Ecosystem services from urban gardens

This chapter examines ecosystem services, understood as the flow of benefits from urban gardens to humans, thereby providing a collection of empirical evidence for their multi-functionality. The concept of ecosystem services is increasingly being used to highlight the links between urban ecosystems and human well-being. Provisioning services describe the physical flow of goods that humans obtain from ecosystems, such as food, fibre and medicinal plants. Provisioning services describe material outputs from ecosystems, including food and other resources. Erosion is mainly prevented by the ground cover and the root systems of vegetation, which stabilizes soil against rainwater runoff, thereby decreasing the risk of floods and landslides. Numerous studies show that biodiversity in Europe has been declining rapidly due to the expansion and intensification of urbanization and modern agriculture. Vegetables and herbs grown in urban gardens are sometimes rare or exotic and difficult to find in shops. Most urban gardens contain wild varieties of plants as well as cultivars.