territory and forms of cultivation. These actions, through planting and cultivating, create spaces for the expression of artistic, political, and social identities in the interstices of cities, such as abandoned lots, undeveloped areas, riverbanks, and highway verges.
CommunityPolicyDIYCan home gardens scale up into movements for social change? The role of home gardens in providing food security and community change in San Jose, California
2013Leslie Gray, Patricia Guzmán, K. Michelle Glowa, Ann Drevno · Local Environment · United States (California)
This article examines La Mesa Verde, a home-gardening program in San Jose, California, to assess if home gardens offer similar financial, health, and community benefits as community gardens. The research explores the potential of home gardens to foster broader social change, cultural preservation, and self-determination, especially for recent immigrants.
DIYCommunityFood sovereignty & justiceHealthEconomicsDonegal Garden GNOMES
2013Getting Together Killybegs (MHI) · · Ireland (Donegal Town)
The Donegal Garden G.N.O.M.E.S is a community garden group in Donegal Town, Ireland, that organically grows fruit and vegetables. The group meets weekly on Thursdays from 11:00 AM to 1:00 PM at the Bluestack Foundation building. It is partly funded by Donegal Local Development and partners with Mental Health Ireland.
CommunityDIYHealthFood educationLa agricultura urbana y el cultivo de sí: los huertos de ocio a la luz de las dinámicas neorrurales
2013Fernando Richter · Dialnet (Universidad de la Rioja) · Global
This article examines the current boom in urban agriculture, noting a shift from its historical function of food production to a focus on recreational and leisure activities. It suggests that symbolic dynamics associated with new-ruralism, consumption, and a nostalgic search for authenticity converge in this phenomenon. The study proposes that Leisure Studies offer a valuable perspective for understanding the complexity of urban agriculture as a leisure experience.
CommunityDIYHealthUrban–rural linkageEl cultivo de setas: del huerto urbano al uso multifuncional del bosque
2013Esteban Sinde Stompel · Navarra forestal: revista de la Asociación Forestal de Navarra · Global
Mushroom cultivation is being introduced into urban garden design and as a real silvicultural alternative to be implemented on forest land. In the latter case, the production of saprophytic fungi on valueless wood waste offers a notable environmental advantage by recycling biomass and providing a highly nutritious ecological food.
DIYOrganic cycleBiodiversityFood sovereignty & justiceThe Raw and the Processed
2013Shelly Errington · Gastronomica The Journal of Food and Culture · United States (California)
This research article is by Shelly Errington, focusing on visible and audible aspects of culture. The author is in the Department of Anthropology at the University of California at Santa Cruz and uses her kitchen garden and edible landscape to imagine being part of the farm-to-table crowd.
DIYLa escritura en un proyeto de agroecología escolar : la recuperación del huerto urbano
2013Xavier Fontich Vicens, Mariona Espinet Blanch, Germán Llerena del Castillo · · Global
This record concerns writing in a school agroecology project and the recovery of an urban garden. It is based on the publication's abstract, as part of a monograph titled "Teaching and Learning Scientific Discourse."
Food educationCommunityDIYThinking about the Chinese-style Community Supported Agriculture
2013Chen Hui-fan · Anhui nongye kexue · China (Zhengzhou)
This article analyzes the Community Supported Agriculture (CSA) model in Zhengzhou and proposes a new Chinese-style CSA model, "daughter-in-law in the city, her husband outside the city," inspired by roof vegetable gardens. This model is presented as beneficial for organic agriculture development and urban roof greening, offering a mutually beneficial practice for combining roof greening and agriculture. It is described as a green economy approach that promotes ecological environment protection and urban-rural economic development.
CSA & TeikeiDIYUrban–rural linkageEconomicsRoots, Tendrils, Sprouts and Shoots: A Case Study of Parkallen’s Community Garden, a permaculture project
2013Marlene Wurfel · Earth Common Journal · Canada (Edmonton)
This article presents a case study of the Parkallen Community Garden in Edmonton, Canada, which began its first growing season in Spring 2012. The garden transformed an unused strip of lawn into a communal "edible food forest" and won the City of Edmonton's top community gardening award in its first year. The study details how the permaculture design was implemented and interpreted within the gardening community.
CommunityDIYFood educationOrganic cycleSustainability through intervention: a case study of guerrilla gardening in Kingston, Ontario
2012Annie Crane, Leela Viswanathan, Graham Whitelaw · Local Environment · Canada (Kingston, Ontario)
This paper examines guerrilla gardening as an example of sustainability in action, using participatory action research methods. Two case studies were developed in Kingston, Ontario: Dig Kingston, a guerrilla gardening project, and the Oak Street Community Garden. The research found that interventions like guerrilla gardening open up unexpected possibilities for conceptualizing sustainability and contribute to producing engaging and sustainable communities.
CommunityDIYFood sovereignty & justiceA Deweyan Defense of Guerrilla Gardening
2012Shane J. Ralston · The Pluralist · Global
This research article, published in The Pluralist in 2012, presents a Deweyan defense of guerrilla gardening. The full text of the article is available only as a PDF.
CommunityDIYFood sovereignty & justiceDeveloping a Space for Children: An Internship with the Mullumbimby Community Garden
2012Eden K Olsen · School for International Training Digital Collections (School for International Training) · Australia
This paper details an internship at the Mullumbimby Community Garden (MCG) in Byron Shire, Australia, focusing on the development of its Children's Garden. The intern spent 152.5 hours over four weeks in late 2012 on tasks including planting, project planning, and designing new structures. The study also examines the broader importance of community gardens and children's spaces, drawing conclusions on environmental education and communication practices based on participant observations and three interviews.
CommunityFood educationDIYFood sovereignty & justiceEvaluation of Different Soil Media and Soil Ameliorants in Tomato (Lycopersicon esculentum Miller), Green Onion (Allium sativum) and Pechay (Brassica rapa L.)
2012Jenny Calabio, Ma. Luisa Albacete · WVSU Research Journal · Philippines (Iloilo City)
This study, conducted from July 2007 to July 2008 at the Urban Agriculture Demonstration Site in La Paz, Iloilo City, evaluated soil media and ameliorants for container-grown green onion, pechay, and tomato. Pure compost was found to be the best medium for increasing yields. However, the use of IMO and rice hull as soil ameliorants did not increase yields for the three tested vegetables, and rice hull generally reduced pechay yields.
Limited or null effectCompostDIYWelfareHealthEconomicsUteservering för Hotell & Restaurang Villa Anna
2012Adam Roigart · · Sweden (Uppsala)
A new patio concept was designed for Hotel and Restaurant Villa Anna in Odinslund, Uppsala, Sweden, exploring how urban farming can thrive in a restaurant context. The design, informed by a literature study on urban farming and storytelling and discussions with the restaurateur, aimed to convey the cuisine's core values and strengthen the sense of place through storytelling. The author found storytelling useful in landscape architecture and highlighted urban farming's potential to offer a new perspective on food procurement and eating trends within restaurants.
DIYFood educationEconomics