Being(s) in relation at home: socio-natures of patio ‘gardens’ in Managua, Nicaragua

Abstract

Human-nature relations of home have been gaining more attention in geography, especially in the study of gardens. This article contributes to this growing literature, but in contrast to much research, it examines human -nature relations in the patios (garden) of homes in a marginalized barrio (slum) of Managua, Nicaragua. I suggest that the humannature relations in these patios need to be understood differently than those in North American and European gardens. Based on research carried out in Managua, I argue that such relations are at the centre of everyday domestic activities and are critical in producing home as a liveable space in the city. The article draws on feminist geographic understandings of home and current work around human-environment relations, and identifies three different sets of socio-ecological relations: corporeal, aesthetic and economic. It argues that these three different relations between humans and the plants and trees in their patios are critical in the imaginaries around home and in the production of habitable spaces in cities, as well as to our understanding of urban natures.

Homegardens in north-eastern Portugal: former features, roles, gendered knowledge and practices

“…It organises the irrigation calendar, decides the best period for spring and autumnal land preparation and in local market, as observed by other authors worldwide (e.g. Hoogerbrugge and Fresco 1993;Lok 2001;VoglLukasser 2003 andAlbuquerque et al 2005;Kumar and Nair 2004;Maroyi 2009;Shillington 2008;Sunwar et al 2006). Moreover, Montesinho homegardens had additional and unique characteristics related to the architecture of the settlements, local culture and gardeners' perceptions and strategies that defined the different types reported.…”

“…Hoogerbrugge and Fresco 1993;Lok 2001;Vogl-Lukasser 2003, Albuquerque et al 2005;Kumar and Nair 2004;Maroyi 2009;Shillington 2008;Sunwar et al 2006) as they are neither situated near the house, nor do they have the same management strategies as hortas, gardens in the spaces immediately surrounding houses, very similar to homegardens mentioned in above cited literature.…”

“…Albuquerque et al 2005;Kumar and Nair 2004;Maroyi 2009;Shillington 2008;Sunwar et al 2006). Nevertheless, in Europe, particularly in the Iberian Peninsula, homegardens' research is quite recent and still limited (Reis-Garcia et al 2012).…”

The tropical backyard: performing environmental difference

“…Migrant becomings in tropical backyards thus shed light on the diverse sites where “naturecultures” help redefine our thinking not just of “nature” but also of “being human” (Anderson & Braun, , p.xvi). While Head and Muir's () and Arnold's () ideas about dualisms in backyard spaces help unpack and unsettle some dominant meanings, the backyard stories elaborated here suggest the need for a more nuanced understanding of the mutual becomings of backyards and identities; they gesture toward other and different frameworks for understanding more‐than‐human geographies (Ginn, ; Shillington, ). Understanding these environmental encounters can help narrate a new suburban cultural geography in the growing cities of Australia's tropical north—a region encompassing the parts of Australia north of the Tropic of Capricorn, including parts of Western Australia, the Northern Territory, and Queensland.…”

Landscape Design, Housing and Everyday Use of Green Space in Urban China

“…Such work is complimented by studies of conf licts and tensions that circulate around green space, 'nature' and urban living from elsewhere in the world (e.g. Heynen et al 2006;Whitehead 2005;Zerah 2007;Loram et al 2007;Pauleit 2003;Shillington 2008;Sullivan et al 2004;Hondagneu-Sotelo 2010;Woolley 2010;Beer et al 2003;Pauleit et al 2003;Bhatti and Church 2004). In particular, this paper takes its cue from critical writing on urban natures to understand growing inequalities within contemporary Chinese cities with regards to the quality of, and access green space among, different residential communities (Zhang 2010).…”