British adults have “poor gardening knowledge” according to study
Published: 1 June 2017 - Jenny Wonnacott
Britons lack “basic gardening knowledge”, according to new research, with 49% unable to identify secateurs and 37% unfamiliar with a trowel.
A surprising number of British people were unable to identify the most basic of gardening tools
According to lawn supplier Grono.co.uk, a Great Outdoors IQ Test recently revealed that 42% of Brits did not know what a garden hoe was, while 28% were unsure what a trellis would be used for. A further 18% were unable to identify a rake as a common gardening tool.
The use of a propagator remained a mystery for 44% of respondents, indicating that most British garden-owners were not growing and nurturing their own plants from seed. Gardeners were employed by 46% of poll-takers.
Grono.co.uk spokesperson James Gilmartin said: “The nation’s outdoor IQ is not what it once was, with the research highlighting that some common gardening terms are no longer general knowledge. This also correlates with a move towards easier to maintain outdoor spaces and more people turning to professional help with their gardens.”
Perhaps unsurprisingly, the older generations (65+) were more informed on gardening terms, scoring above average.
Mr Gilmartin added: “Turning our hands to simple DIY and gardening tasks will help boost the nation’s outdoor knowledge, while encouraging children to spend time outdoors will mean that there isn’t a generation gap between the young and old age groups when it comes to gardening know-how.”
Bristol residents have the best knowledge of the outdoors, being able to identify the highest number of common gardening terms and tools, followed by Oxford residents.
Those in Wolverhampton were revealed as having the lowest outdoor IQ, managing to identify the lowest amount of gardening equipment.