ABSTRACT
Rutgers Urban Gardening is a unique public service educational program aimed at teaching gardening skills and food production, utilization and preservation to low-income city residents of Newark and surrounding communities. The documented evaluation of educational efforts revealed many benefits that the program participants believed resulted from gardening. Gardens became places for human interaction and community building. Gardens improved the neighborhoods and provided opportunity to meet neighbors and know others. This chapter describes how gardening influenced and promoted the use of various sources and channels of communication in the transfer of gardening technologies. Gardens became places for human interaction and community building. People's behavior in communities and social groups is influenced by the presence of plants and participation in gardening activities. Gardens promoted the use of various sources and communication channels and thereby improved communication between gardeners and Extension agents.
