How Gardening in Detroit Influences Physical and Mental Health

Alyssa W Beavers; Ashley Atkinson; Lauren M Varvatos; Mary Connolly; Katherine Alaimo

doi:10.3390/ijerph19137899

How Gardening in Detroit Influences Physical and Mental Health

Int J Environ Res Public Health. 2022 Jun 28;19(13):7899. doi: 10.3390/ijerph19137899.

Authors

Alyssa W Beavers^{1

2}, Ashley Atkinson³, Lauren M Varvatos^{1

4}, Mary Connolly^{1

5}, Katherine Alaimo¹

Affiliations

¹ Department of Food Science and Human Nutrition, Michigan State University, G.M. Trout FSHN Building, 469 Wilson Rd #204, East Lansing, MI 48824, USA.
² Department of Nutrition and Food Science, Wayne State University, Science Hall, 5045 Cass Ave #3225, Detroit, MI 48201, USA.
³ Keep Growing Detroit, Detroit, 1445 Adelaide St, Detroit, MI 48207, USA.
⁴ School of Medicine, Wayne State University, 540 E Canfield St, Detroit, MI 48201, USA.
⁵ Pediatric Diabetes, University of Michigan C.S. Mott Children's Hospital, 1540 E Hospital Dr, Ann Arbor, MI 48109, USA.

Abstract

Gardening has the potential to improve health by providing access to nature, vegetables, and physical activity. However, scarce research exists on the health impacts of gardening on racial and ethnic minority urban populations in the United States. This study used qualitative interviews to examine the perceived physical and mental health effects of gardening in a primarily African American sample of 28 gardeners. Prominent physical health impacts attributed to gardening included providing an enjoyable source of activity, management of chronic diseases, and improved physical functioning. Participants also reported that gardening improved their mood, relieved stress, was an important part of their spirituality, contributed to their personal growth, and provided an opportunity for helping others. These findings suggest that gardening may improve physical and mental health among diverse groups.

Keywords: gardening; mental health; physical health; urban gardening; urban health.

Publication types

Research Support, Non-U.S. Gov't
Research Support, U.S. Gov't, Non-P.H.S.

MeSH terms

Ethnicity
Gardening*
Humans
Mental Health*
Minority Groups
Urban Population

Grants and funding

This project was funded by a grant from the C.S. Mott Chair of Sustainable Agriculture, Michigan State University. Alyssa Beavers was supported in part by the C.S. Mott Predoctoral Fellowship in Sustainable Agriculture. Katherine Alaimo was supported in part by the USDA National Institute of Food and Agriculture, Michigan AgBio Research Hatch projects MICL02410 and MICL02711.