Impact Study 2026
Fryd Impact Study 2026

What does
a garden change?

In July 2026, 1,207 gardeners told us what growing their own food does to them and their surroundings. We believe social change starts in the garden. Here are the results, told honestly.

0participants from Germany, Austria, Switzerland, the UK and beyond
0%have grown their gardening knowledge
0%enjoy gardening more than they used to
0+ haof vegetable beds, more than 5 football pitches combined
Illustration: gardener with a harvest basket
The study

Who we asked

An online survey among the readers of our newsletter, in German and English. Most respondents are experienced vegetable gardeners: 8 years of growing experience in the median, 62% are over 50.

0

responses

1,111 from the German survey, 96 from the English one. Complete questionnaires, 1 to 6 July 2026.

0%

proper self-sufficient growers

grow at least a quarter of the vegetables they eat in their own garden.

0

garden without Fryd

Our comparison group. It lets us separate what gardens do from what Fryd contributes.

Impact on nature

How ecologically dedicated
hobby gardeners grow

Private gardens are refuges for insects and birds. How consistently the gardeners in our study grow surprised even us:

Where Fryd makes a difference

Overall, both groups garden at a similar level. But on the practices you can learn and plan, Fryd users are ahead. Flip the switch:

Flowering plants for insects91%
Diverse companion planting87%
Peat-free soil74%

It adds up: 85% of users say they garden more ecologically than before, 79% without Fryd.

Impact on people

Gardening changes who you are

We asked what has changed since the participants started gardening. A garden does not just make beds fertile. It builds knowledge, gives confidence and simply makes people happy.

That harvest and pests rank behind knowledge and joy is actually a good sign for the data quality: weather, slugs and soil are impressed by no one, not even by an app.

The Fryd share

And how much of that is Fryd?

We asked the most uncomfortable question directly: how much of what has changed in your garden do you credit to Fryd? The answers are honest, and that is exactly why we believe them.

For context: many of the most experienced gardeners no longer come to Fryd to find knowledge, they come to pass it on. A "nothing" is often the answer of someone who is the learning source for others.

Where Fryd concretely helped:

Planning and bed design 65% Gardening knowledge 42% Staying motivated 28% Plant health and pests 20% Ecological gardening 15%

The longer with Fryd, the bigger the share

The strongest pattern in the study. Drag the slider and watch what happens as usage time grows:

Illustration: growing seedling
2%credit Fryd with at least half of their change
4%name Fryd as one of their most important ways to learn
without
Frydup to
3 months3 to 6
months6 to 12
monthsover
1 yearover
3 years

Group: without Fryd, n=186

credit Fryd with at least half of their change name Fryd as one of their most important ways to learn
Data as a table
Usage durationAttribution ≥ 50%Fryd as important learning source
without Fryd (n=186)2%4%
up to 3 months (n=161)12%25%
3 to 6 months (n=120)20%37%
6 to 12 months (n=174)17%48%
over 1 year (n=461)36%59%
over 3 years (n=93)43%74%

What this means

Gardens change people. Fryd speeds that development up: among those who have used Fryd for more than three years, more than four in ten credit the app with at least half of their own development. This is not proof of causality, that would need longitudinal data. But it is exactly the pattern you want to see when a tool works.

Voices from the study

What gardeners wrote to us

"Fryd is my only social media, because it doesn't steal my time. It motivates me to put my phone away and cycle to my allotment."
User for over a year · translated from German
"I started using Fryd when I came to Saudi Arabia. I have a very small garden with limited space, so it helped me to optimise my planting, choosing what would work well together."
User for over a year
"Found the information about what to plant next to each other really helpful."
User for several months
"During the hot days I noticed how important shade and green space are, for me as a human too."
Transparency

Where this study hits its limits

We publish these results because we believe in them. And for you to believe them too, the limitations belong right here:

Self-selection

People who read a gardening newsletter and volunteer for an impact study are among the most engaged gardeners out there. The eco numbers describe our community, not hobby gardeners in general.

A survey, not an experiment

Self-reported, a snapshot. The link with usage time may also exist because people stay with an app that helps them. Causal claims would need longitudinal data, which we are working on.

Veterans underestimated

If you have always gardened ecologically, you had to disagree with "more ecologically than before". Several participants wrote us exactly that. If anything, the change numbers underestimate reality.

Questions about the method, interested in the aggregated data or in working together? Write to us: [email protected]

The study keeps growing.
Does your garden?

Fryd is the vegetable garden planner with one of the largest gardening communities in Europe: plan your beds, master companion planting, learn from 400,000+ gardeners.

Social change starts in the garden.

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