Allotment Diary July 2007

It has been raining for ever and I havn’t been to the allotment as often as I should. I have been visiting family and doing extra hours at work, and to be honest, my poor plot is looking neglected. We seem to have rabbits at work, and they have polished off my peas and my carrots.
Still I have been picking the blackcurrants and have dug up my garlic to dry.

I will need to get the onions soon



Other things are surviving, or even growing a bit, like the runner beans,



Sweet peas





Cabbages, although a little munched by caterpillers…



Courgettes are becoming marrows rather too quickly with all the rain. Any courgette receipes would be useful, but not marrow jam, its just too grim!



Of course my pond is still ok, a little covered in weed and in need of attention, but full of bugs and frogs and damselflies.


Today I saw bank voles making a nest in a deserted corner. I expect they will be munching all my peas and beans later, but I think I am ok with that, how hypocritical, it is because they are furry, i bet i wouldn't feel that way about a gang of slugs!

I tried tomatoes in grow bags this year as I get blight on the plot. It hasn’t worked – I think I haven’t watered them enough.

Happy Plotting!

Penwortham Allotments protected from development

In spite of rumours to the contrary, all Penwortham allotment sites have the full protection of the law with regards to their development. They are all statutory sites and this means that they cannot be used for any purpose other than as allotments unless it can be proven that they are surplus to requirements. This means a substantial proportion of the plots must be vacant.

Benedicta Peters from the urban green spaces team in the Department of Communities and Local Government confirmed
"Consent is not given unless the Secretary of State is satisfied that the local authority has done full investigation into whether the plot really is surplus; for example they've taken into account their waiting list and have advertised extensively"

The National Society of Allotment and Leisure Gardeners confirm this interpretation of the law and explain


In 1998, the Select Committee Enquiry into allotments resulted in the report The Future of Allotments in which the Select Committee expressed concern about the level of allotment site disposals and the implications this would have for the predicted increase in demand for allotments in the future.

Concern had been expressed by the Select Committee that the criteria for assessing disposals were too weak and too many disposals of allotment sites had been permitted. This did not sit comfortably with the Urban White Papers commitment to the protection of urban green spaces, including allotments.

In September 1999, the Government Offices were issued guidance by the Government on allotment policy and casework. This included a section on the procedure for dealing with applications to dispose to statutory allotment land under Section 8 of the 1925 Allotment Act.


Adequate provision will be made for displaced plot holders, or that such provision is not necessary or is impracticable;

The number of people on the waiting list has been effectively taken into account;

The authority has actively promoted and publicised the availability of allotment sites and has contacted The National Society of Allotment and Leisure Gardeners

In February 2002, the Planning Policy Guidance Note 17— Sport, Open Space and Recreation was strengthened and the criteria clarified by adding that

The allotment in question is not necessary and is surplus to requirements

The implications of disposal for other relevant policies, in particular development plan policies, have been taken into account.

It is clear from this that it is not sufficient to offer an alternative site to allotment holders and that as long as the allotments have 100% occupancy and a waiting list they cannot be disposed of under current legislation.

Rumour has it that Preston City Council wish to restrict the waiting lists for their two sites in Penwortham to Preston City residents only. This would reflect the increasing demand for plots, and if this goes ahead then there may be a case for more allotment sites in South Ribble to cope with current demand.

Grow Your Own – Allotments hit the silver screen!

A new film, Grow Your Own has been released which centres on the allotment and the part it can play in forming communities from individuals. It is based on a real project to give Balkan War refugees allotments in Liverpool. Gardening as therapy for those who have experienced real trauma is increasingly recognised as beneficial, as The Medical Foundation for the care of victims of torture has found in its work with torture survivors. Those involved in the charity’s natural growth project find it easier to talk about the past outside, on one of the projects allotments.

Grow Your Own follows the lives of the plotholders over a year, and focuses on the changes which ensue when two new tenants arrive: Diveen Henry’s widowed Zimbabwean émigré Miriam (with son in tow) and broken, Chinese mute Kung Sang, who’s unable to care for his two kids. As the seasons pass, the elder tenants and their new neighbours begin to connect and, inevitably, grow along with their produce. The full review can be seen here

Allotment diary May 2007

I cant believe I am doing my diary for may and it is the middle of June. I guess that I have been so busy planting and watering things that I have not had time to write about it! It has been really dry on the allotments during May. I tried to water as much as I could, but like many people did not make it up everyday. I am not sure whether I should just give up on my carrot seeds, but think I will give them another couple of weeks to appear. I have sown them 3 times now. I have seen a couple of tiny seedlings, which have disappeared. Slugs? Mice? Birds? Aliens? Who knows!

Other than this things are doing ok. My peas are a little yellow, and I think it is magnesium deficiency so I have put some epsom salts on them. I don’t get such a good crop as other plots. I need to go and ask what the trick is!

It looks like a bumper year for fruit.

Strawberries are just beginning to ripen



Plums are blooming



Currents are ripening



Apples are looking good.


Onions and garlic need some rain really to swell them up a bit but they are ok, courgettes are settling in.

We have dug up the first new potatoes, we used to wait until June, but by the time we get to the end of them they have become floury and are more prone to slug damage. We dig them up so early we need 3 plants for the family, but they do taste good!

The allotments are looking lovely, foxgloves and iris giving splashes of colour. Most people have a few flowers on the plots to encourage the bees and those butterflies!

On the pond the lily leaves are up, but no flowers yet. The tadpoles are getting fatter. We have seen damselflies on the pond, two types, the blue ringtail and the emerald rubyspot. It is such a peaceful and relaxing place to be, and there is nothing more stress busting than an hour by the pond with a good book! Why not put a pond on your allotment or in your garden? The . BBC website tells you how.

Excellent reasons to preserve allotments

What is the value of allotments to a community? Recently a survey of London’s allotments has been completed which identifies 5 main areas of benefit. The survey was commissioned by the Environment Committee and the London Assembly.Londons disapearing allotments (Link to london assembly pages, scroll down for A lot to lose)


Social benefits.

Allotments are found within often densely populated urban areas. Living in cities can create a sense of isolation because the size of the city makes social networks difficult to establish. In Greenwich one association told the London Assembly

“Many firm friendships have orgininated here – the first question to any new allotment neighbour is not ‘what do you do?’ but ‘what are you planning to grow?’”

The mix of people with a common interest makes for interesting friendships which break age, religious and ethnic divides.

In his book Allotment Folk, Chris Opperman interviews many different allotment enthusiasts and their take on allotmenting is as diverse as they are. Stan, who is 26 and had just taken a plot says “if I hadn’t had people around me to show me what to do and encourage me I think I might have given up. Those people have become friends, good ones.”

This mirrors my own experience when, 6 months pregnant, I first looked at the grassy area which was my allotment. Two old timers, George and Jim provided advice, encouragement and lots of practical help. In my first growing season most of my produce was gifts from other plotholders as I struggled to tame the weeds and clay soil that I had inherited.

The allotment is social but it is also a place of solitude and peace.

Health benefits.

One of the most frequently cited benefits of allotment gardening is health improvement and the impact of ‘green exercise’ on physical and mental health is of increasing interest to the medical professionals.

Research such as the Cultivating Health project illustrate the advantages to older people of allotment gardening.

The health benefits were also recognised by the Government in its response to the Environment, Transport and Regional Affairs Committees report The Future of Allotments (September 1998)


In which the government recognises the health benefits of allotment gardening and agrees that “allotments will often form a component part of healthy neighbourhoods”

The health argument is more compelling when you add Government predictions that over 12 million people will be obese by 2010. (Forecasting Obesity to 2010, Department of health August 2006).

The health values of gardening are not disputed, and in a period of extensive house building where new homes are often built with very little outside space, the demand for allotments can be expected to rise.

The London Assembly report A Lot To Lose cites an association in Barnet

“At any one time here there are up to a dozen plotholders who are chronically ill, often with cancer, for whom the allotments are a positive lifeline, a source of physical and spiritual refreshment that keeps them going from day to day.”

My husband was made redundant 9 months after our daughter was born. I think that working the plot, producing our own food, helped us through that very low point. It was 18 months before he found another job.

The Medical Foundation for the care of victims of torture has found gardening effective in its work with torture survivors. Those involved in the charities natural growth project find it easier to talk about the past outside, on one of the projects allotments.


Healthy Eating

There are long term health benefits from eating a diet high in fruit and vegetables. I grow fruits that we all love but that are too expensive to buy in large quantities, raspberries, strawberries, blackberries, blackcurrants, gooseberries, rhubarb, those sweet peas in the pod and plums.



In May 2006 The Majors Food Strategy Healthy and Sustainable food for London identified as a priority action the expansion of individual and community growing, for example in allotments.

Allotments have been used by many councils to help to educate children and young people about food production.




Environment

Allotments have a special status as green areas within often heavily built up urban centres and they can make a valuable contribution to biodiversity.




The Royal Society for the Protection of Birds, London, says

“House sparrows and starlings are among birds disappearing from our streets but its noticeable from our annual Big Garden/Big Schools birdwatch campaigns that areas around allotments fare much better…. To some an untended plot may be an eyesore but these wild areas are home to a wide range of birds and insects. Bramble and ivy provide both food and shelter all year round and are favoured by wrens, robins, blackbirds and song thrushes.” (p.11 A lot to lose, Londons disappearing allotments)

These arguments are supported by many plotholders. See my previous blog on biodiversity

Allotments also greatly reduce the transport costs of food. They have the shortest distance from field to plate. A government report The Validity of Food Miles as an indicator of sustainable development in July 2005 put the environmental, social and economic cost of food transport at £9 billion annually. 10 billion tonnes of carbon dioxide were emitted in the UK in 2002 as a result of food transportation.

Food packaging is also a major issue facing todays government. It is estimated that UK households produce the equivalent of 245 jumbo jets worth a week of packaging waste.statistics from waste online

The actions of individuals have been increasingly highlighted by government as vital to reducing landfill and to becoming ‘carbon neutral’. One way for local communities to help to achieve this is by providing allotments for all those who with to cultivate them – friends and neighbours benefit too- and to promote this lifestyle as vigorously as possible.


Financial Benefits

The original purpose of allotments in the General Inclosure Act of 1845 was to provide a source of fresh food for the landless poor. Some plots are productive enough to reap real savings for individuals. My own plot means I am self sufficient in fruit and veg for two months of the year, and do have some crops all year round.

In the past allotments were a vital part of a families income – John Stuart Mill claimed that allotments were a contrivance to compensate the labourer for the insufficiency of his wages by giving him something else as a supplement to them. (J.S Mill Principles of Political Economy Volume 2 1848)


Having a plot though, means you always have something to give, always part of allotment life. This is a market where you can give and take – share – with pleasure.

Sally's tale

Allotment Diary April 2007

The weather was so beautiful at the beginning of the month, but the ground became very hard to dig, probably because my soil is quite heavy and tends towards clay! However, although slugs have eaten my spinach, and my carrot seeds have not yet appeared, (or have appeared and disappeared overnight)…things are not looking too bad on the plot.




The broad beans and peas are growing well, and another row of peas has been planted out. The gooseberries and blackcurrants are setting fruit, as is the plum tree. That looks like it will be a bumper crop. Strawberries are flowering too, and doing very well in the hot april weather.



I have finished cropping the purple sprouting broccoli and have also had some rhubarb, which I had forced, under a bucket. It made a very good crumble. Encouraged by the hot weather I planted some courgettes and cucumbers under the plastic cloche, and put tomatoes in grow bags surrounded by a plastic windshield. I have to put the tomatoes in grow bags as I have tomato blight in the soil.

Of course the weeds are doing well and weeding is a constant job to do. I am trying to mulch out the sticky weed that is taking over!

As for nature we have released frogs near to the pond from tadpoles that we had in a tank at home. On the evening that we did this we also saw larger frogs in the pond. Pond skaters have been seen as well.





A pair of blue tits is using my nest box, inspite of the fact that the clematis covering it died this year. Once they have finished nesting I will be able to dig out and replace the clematis.

It is good to see so many people on the plots at this time of year. It is a very social place to garden, and there is always someone around to ask for advice or help. Allotments certainly seem to be growing in popularity now, and we have a waiting list for our plots.

People experience so many benefits in having an allotment that are much more than the more obvious exercise, social contact, fresh air and good food. They are a fantastic stress buster. Redundancy, bereavement, illness, depression, all have been helped by a few hours down on the plot, as plotters will testify.