Urban Gardens Are Good for Ecosystems and Humans

February 7, 2023 • by Esther Robards-Forbes

Traditionally, it has been assumed that cultivating food leads to a loss of biodiversity and negative impacts on an ecosystem.

Raised garden beds in a community garden filled with plants.

A new study found that urban gardens are beneficial for biodiversity, ecosystems and humans. Image courtesy of UCSC.


A green sweat bee sits inside a bright pink flower.

A green sweat bee in a native wildflower. Image courtesy of UCSC.

A bee on a purple wildflower

Courtesy of UCSC. 

"It's estimated that by 2030, about 60% of the world's population will live in cities," Jha said. "And urban farms and gardens currently provide about 15%-20% of our food supply, so they are essential in addressing food inequality challenges. What we're seeing is that urban gardens present a critical opportunity to both support biodiversity and local food production."

The study also found that the choices that gardeners make can have a large impact on their local ecosystem. For instance, planting trees outside crop beds could increase carbon sequestration without limiting pollinators or decreasing food production from too much shade. And mulching only within crop beds could help improve soil carbon services, while avoiding negative effects on pest control and pollinators.

The research was funded by the U.S. Department of Agriculture's National Institute of Food and Agriculture, the National Science Foundation, and grants from the University of California. Monika Egerer, Peter Bichier, Hamutahl Cohen, Stacy M. Philpott and Azucena Lucatero of UC Santa Cruz, Heidi Liere of Seattle University and Brenda Lin of CSIRO Land and Water Flagship in Australia were co-authors of the study.

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