Visits to Public Gardens: Its Meaning for Avid Gardeners

Abstract

This study examined how avid gardeners experience a public garden. Phenomenological interviewing was the qualitative research method used to collect data from six avid gardeners who frequently visited a public garden. Data about the gardener's beliefs and actions regarding their gardening history, gardening practices, and involvement with public gardens were gathered. From an inductive analysis, a conceptual model of a gardener's world was delineated. This study found that a gardener's world is composed of four dimensions that include: 1) personal history, 2) social connections, 3) human well-being, and 4) learning experiences. The dimensions of a gardener's world are the personal learning constructs through which gardeners experience their plant world. It is through these dimensions that the avid gardeners in this study experienced a public garden. Each of the four dimensions of an avid gardener's composition influenced how participants experienced a public garden. Participants used a public garden to socially interact with others, enhance their human well-being, strengthen their gardening background, and extend their gardening knowledge and skill. Several categories of activities and events emerged within the four dimensions of an avid gardener's world to inform us how gardening plays an integral role in gardeners' lives.