Householders Attitude, Preferences, and Willingness to Have Home Garden at Time of Pandemics

Perceived COVID-19-related stress drives home gardening intentions and improves human health in Taiwan

The COVID-19 pandemic has added a layer of mental health problems and perceived stress. Home gardening is considered a good method to reduce perceived stress. The current research evidence is insufficient to understand the relationship and influencing factors between the intentions, behaviors, and benefits of home gardening during short-term COVID-19 events. Although the duration from the onset to stabilization of the outbreak lasted for only 1.5 months from May to June 2021 throughout Taiwan, the significant pandemic changes might have affected the perceived stress along with the intentions, behaviors, and benefits of home gardening. This study explored the relationship between pandemic stress and home gardening through online snowball sampling because of the strict social distancing regulations. A total of 1455 non-follow-up and internet questionnaires throughout Taiwan were collected during the wave onset, peak, easing, and stabilization stages. The questionnaire included questions on personal information, perceived pandemic stress, gardening intentions, gardening behaviors, and gardening benefits. This study showed that perceived stress increased from the pandemic onset to its peak, and decreased from the peak to stabilization stages. Home gardening intentions and behaviors also revealed similar trends. Higher pandemic-perceived stress directly increased home-gardening intentions and indirectly promoted home-gardening behaviors and benefits. Our findings indicated that home gardening is a positive element in reducing perceived stress. Lower gardening intentions and behaviors were observed when the high perceived stress was removed. This study suggests that home gardening was a valuable strategy for staying close to nature and obtaining multiple benefits during the peak pandemic period. Providing small-scale gardening activities and spaces is appropriate for obtaining gardening benefits and avoiding space abandonment after the pandemic. Providing seeds, seedlings, tools, knowledge, online home gardening programs, and small residential and food gardens is a valuable strategy for obtaining multiple benefits during the peak of the pandemic.

Should I Pay or Should I Grow? Factors Which Influenced the Preferences of US Consumers for Fruit, Vegetables, Wine and Beer during the COVID-19 Pandemic

This study examines the key factors that determine the preferences of US consumers towards the growing and processing used for horticultural products such as fruit, vegetables, wine and beer over their preferences for buying them both before and after the COVID-19 pandemic. The findings obtained using Partial Least Square Structural Equation Modeling (PLS-SEM) show that engagement with horticulture prior to and after the occurrence of COVID-19 influenced preferences for the growing and processing of fruit, vegetables, wine and beer over buying them in both the pre-COVID-19 and post-COVID-19 contexts. Engagement with horticulture before and after the COVID-19 pandemic was significantly impacted by attitudes towards US growers. Attitudes towards COVID-19 and human values such as self-enhancement, conservation and self-transcendence were also found to be significant factors, while openness to change was not found to be significant. Best practice recommendations are included on the basis of these findings for managers of community gardens, horticultural properties and specialized food stores.