The 2009 ASHS Annual Conference

Objective(s):
This workshop is the first of the two-part workshop on urban agriculture. In this workshop the general benefits of urban horticulture on the general population and participants will be discussed. Case studies of successful urban horticulture projects as well as the training and use of volunteers in projects will also be presented.

Urban horticulture (agriculture) is an industry located within (intra-urban) or on the fringe (peri-urban) of a town, city or metropolis which grows and raises, processes, and distributes a diversity of food and nonfood products, using or reusing largely human and natural resources, products, and services found in and around that urban area and in turn supplies human and material resources, products, and services largely to that urban area.  Urban agriculture has been practiced by many civilizations throughout human history with historic models such as Machu Picchu.  Current urban agriculture projects include development of productive market gardens and farms in and around the megacities in Asia as well as cities in North America.  This is important as about half of the world’s population resides in or around urban areas and urban agriculture contributes to food security and food safety.  Urban agriculture increases the amount of food available to people living in cities and it allows fresh vegetables and fruits to be made available to urban consumers.  Although urban farming is practiced primarily for income earning or food producing activities, in some communities the main impetus is recreation and relaxation such as community gardens.  The recent rise in food prices has led to the greater demand for access to gardens as well as local produced food.  A common method of urban horticulture production is the use of relatively efficient biointensive or organic production methods, which are often perceived as sustainable practices.  Urban agriculture is also important as it often serves to reclaim land and resources to serve urban populations in a sustainable manner.  This workshop is the first of the two-part workshop on urban agriculture.  In this workshop the general benefits of urban horticulture on the general population and participants will be discussed.  Case studies of successful urban horticulture projects as well as the training and use of volunteers in projects will also be presented.