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Harvesting Health in the Garden

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Sowing Seeds in the City

Abstract

Among the primary health benefits associated with community gardening are improvements in the healthfulness of gardeners’ diets and the amount of physical activity. Community gardens can make it easier for participants to adopt healthier behaviors because they can provide greater access to fruits and vegetables, increase preferences for fruits and vegetables, and serve as safe places for physical activity, social support, emotional attachment, and connection with nature and community. Self and collective efficacy may also develop through community gardening (Alaimo et al. 2005, 2008; Glover et al. 2005; Teig et al. 2007; Wakefield et al. 2007; Allen et al. 2008; Alaimo and Reischl 2010; Comstock et al. 2010; van den Berg et al. 2010; Blacksher and Lovasi 2011; Hale et al. 2011; Okvat and Zautra 2011).

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Author information

Authors and Affiliations

  1. Michigan State University, East Lansing, MI, USA

    Katherine Alaimo & Caroline Crawford

  2. Department of Health Sciences, University of Alaska Anchorage, Anchorage, AK, USA

    Elizabeth Hodges Snyder

Authors
  1. Katherine Alaimo
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  2. Caroline Crawford
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  3. Elizabeth Hodges Snyder
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Corresponding author

Correspondence to Katherine Alaimo .

Editor information

Editors and Affiliations

  1. Department of Health Sciences, University of Alaska Anchorage, Anchorage, Alaska, USA

    Elizabeth Hodges Snyder

  2. Harvest Pierce County, Pierce Conservation District, Puyallup, Washington, USA

    Kristen McIvor

  3. School of Environmental & Forest Science, University of Washington, Seattle, Washington, USA

    Sally Brown

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Alaimo, K., Crawford, C., Snyder, E.H. (2016). Harvesting Health in the Garden. In: Hodges Snyder, E., McIvor, K., Brown, S. (eds) Sowing Seeds in the City. Springer, Dordrecht. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-94-017-7456-7_5

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