Writing the landscape of everyday life: lay narratives of the home garden

Britain is often portrayed as 'a nation of gardeners'; indeed recent surveys indicate that in the summer months two-thirds of adults are regular gardeners, with women being more intensely involved than men. In rural and urban areas gardens attached to dwellings are a significant, 'everyday' element in a range of landscapes, spaces and terrains. The domestic garden is often viewed as a private space, but its material form being external to the house means it is not readily separable from the public domain and other ecological landscapes such as parks, woods, and allotments. When gardening people can create their everyday landscape through ' mixing with the earth'.

There are a vast range and number of professional narratives on gardens and gardening including novels, films, how-to garden books, and magazines. In recent years there has been a significant growth in TV coverage ranging from expert advice, to instant makeover, and lifestyle programmes. These narratives play a prominent role in shaping not only domestic garden design and gardening styles, but also social and cultural landscapes. Very little, however, is known about meanings of the garden from the perspective of 'ordinary' people themselves and how this changes over the life course. Why do people say they 'love' their gardens? How do gardens relate to family life/history, children's play, fears, adventures, and getting older? Do people have special memories of childhood gardens? How does gardening improves people's well-being and quality of life? What do people like doing in their gardens? Do men and women have different ways of visualising the garden? This project seeks to gather, analyse and present lay narratives on gardens and gardening from the Mass Observation Archive based at the University of Sussex.

The project will start by analysing writings from the Archive to provide a context to the intensive analysis of people's 'garden stories'; we will track 30 selected cases, and interrogate respondents life stories in relation to themes of the home, family, garden practices, and memories. The 'Garden and Gardening' Directive issued in 1998 generated one of the largest numbers of responses for many years. Respondents were asked to write about their childhood, garden memories, plants/flowers that are 'special' to them, garden knowledge, and their gardening habits. They were also asked to send in a photograph of their garden, many did so; approximately 80 good quality photographs of gardens reside in the Archive will have been operational for 70 years and a series of public events are planned. The contemporary media indicates the strength of public interest in gardens and the results of this project will provide a major opportunity to engage the public with arts and humanities research.

The research will be of interest to:
- Academics concerned to advance knowledge on the links between lay narratives,
gender and the life course, and domestic landscapes;
- Garden Designers, gardening 'industry' expert, and policy-makers seeking to gain a
better appreciation of the significance of the garden in every day life, and how and why
gardening habits change;
- Creative artists and horticulture therapy organisations (e.g. Thrive) wishing to
appreciate the deep emotional benefits of gardening for people;
- The media and public at large interested in the contemporary meanings of gardens.