America’s Best Cities for Urban Gardening

Rows of community gardening plots with lots of plants and greenery are surrounded by palm trees in South Beach, Miami, Florida.

Florida may be known as the Sunshine State, but it deserves another nickname — the Gardening State (not to be confused with New Jersey, the Garden State). Three cities in Florida are at the top of our list of America’s Best Cities for Urban Gardening, and another three Sunshine State cities finished in the top 12.

Another sunny state — California — boasts two cities in the top tier.

What about the four other cities in the top 12? Well, they might be as surprising as a rose bush blooming during the winter in Minneapolis.

LawnStarter ranked the 150 biggest cities for urban gardening because tending to herbs, vegetables, and fruit trees is especially popular during the coronavirus pandemic.

With more of us stuck at home, gardening gets us outside. It also provides food security at a time when store shelves are running bare.

So, what are the best U.S. cities for urban gardening?

The Top 12 Best Cities for Urban Gardening

Miami, Florida
Orlando, Florida
Tampa, Florida
Santa Rosa, California
Fort Lauderdale, Florida
Baton Rouge, Louisiana
St. Petersburg, Florida
St. Louis, Missouri
Augusta, Georgia
Riverside, California
Mobile, Alabama
Port St. Lucie, Florida

150 Biggest U.S. Cities Ranked for Urban Gardening

CITY	RANK	TOTAL SCORE	CLIMATE RANK	GARDENING ACTIVITY RANK
Miami, FL	1	58.60	1	6
Orlando, FL	2	50.64	7	14
Tampa, FL	3	48.16	8	19
Santa Rosa, CA	4	47.81	49	8
Fort Lauderdale, FL	5	47.58	1	52
Baton Rouge, LA	6	45.81	55	9
St. Petersburg, FL	7	45.77	6	40
St. Louis, MO	8	45.60	115	1
Augusta, GA	9	44.54	64	7
Riverside, CA	10	44.51	28	22
Mobile, AL	11	44.30	52	12
Port St. Lucie, FL	12	43.68	5	79
Birmingham, AL	13	43.46	80	5
Tucson, AZ	14	43.33	29	27
Huntington Beach, CA	15	43.11	11	53
Cincinnati, OH	16	42.80	118	2
Cape Coral, FL	17	42.63	4	111
Hialeah, FL	18	42.31	1	136
Ontario, CA	19	42.30	18	48
Anaheim, CA	20	41.30	11	80
Sacramento, CA	21	41.28	46	32
Oceanside, CA	22	41.19	20	64
Oakland, CA	23	40.77	16	87
Irvine, CA	24	40.27	11	104
Santa Clarita, CA	25	39.84	17	90
Long Beach, CA	26	39.81	9	115
Virginia Beach, VA	27	39.79	74	13
Elk Grove, CA	28	39.29	21	89
Winston-Salem, NC	29	39.21	92	10
Salt Lake City, UT	30	39.15	117	4
Salem, OR	31	39.01	124	3
Jacksonville, FL	32	38.91	35	69
Phoenix, AZ	33	38.90	10	127
Santa Ana, CA	34	38.78	24	99
Las Vegas, NV	35	38.47	47	58
Tallahassee, FL	36	38.44	61	23
Scottsdale, AZ	37	38.37	39	70
Tempe, AZ	38	38.17	39	72
Peoria, AZ	39	38.02	22	119
Atlanta, GA	40	37.83	67	21
Los Angeles, CA	41	37.77	15	135
San Diego, CA	42	37.76	25	120
Oxnard, CA	43	37.76	32	93
Glendale, CA	44	37.71	11	138
San Francisco, CA	45	37.55	33	96
Chula Vista, CA	46	37.44	25	125
Fresno, CA	47	37.42	45	81
Shreveport, LA	48	37.30	68	25
New Orleans, LA	49	37.16	36	102
Montgomery, AL	50	37.08	78	17
Brownsville, TX	51	36.99	31	110
Glendale, AZ	52	36.96	22	133
Modesto, CA	53	36.93	54	51
Chandler, AZ	54	36.89	39	98
Knoxville, TN	55	36.85	103	11
Henderson, NV	56	36.81	37	109
Rancho Cucamonga, CA	57	36.73	18	137
Bakersfield, CA	58	36.70	53	63
Fremont, CA	59	36.64	30	124
San Bernardino, CA	60	36.47	38	108
Mesa, AZ	61	36.03	39	117
Chattanooga, TN	62	35.91	96	15
San Jose, CA	63	35.61	33	131
Little Rock, AR	64	35.54	60	42
Richmond, VA	65	35.49	90	16
Corpus Christi, TX	66	35.29	51	95
Houston, TX	67	34.88	50	103
Fontana, CA	68	34.75	27	142
Huntsville, AL	69	34.13	82	30
Gilbert, AZ	70	34.10	39	139
Moreno Valley, CA	71	33.98	44	140
Honolulu, HI	72	33.80	73	35
Austin, TX	73	33.46	58	75
Raleigh, NC	74	33.38	98	26
Columbus, GA	75	33.35	59	76
Portland, OR	76	33.14	77	49
North Las Vegas, NV	77	32.50	47	143
Norfolk, VA	78	32.38	57	107
Dallas, TX	79	32.07	65	86
Chesapeake, VA	80	32.05	79	61
Vancouver, WA	81	31.60	104	34
San Antonio, TX	82	31.50	69	91
Stockton, CA	83	31.34	66	100
Greensboro, NC	84	31.32	99	38
Fort Worth, TX	85	31.30	76	77
Durham, NC	86	31.22	100	39
Oklahoma City, OK	87	31.12	81	66
Memphis, TN	88	31.12	63	106
Fayetteville, NC	89	31.11	94	47
Plano, TX	90	30.54	83	68
Lubbock, TX	91	30.49	97	50
Tacoma, WA	92	30.35	108	41
Nashville, TN	93	30.15	110	43
Tulsa, OK	94	30.06	93	62
Grand Prairie, TX	95	30.02	70	121
Albuquerque, NM	96	29.94	111	46
El Paso, TX	97	29.84	62	132
Arlington, TX	98	29.51	75	118
Irving, TX	99	29.50	70	128
Newport News, VA	100	29.46	72	126
Charlotte, NC	101	29.36	85	84
Laredo, TX	102	29.26	56	148
Seattle, WA	103	28.79	89	92
New York, NY	104	28.52	95	83
Indianapolis, IN	105	28.41	128	28
Fort Wayne, IN	106	28.35	125	33
Frisco, TX	107	28.30	88	105
Amarillo, TX	108	28.04	114	54
Lexington, KY	109	27.91	116	56
Washington, D.C.	110	27.87	86	113
Cleveland, OH	111	27.85	120	44
Denver, CO	112	27.83	139	20
Overland Park, KS	113	27.81	112	71
Kansas City, MO	114	27.72	102	94
Reno, NV	115	27.51	121	45
Boston, MA	116	27.48	107	88
Rochester, NY	117	27.36	146	18
Garland, TX	118	27.33	87	123
McKinney, TX	119	27.29	83	130
Wichita, KS	120	27.02	113	78
Louisville, KY	121	26.68	109	101
Pittsburgh, PA	122	26.44	138	29
Boise City, ID	123	25.91	135	36
Baltimore, MD	124	25.62	91	134
Spokane, WA	125	25.57	148	24
Grand Rapids, MI	126	24.54	144	31
Akron, OH	127	25.48	136	37
Toledo, OH	128	24.99	132	55
Lincoln, NE	129	24.40	133	57
Des Moines, IA	130	23.99	127	85
Omaha, NE	131	23.88	130	73
Jersey City, NJ	132	23.25	105	146
Columbus, OH	133	23.16	141	60
Philadelphia, PA	134	23.07	101	149
Colorado Springs, CO	135	23.06	142	59
Worcester, MA	136	22.84	126	112
Madison, WI	137	22.21	145	65
Newark, NJ	138	21.95	105	150
Aurora, IL	139	21.69	131	116
Buffalo, NY	140	21.60	147	74
Providence, RI	141	21.47	119	141
Minneapolis, MN	142	21.38	137	97
Milwaukee, WI	143	21.12	134	114
Chicago, IL	144	20.45	123	145
Yonkers, NY	145	20.36	122	147
St. Paul, MN	146	19.59	140	129
Aurora, CO	147	19.59	143	122
Detroit, MI	148	19.43	129	144
Sioux Falls, SD	149	18.86	149	82
Anchorage, AK	150	13.97	150	67

How the Best Cities for Urban Gardening Made our List

To dig up our list of America’s Best Cities for Urban Gardening, LawnStarter compared the 150 most populated U.S. cities. We used 11 metrics grouped into two categories: climate and gardening activity.

Among the factors we looked at? The number of nurseries and gardening stores, number of community gardens, length of the growing season, yard size, and the average percentage of sunshine in the spring, summer, and fall.

Miami blossomed in our rankings, thanks to a top showing in the climate category and a No. 4 showing in the gardening-activity category.

“With its warm, humid climate, abundant rainfall, and sandy soils, Florida presents unique challenges and unique opportunities for residents who enjoy gardening or just want to maintain a beautiful landscape,” according to the University of Florida Institute of Food and Agricultural Sciences.

How did the non-Florida, non-California, and non-perfect weather cities end up in the top ranks?

Baton Rouge, Louisiana

A city blanketed in the purple and gold colors of Louisiana State University, landed at No. 6. Baton Rouge’s No. 1 ranking for the largest yards among the 150 cities in our study helped cut a path to its sixth-place finish.

St. Louis, Missouri

St. Louis ranks eighth on our best cities for urban gardening list. YvesSch / CC BY-SA

Better known for beer and baseball, St. Louis earned an eighth-place ranking on our list. But it didn’t make it there because of its climate. St. Louis’ position as the city with the highest number of community gardens per 100,000 residents helped lift its overall score.

Two other cities in the South join Baton Rouge.

Augusta, Georgia

Professional golf’s annual Masters Tournament put Augusta on the map, so that could explain why there might be so many master gardeners there. In our ranking, it scores a hole-in-one (no. 9) for the highest share of gardening clubs per 100,000 residents.

Mobile, Alabama

Mobile hosts the country’s oldest Mardi Gras celebrations, where attendees might spot a lot of the city’s signature plant: the flowering azalea shrub. Mobile comes in at No. 11, getting high marks in the temperature, precipitation, and yard-size groupings.

Methodology

Here are the factors we took into account to come up with our ranking.

Gardening activity (total points: 55)

Number of nurseries and gardening stores per 100,000 residents: 15 points
Number of community gardens per 100,000 residents: 15 points
Number of regional gardening clubs per 100,000 residents: 10 points
Yard size: 10 points
Number of farmers markets per 100,000 residents: 5 points

Climate (total points: 45)

Growing season (number of days): 15 points
Average percentage of potential sunshine (spring to fall): 10 points
Average monthly temperature (spring to fall): 5 points
Average monthly precipitation (spring to fall): 5 points
Annual mean number of days with minimum temperature of 32 degrees or below: 5 points
Annual mean number of days with maximum temperature of 90 degrees or above: 5 points

The Benefits of Gardening

Urban gardening at the Ravenna-Eckstein Community Center. Seattle Parks / Flickr / CC By 2.0

As explained by The Miami Times, gardening delivers a bushel of benefits, including:

Exposure to sunlight, which produces vitamin D.
Exercise.
Reduces the risk of dementia, heart disease, stroke, depression, colon cancer, and premature death.
Boost in mental health.
Sense of community.

But with these benefits comes some risks, especially if you ignore the basic safety rules in the garden. The advantage of joining a community garden is the safety equipment and rules are already in place.

Gardening as a Pandemic Respite

The growing season in Miami doesn’t hit its stride until October, yet gardening has grown in popularity in South Florida since the coronavirus pandemic prompted stay-at-home orders.

“It’s glorious to take care of a living being,” Miami horticulturist Mike Heckart told Miami New Times. “It definitely makes you more connected. There’s this realization that none of us exist in a vacuum. We are connected to the world around us, and it’s not just people.”

Data sources used in this study

National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration, almanac.com, Yelp, American Community Gardening Association, National Garden Clubs Inc., and LawnStarter.

Main image credit: Urban gardening in South Beach, Miami, Florida. Kristen Taylor from Brooklyn, U.S. / CC BY-SA