Abstract:
"Community Garden" has become popular in many countries, Such popularity is the result of the people's demands which linked accordingly to natural food sources and the community. At the same time, research studies to social issue in community garden have increased. The results of these studies indicated that the establishment of community garden is positive for bonding community. Community gardens bring various benefits to individuals, neighborhoods, and communities as a whole. The aims of this study are (1) To study characteristics of community garden users and their reasons for using or not using the garden, (2) To study the physical elements of the community garden, (3) To study usage patterns and behaviors on community garden, (4) To study users satisfaction and attitudes toward community garden.
This study was a quantitative research which studied the factors affecting attitudes of residents in neighborhoods with community gardens. The chosen case studies were public housing Community Garden in Bangkok Metropolis Suburbs with similarity such as physical conditions, ages, and still in function. These communities were Thung Song Hong Community Garden Public Housing in Lak Si district, and Chalongkrung Zone 6 Community Garden Public Housing in Nongchok district. A questionnaire toward satisfaction and attitudes on community garden were used along with interviewing community leaders.
The results revealed that attitude toward social benefits of community garden from users and non-users are alike, it was relatively high. The satisfaction evaluation on physical and economic benefits was placed at moderate level. In summary, the research indicated that community gardens social value is recognized on both communities surveyed.