Inch by inch, row by row - popularity of gardening - The Big Picture

Gardening is one of the nation's most popular pastimes. One in four Americans says that gardening is a real hobby or interest of theirs. About one in four spends four or more hours per week tending lawns, flowers, and vegetables.

The share of adults citing gardening as a hobby has not changed significantly in recent years. Since 1988, it has fluctuated between 23 percent and 25 percent. Yet the large number of adults who will age into the prime gardening years in the next century suggests that the overall number of gardeners could increase, even if rates remain stable. The likelihood of gardening as a hobby increases with age, from 13 percent of 18-to-29-year-olds to 26 percent of those aged 30 to 44 and 30 percent of 45-to-59-year-olds. The oldest Americans have the highest gardening rates of all, at 33 percent of those aged 60 and older.

Owning a home is one of the best predictors of the likelihood of gardening, which is why young adults are less likely than average to prune shrubs and mow a lawn. Leisure time probably also has something to do with gardening's popularity among older Americans. Like most gardeners, older adults cite a variety of reasons for gardening. They are more likely than average to say they garden as a way to stay active or for aesthetic pleasure. They're less likely than average to pursue their hobby to spend time with family. So for many of these 60-plus Americans, gardening may be a peaceful, solitary pursuit.

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