Local government leaders are in a unique position to promote healthy eating and active living in their communities by supporting community gardens. Community gardens are places where neighbors and residents can gather to cultivate plants, vegetables, and fruits and, depending on local laws, keep bees and raise chickens or other livestock and poultry. Community gardens can improve nutrition, physical activity, community engagement, safety, and economic vitality for a neighborhood and its residents and provide environmental benefits to the community at large.

NPLAN has created a set of complementary model land use policies to help communities create and preserve community gardens. Supportive land use policies, like zoning ordinances, can help to create community gardens and ensure their long-term ability to operate on a site. We also have a fact sheet that explains how land use policies can protect and promote gardens.

Community Gardens Webinar
In October 2009, NPLAN hosted a training on community garden policy for public health professionals and other healthy community advocates or policymakers. The webinar included a mini-training on NPLAN's land use policies for community gardens, as well as two community examples of gardens in action. Cleveland, Ohio, has passed supportive community garden policies and provided other resources to the city's network of gardens. Ecumenical Ministries of Oregon, a faith-based organization, supports several food systems projects, including a community garden for Latino families in Corvallis, Oregon.

Webinar Agenda & Presentations
Presentation slides are available for download:

Community Gardens & Public Health: Benefits of gardens, why policy is important, and what local governments can do to support gardens.
Christine Fry, NPLAN Policy & Program Associate

Using Land Use Regulations to Promote & Protect Community Gardens: Overview of land use concepts and NPLAN's three model policies.
Amy Ackerman, NPLAN Attorney

Land Use Policy: Urban Agriculture in Cleveland: Land use policies and other community garden support from Cleveland, Ohio.
Morgan Taggart, Ohio State University Extension

Interfaith Food & Farms Partnership: Program lessons from a faith-based community garden in Corvallis, Oregon.
Liv Gifford, Ecumenical Ministries of Oregon

Legal Technical Assistance to Create Healthier Communities: An overview of NPLAN's technical assistance services.
Stephanie Stevens, NPLAN Staff Attorney

Note: Due to technical difficulties, we were unable to record the first 30 minutes of the webinar. The recording begins during Amy Ackerman's discussion of land use policies. We plan to re-record the first presentation on Community Gardens & Public Health and post it in December.

You may also view the webinar on WebEx. In order to view the recorded presentation, you will need to install the free ARF Player.

Community Garden Benefits Citations
The first webinar presentation mentioned several studies of community garden benefits. These are the full citations.

U.S. Department of Health and Human Services. Physical Activity and Health: A Report of the Surgeon General. Atlanta, GA: U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, National Center for Chronic Disease Prevention and Health Promotion, 1996.

Kien CL, Chiodo AR. "Physical Activity in Middle School-aged Children Participating in a School-Based Recreation Program." Archives of Pediatric and Adolescent Medicine, 157: 811-815, 2003.

Alaimo K, Packnett E, Miles RA, Kruger DJ. "Fruit and vegetable intake among urban community gardeners." Journal of Nutrition Education & Behavior, 40(2): 94-101, 2008.

Robinson-O'Brien R, Story M, Heim S. "Impact of garden-based youth nutrition intervention programs: a review." Journal of the American Dietetic Association, 109(2): 273-280, 2009.

Voicu I, Been V. "The Effect of Community Gardens on Neighboring Property Values."Real Estate Economics, 36(2):241-283, 2008.

Saldivar-Tanaka L, Krasny ME. "Culturing Community Development, Neighborhood Open Space, and Civic Agriculture: the Case of Latino Community Gardens in New York City." Agriculture & Human Values, 21:399-412, 2004.

Kuo FE, Sullivan WC. "Environment and Crime in the Inner City: Does Vegetation Reduce Crime?" Environment & Behavior, 33(3): 343-367, 2001.

Other Community Garden Resources

American Community Garden Association: Numerous resources to help start and maintain gardens.

California School Garden Network: Resources to start and maintain school gardens, including a school garden curriculum and funding sources.

How to Start Guides

Food Sovereignty for All: Overhauling the Food System with Faith-Based Initiatives from Ecumenical Ministries of Oregon

Starting a Community Garden from the American Community Garden Association

Community Gardening Toolkit from University of Missouri Extension

Food Safety Resources

Fresh, Healthy, and Safe Food: Best Practices for Using Produce from School Gardens from the National Farm to School Network

Five Steps to Food Safe Fruit and Vegetable Home Gardening from the University of New Hampshire Extension

Raised Bed Gardening from the University of Missouri Extension