Getting a plot. Recent years have seen a great revival in enthusiasm for growing your own produce, healthy lifestyles and getting plenty of outdoor exercise. As someone who would always rather be outside than indoors
Getting a plot.
Recent years have seen a great revival in enthusiasm for growing your own produce, healthy lifestyles and getting plenty of outdoor exercise. As someone who would always rather be outside than indoors and with a family background of almost self-sufficiency ( my parents had a huge garden and an allotment and rented a piece of land to grow food), I have always tried to grow a few vegetables and flowers no matter how small or lacking any garden I have is! When my daughter and her partner moved into a new house a couple of years ago we were all interested to learn that the new estate would have some allotments. Initially it seemed like they would not be eligible to apply for one, but as a year and a half went by with nothing happening to the plots we enquired and were told that anyone could apply and that the plots would be available in 2020. Of course, the lockdown caused further delays and I was not really expecting that my application would be successful. Friends in other areas waited years to get a plot and I imagined we would be on a long waiting list too.
Imagine the delight to hear that not only did my daughter and her partner get a plot , but we had too…another lengthy wait while the local council got the plots ready and further lockdown delays ensued. However, in early December 2020 we paid our key deposit and were presented with a muddy patch of land! Lots of poring over gardening books, questions to gardening friends and plans are under way. As these allotments are all new and everyone is starting from scratch, it will be interesting and hopefully entertaining to see how everyone gets on! Our plots are adjacent so hopefully we will be able to share showing my little baby grandaughter the joys of growing your own as she grows too…
So, what is an allotment? it is defined as : “an area of land, leased either from a private or local authority landlord, for use of growing fruit or vegetables”. Historically plots were measured in rods or poles – a practice dating back to Anglo-Saxon times. The lovely lady at Lymington and Pennington Town council told me that ours are either 10m x 5 m or 11m x 4m – this is smaller than the traditional size, but probably more than big enough for those new to allotment-holding! Produce must only be grown for the use of the holder and family – not for profit.
During the 19th century land was given to the “labouring poor” to grow food and this was protected in law by the 1908 Smallholdings and Allotments Act. A further boost to allotment numbers came after the first World War to benefit returning soldiers. Additional laws were passed in 1922 to safeguard the land and ensure councils maintained waiting lists and met their obligations to provide allotments. Fair rents had to just cover the costs or water and maintenance and tenancy agreements were introduced. At this time, allotment holders were not permitted to work on their plots on Sundays – we are glad this has changed! Even now, anyone can request that their council consider providing more space if waiting lists are long or you can ask about using any patch of unused land. Some allotment areas have associations and share insurance – time will tell how this evolves at Alexander allotments.
The ongoing pandemic and general movement to tackle climate change and to work for the benefit of the planet has fuelled renewed interest in allotments – like-minded people working alongside each other creates “social capital” and encourages a community learning and sharing together. The benefits also include improvement to mental well-being and physical health – a real sense of achievement when fresh, local , seasonal food is successfully grown and time spent in the fresh air and close to the natural world is another bonus. Allotments add to habitat mosaics and provide wildlife corridors too. A recent study in the Netherlands demonstrated that spending 10% more time outside in green spaces could make people seem five years younger than they really are!
Having just spent two freezing days after Christmas digging over our plot and getting it covered with a weed membrane has certainly proved to us that it will be hard work, but also fun and rewarding….