Signs of understanding: a study on community garden signage, strength through volunteerism and community resources

Introduction Community gardens are production systems that can provide nutrition while building community connections through volunteer service. However, with any production system, there are obstacles. Low volunteer rates, gardening education, and funding issues are common problems reported among gardens. Many organizations use written and pictorial signage to attract attention, promote a message, and/or provide education, which can possibly influence productivity or success of a community garden. Therefore, the role community garden signage plays in garden activities was investigated. Methods A survey was conducted with 51 community garden leaders ( N = 51) to collect text and pictures regarding positive and negative garden elements and available signage. Inductive qualitative descriptive methods and conventional content analysis were employed to examine the text and images. Results Overall, garden education and volunteers are among the most successful garden elements. While many gardens reported utilizing attractive and informational signage, there was limited educational signage in gardens. Discussion To provide recommendations to community gardens, a conceptual framework was developed to demonstrate how to utilize signage, community resources, and volunteers to yield a healthy, productive garden.