Fred, The previous surveys list all the gardens by the categories you mention. The issue is not category (for example, I just took out the school gardens and Minneapolis looked more statistically normal). The issue is in counting plots vs gardens. The 1992,1996, and 1998 surveys counted gardens, but I suspect that Newark counted plots in 1998. On a related note: for the survey I am developing, I will use plots since I think they are a better indicator of participation than gardens (but I will still count gardens so for longitudinal comparisons). Example: South Central Farm in LA. This is (was?) a 14 acre garden. In the previous surveys this garden of 300+ plots would be compared to, for example, the Pelican Tea garden in Seattle with around 10 plots. Sure plots vary greatly in size, but I suspect not as much as gardens.
As for creating a good database locally, probably no survey is going to get an exact count of plots or gardens for the reasons you mention. Cheers, Steven Hey, if Newark has that many community gardens they should host the ACGA conference.!.! I can't answer your question, but speaking for Atlanta, we list gardens that are for therapy, education and donation along with community gardens. So my total list would not necessarily reflect the number of neighborhood gardens. And I have to add, people forever ask for statistics but I've never once been funded to create or update a good data base. Just my two cents, fgc Fred Conrad Community Garden Coordinator Atlanta Community Food Bank 732 Joseph E Lowery Blvd, NW, Atlanta, GA 30318 ph: 678.553.5932 fx: 678.553.5933 [EMAIL PROTECTED] Our mission is to fight hunger by engaging, educating and empowering our community. -----Original Message----- From: [EMAIL PROTECTED] [mailto:[EMAIL PROTECTED] On Behalf Of Steven Garrett Sent: Wednesday, October 10, 2007 3:27 PM To: community gardening Cc: [EMAIL PROTECTED]; Laura Lawson Subject: [Community_garden] 1998 ACGA survey question/issues Hi all, As I am getting a survey ready to update our knowledge of community gardens in north America, but for now I have a question about the 1998 survey. I am preparing a presentation soon on community gardens. As Laura Lawson pointed out to me in a private conversation, there were numerous statistical errors in the 1998 survey write-up as well as issues that make the survey hard to decipher. This is not to denigrate the good folks who wrote this up and did the survey. I am thankful that I have this data. Examples: Spokane was listed has having 42 gardens, yet all but 2 of these were backyard gardens - not community garden. Also, there are 2 Cheshires in CT, Cheshire Town and Cheshire Village. The 1998 survey calculated its stats on the village, but according to the address given, it should have been the town (a population factor of ~4.5). Now on to my question: Newark NJ is a major outlier with 42 gardens per 10,000 people versus the next highest at 14 (Minneapolis) and then dropping again to 7 for Philly and Trenton and then again for all the rest at 3.5 on down. I wonder whether the number of gardens given in Newark (1318) is for garden plots or gardens (the basis for this survey). The person who did the survey for Newark (IC Patel) apparently is no longer in that position. Does anyone know how many gardens (not plots) were in Newark in 1998? Or at least a good estimate. Steven Steven M. Garrett Doctoral Candidate, Geography Lecturer, Urban Studies University of Washington Tacoma --------------------------------- Catch up on fall's hot new shows on Yahoo! TV. Watch previews, get listings, and more! -------------- next part -------------- An HTML attachment was scrubbed... URL: http://list.communitygarden.org/pipermail/community_garden_list.communit ygarden.org/attachments/20071010/ff5bd5f7/attachment.html _______________________________________________ The American Community Gardening Association listserve is only one of ACGA's services to community gardeners. To learn more about the ACGA and to find out how to join, please go to http://www.communitygarden.org To post an e-mail to the list: [email protected] To subscribe, unsubscribe or change your subscription: http://list.communitygarden.org/mailman/listinfo/community_garden_list.c ommunitygarden.org Confidentiality Notice: The information contained in this e-mail message is legally privileged and confidential information intended only for the use of the individual or entity to whom it is addressed. If the reader of this message is not the intended recipient, you are hereby notified that any use, dissemination, distribution or copy of this e-mail message and attachments is strictly prohibited. If you have received this message in error, please delete it in its entirety. Steven M. Garrett Doctoral Candidate, Geography Lecturer, Urban Studies University of Washington Tacoma --------------------------------- Be a better Heartthrob. Get better relationship answers from someone who knows. Yahoo! Answers - Check it out. -------------- next part -------------- An HTML attachment was scrubbed... URL: http://list.communitygarden.org/pipermail/community_garden_list.communitygarden.org/attachments/20071010/f4af791b/attachment.html _______________________________________________ The American Community Gardening Association listserve is only one of ACGA's services to community gardeners. To learn more about the ACGA and to find out how to join, please go to http://www.communitygarden.org To post an e-mail to the list: [email protected] To subscribe, unsubscribe or change your subscription: http://list.communitygarden.org/mailman/listinfo/community_garden_list.communitygarden.org
