Gardeners are becoming greener

Concern about the environment is influencing the majority of British gardeners in their everyday gardening practice, a sustainability survey by Fetzer Vineyards and the RHS has found

Fetzer Vineyards joined together with the Royal Horticultural Society to carry out the survey about sustainable gardening practices. They asked over 1,000 RHS members to answer questions about the following subjects:
Environmental concern levels
Current gardening behaviour
Drought response strategies
Carbon footprint
Wildlife and the garden

The survey found that around seven in ten gardeners do translate environmental concern into action in their own garden. However, 20 per cent believe their actions won't have any impact on the environment at all and 44 per cent still use chemicals in their garden. Perceived costs and concern for plant welfare were the main factors deterring gardeners from becoming greener.

How green your garden is also depends on your sex, the survey found. Female gardeners expressed more concern about the environment and 78 per cent said they were likely to alter their gardening style to be greener, whereas men were more sceptical and less likely to draw a link between what they do in the garden and the environment.

Similar differences were found between very experienced and less practised gardeners: those with less than 20 years experience have higher environmental concern levels than those with more than 20 years experience.

The survey also found that gardeners are actively seeking education on how best to deal with emerging environmental issues, which suggests promising developments for the future.

Fetzer Vineyards produce premium wines using sustainable practices. To find out more, visit their website

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