On the irrelevance of (peat-free) substrates - Qualitative insights into the social practices of hobby gardeners in Germany

IF 3.7 Q2 ENVIRONMENTAL SCIENCES
Holger Braun , Dorothee Apfel , Benedikt Rilling , Carsten Herbes
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引用次数: 0

Abstract

Reducing peat consumption in hobby gardening offers considerable potential for reducing CO2 emissions, since peatlands are one of the most important natural carbon sinks. While existing research focuses on the products and their diffusion, we focus on people and their practices of gardening. So we conducted 44 interviews with hobby gardeners in Germany from three different contexts: gardening at home, in an allotment garden, and in an urban gardening initiative. Our findings show that substrates are not a major part of gardeners' social interactions. Purchasing substrates is a utility-driven process with, compared to gardening itself, mostly passive information behavior. Although (basic) knowledge about peat is widespread among hobby gardeners, price is the dominant purchase criterion for substrates; sustainability does not play an important role. Our results suggest that communication campaigns by governments and companies should convey substrate-related messages in those places where gardeners go to seek information, e.g. gardening-related publications. Communication should focus on the functional value of peat-free substrates and not just explain environmental benefits. Lastly, campaigns should target home gardeners rather than urban gardeners and allotment gardeners who rarely buy any substrates but rely on their own production.

关于(无泥炭)基质的无关性--对德国业余园艺爱好者社会实践的定性分析
由于泥炭地是最重要的天然碳汇之一,减少业余园艺中的泥炭消耗为减少二氧化碳排放提供了巨大潜力。现有研究的重点是产品及其传播,而我们的重点是人及其园艺实践。因此,我们在德国对爱好园艺的人进行了 44 次访谈,访谈涉及三种不同的情况:在家园艺、配给园艺和城市园艺活动。我们的研究结果表明,基质并不是园艺家社会交往的主要部分。与园艺本身相比,购买基质是一个以效用为导向的过程,主要是被动的信息行为。虽然有关泥炭的(基本)知识在爱好园艺者中很普遍,但价格是购买基质的主要标准,可持续性并不重要。我们的研究结果表明,政府和公司的宣传活动应在园艺爱好者寻求信息的地方(如园艺相关出版物)传达与基质相关的信息。宣传重点应放在无泥炭基质的功能价值上,而不仅仅是解释其环境效益。最后,宣传活动应针对家庭园艺师,而不是城市园艺师和分配园艺师,因为他们很少购买基质,而是依靠自己生产。
本文章由计算机程序翻译,如有差异,请以英文原文为准。
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来源期刊
Cleaner and Responsible Consumption
Cleaner and Responsible Consumption Social Sciences-Social Sciences (miscellaneous)
CiteScore
4.70
自引率
0.00%
发文量
40
审稿时长
99 days
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