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The Social and Ecological Values of Native Gardens Along Streets

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The Social and Ecological Values of Native Gardens Along Streets The social and ecological values of native gardens along streets A socio-ecological study in the suburbs of Perth Clean Air and Urban Landscapes Hub February 2021 Authors Natasha Pauli1, Clare Mouat1, Kit Prendergast2, Lou Chalmer1, Cristina Estima Ramalho1, and Emma Ligtermoet1. 1 University of Western Australia 2 Curtin University Citation Pauli, N., Mouat, C., Prendergast, K., Chalmer, L., Ramalho, C.E., and Ligtermoet, E. (2020) The social and ecological values of native gardens along streets: A socio-ecological study in the suburbs of Perth. Report for the Clean Air and Urban Landscapes Hub (CAUL), Melbourne, Australia. About the Clean Air and Urban Landscapes Hub The Clean Air and Urban Landscapes Hub (CAUL) is a consortium of four universities: the University of Melbourne, RMIT University, the University of Western Australia and the University of Wollongong. The CAUL Hub is funded by the Australian Government’s National Environmental Science Program. The task of the CAUL Hub is to undertake research to support environmental quality in our urban areas, especially in the areas of air quality, urban greening, liveability and onbiodiversity, applying research and with to a focus develop practical solutions. www.nespurban.edu.au The Clean Air and Urban Landscapes Hub is funded by the Australian Government's National Environmental Science Program Acknowledgement of Country We would like to acknowledge that this paper, and the research it reports conducted as part of the Clean Air and Urban Landscapes Hub, has taken place on Country belonging to the Whadjuk Noongar people of the Noongar Nation in Whadjuk Boodja (country), metropolitan region of Perth. We respectfully acknowledge the sovereignty of all of Australia’s first peoples, their Ancestors, and Elders, past, present and emerging and that their lands and waters of Australia have never been ceded. Foreword This publication has arisen from Project 6, one of the seven projects conducted within the Clean Air and Urban Landscapes Hub, which aimed to establish a network of urban greening study sites across Australian urban centres to understand and measure the multiple benefits of urban greening, focussing on outcomes for biodiversity, culture and human health and wellbeing. An important output from this project is to share the methods and approaches that can be adapted by researchers and practitioners for future use at urban greening projects at a range of different sites and scales. The use of a network of study sites has provided opportunities to study the process of how urban greening initiatives are implemented, how to study them from a socio-ecological perspective, and how or why they are successful. This knowledge can inform future urban greening projects and research designed to understand the benefits and outcomes. In doing so it will provide an evidence base and methodology for measuring and understanding social, cultural and biodiversity benefits of urban greening initiatives according to landscape context, and scale. Acknowledgements We thank all the residents who gave their time, insights and energy to the interviewers and allowed their verge gardens to be surveyed. We extend our thanks to the Cities of Stirling, Subiaco, and Vincent for promoting the research to local residents. The authors are grateful for the contributions of Dr Luis Mata, Dr Mariana Atkins, Dr Gracie Verde Selva, Ms Julia Föllmer, Mr Elisha Chu, and Dr Cecily Maller to the research presented in this report. We thank Dr Bryan Boruff and Dr Jane Heyworth for their support in realising this research. The social and ecological values of nature strip transformations Contents Executive Summary .............................................................................................................................. iii 1 Introduction .................................................................................................................................. 1 1.1 Governance, planning context, and significance of street verges ........................................ 2 1.2 The movement towards street verge gardening .................................................................. 3 1.3 The social drivers and outcomes of verge gardening ........................................................... 6 1.4 Environmental values and ecosystem services of nature strips ........................................... 6 1.5 Objectives of this research .................................................................................................... 7 2 Methods ........................................................................................................................................ 9 2.1 A socio-ecological approach ................................................................................................. 9 2.2 Study area ............................................................................................................................. 9 2.2.1 Biophysical and cultural setting .................................................................................... 9 2.2.2 Suburban Perth study areas ........................................................................................ 11 2.3 Interviews with verge-gardening residents ........................................................................ 14 2.3.1 Recruitment and logistical considerations .................................................................. 14 2.3.2 Demographic questionnaire ....................................................................................... 14 2.3.3 Interview themes ........................................................................................................ 15 2.3.4 Data analysis ............................................................................................................... 17 2.4 Plant, bird and pollinator surveys ....................................................................................... 19 2.4.1 Verge plant mapping ................................................................................................... 19 2.4.2 Insect pollinators and bird activity .............................................................................. 21 2.4.3 Data analysis ............................................................................................................... 21 3 Results of interviews with verge gardeners ................................................................................ 22 3.1 Characteristics of verge gardeners ..................................................................................... 22 3.2 Initial impetus for verge transformation ............................................................................ 23 3.2.1 Towards a typology of verge gardeners ...................................................................... 25 3.3 The process of verge transformation .................................................................................. 27 3.3.1 Sources of inspiration and ideas ................................................................................. 28 3.3.2 Rationale for plant selection ....................................................................................... 30 3.3.3 Branching out from verge gardening .......................................................................... 32 3.4 The impact of the verge garden .......................................................................................... 32 3.4.1 Practicalities of management ..................................................................................... 32 3.4.2 Benefits to the household ........................................................................................... 35 3.4.3 Impact on the community ........................................................................................... 36 3.4.4 Social interactions ....................................................................................................... 37 3.5 Perceptions of gardening and nature ................................................................................. 39 3.5.1 Gardens and their use ................................................................................................. 39 iii The social and ecological values of nature strip transformations 3.5.2 Favoured plants, animals and insects ......................................................................... 39 3.5.3 Enjoyment gained from wildlife, gardening, and being in nature .............................. 40 3.5.4 Exposure to gardening and nature as children ........................................................... 40 3.6 Sense of ownership of the verge ........................................................................................ 42 3.7 Doing things differently and looking to the future ............................................................. 43 3.7.1 Advice for others ......................................................................................................... 45 3.7.2 Information needs ....................................................................................................... 46 3.7.3 The future of the verge garden ................................................................................... 46 4 Results of plant, bird and insect surveys of verge gardens ........................................................ 47 4.1 Characteristics of verge gardens ......................................................................................... 47 4.2 Plant species encountered in verge
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