Abstract
Gardens are widely acknowledged for their cultural and health benefits, particularly in supporting mental well-being and everyday contact with nature. However, their potential role in influencing local air quality remains largely unexplored. While few studies have examined air quality dynamics within residential garden settings, insights from general urban green infrastructure (GI) research suggest several mechanisms through which garden vegetation could affect pollutant deposition, dispersion, and exposure at the household scale. Evidence from hedges, shrubs, trees, green walls, and lower plants indicates that vegetation structure, plant traits, and spatial configuration shape pollutant capture in other urban contexts, yet these findings have not been tested in domestic gardens, where microclimates and spatial constraints differ markedly. Evidence from food-growing gardens and allotments suggests that edible crops cultivated near roads may accumulate airborne pollutants, particularly metals, underscoring the need to further research on exposure pathways and allotment locations. Taken together, these insights point to a significant gap in current GI and air pollution research: the lack of empirical evidence on how domestic gardens function as socio-ecological systems with potential implications for air-quality regulation. The present analysis synthesises existing knowledge to highlight why domestic gardens merit greater attention in urban air quality research and policy. By identifying key mechanisms, knowledge gaps, and interdisciplinary research priorities, it argues for a more systematic integration of domestic gardens into strategies for urban sustainability, resilience, and public health.