Community garden

Why garden in your community?

Whether you’re an experienced gardener or just starting out, community gardening is a great way to connect with others and improve the place where you live. If you don’t have a garden to call your own, community gardening means you can share the benefits of tending a green space, while helping others and the environment 

Benefits for your community

  • Pride of place: public spaces improved by the people that use them allows a sense of ownership and shared learning – for lasting benefit 
  • Greener surrounds: more gardens means a cleaner and greener place to live and visit (91.5 per cent of recently surveyed RHS Bloom and It’s Your Neighbourhood groups listed this as a key benefit to taking part)
  • A healthier environment: attracting wildlife with plants could help to boost local biodiversity and tackle air pollution 
  • Transformation: community gardens can regenerate run-down areas and boost the local economy
  • Safer streets: Cleaner, greener environments have been linked to lower crime rates and reduced anti-social behaviour 
  • Healthier communities: Local food growing can help people make better eating choices, while green exercise is linked to better mental and physical health 

Benefits for you

  • Less stress: ‘green exercise’ like gardening can help reduce anxiety levels and improve mental wellbeing 
  • Get moving: gardening is a great form of aerobic exercise and could help boost your strength, stamina and flexibility
  • Better connections: by growing with others you could meet new people and form stronger local networks
  • New skills: gain new knowledge, such as how to grow fresh tasty food, how to support wildlife, how to improve the local environment and more
  • Discover: take the chance to explore new areas of your community and improve them while you’re at it

Find a local community gardening group in your area

Find a group

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Read our wealth of resources for community groups

Resources for groups

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Volunteer in your community

Clean and green up your local area

Volunteer in your community

Get involved

The Royal Horticultural Society is the UK’s leading gardening charity. We aim to enrich everyone’s life through plants, and make the UK a greener and more beautiful place.