Immigrant home gardens: Places of religion, culture, ecology, and family

Abstract

a b s t r a c tThis paper focuses on the role of home gardens in the lives of immigrants. An ethnographic research was conducted which included observations of 16 home gardens and unstructured open-ended interviews with 28 immigrants from India, Vietnam; Indonesia, Philippines, Iran, China and Taiwan, to Southern California, USA. The lessons from this study are that for immigrants home gardens can be: (a) religious space enabling everyday practice of religion as well as meditation and socialization; (b) culture space through plants, fruits and flowers that enable cultural cuisine, ethnomedicine, and identity continuity; (c) ecological space that assists with environmental/ecological nostalgia, reconnecting people with landscapes left behind as well as forging new connections to place; (d) family memorial space where gardens honor and memorialize family members and provide opportunities for intergenerational linkages. These enable immigrants to engage with, personalize, and experience their new environment in deeply meaningful ways.

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