Description
Of the myriad of proclaimed benefits of community gardens advanced by newspapers, magazines and even academic journals chronicling recent popular interest in urban agriculture, the benefit of "sense of community" appears both vague and unsubstantiated. Lack of clarity and empirical support point to the complexity of the concept of community. This research explores various conceptualizations and manifestations of community as it relates to community gardens. Drawing from geographic perspectives that frame place as relational, I argue that community, as well, can be thought of as relational. In particular, community (as a collective of individuals united under a common goal) and experiences of community (feelings of belonging and camaraderie) are shaped both by multi-scalar processes, such as neoliberalism and gentrification, and the "community visions" employed by local agencies to advance particular goals within the urban environment. By investigating the politics surrounding a recently adopted ordinance, I explore the "community visions" of local agencies supporting community gardens and the influence these visions have on experiences of community among gardeners. I employ concepts of social capital theory as tools in further understanding how gardeners value social relations within the garden. Findings from two San Diego garden sites indicate that gardeners experience community in a manner that is not readily captured by social capital measures. Instead, gardeners' narratives of connection over difference (in backgrounds) and through sameness (shared connection to place and interest in gardening) point to a more nuanced conceptualization of community.
