Background: In addition to increasing access to fresh and affordable produce, home gardening enhances food security. This notwithstanding, there is no evidence of studies that have investigated factors correlated with home gardening in Gauteng Province (GP), South Africa. The present study investigated home gardening across the GP.
Methods: Retrospective data of residents of GP (n = 30002) collected by the Gauteng City Region Observatory were used. A binary logistic regression was employed to determine factors correlated with home gardening.
Results: Overall participation in home gardening was low (12.37%). If a respondent was a resident of the poorest areas, resided in a house received under the Rural Development Programme, had a borehole/well as the main source of water, belonged to a social club, received a social grant, was >65 years, and rated his/her health as poor, then they were more likely to participate in home gardening. Factors that were negatively correlated with home gardening included if the respondent rented from private individuals and if the respondent's health status prevented him/her from doing daily work.
Conclusion: The low participation levels in home gardening observed suggest the failure of the current policies geared at fostering home gardening in the province. Policy makers and relevant authorities should target identified groups to improve participation in home gardening.
Keywords: food security policy; growing food or vegetables; home food gardens; household food security; livelihood strategy.